Sally’s Sensational Silver – Athletics Australia NEWS – Sally McLellan has won Australia’s first ever medal in the 100m hurdles tonight.

Sally McLellan has won Australia’s first ever medal in the 100m hurdles tonight.
Only 3/100ths separated places second to sixth, with a brilliantly timed dip at the line, enough to clinch the elusive silver.

American Dawn Harper ran a personal best time of 12.54 to win the gold, after Lolo Jones, the fastest qualifier, stumbled at the penultimate barrier.

McLellan’s time of 12.64, was the same time given to bronze medalist Priscilla Lopes-Schliep of Canada, however the Aussie was given the nod after an agonizing wait for the photo finish result.

At only 21, the Australian record holder was the youngest in the field, yet boasted the fastest 100m flat time.

At the World Championships in Osaka last year, McLellan attempted the 100m/100m hurdles double. While she made the semi finals of the hurdles and became the second fastest Australian over the flat 100m, the decision to focus solely on the hurdles in Beijing has clearly been a masterstroke.

Up until 1968, the women’s sprint hurdles event was contested over 80 metres. Australian women have a strong history over that distance, winning seven medals, three of them gold, until the event shifted to the current distance of 100m at the Munich Games.

A clearly excited McLellan danced jovially with fellow medalist Lopes-Schliep upon seeing the scoreboard flash up with her as the second place getter.

Both of the Australian 400m men went to the Bird’s Nest last night, aiming to become only the eighth Australian in Olympic history to make the 400m final.

Joel Milburn ran a gutsy third in his semi final of the 400m. His time of 45.06 was his third faster ever and came only a day after running a personal best in yesterday's heat.

At only 22 years of age and on his first Australian open team, Milburn will now join the 4 x 400m relay team as our second fastest ever at an Olympic Games.

Sean Wroe backed up from his personal best yesterday to place seventh in his semi final of 45.56.

Of the three semi finals, qualification to the final required a top two placing, with the next two quickest times also progressing.

Milburn and Wroe will now turn their attention to the 4 x 400m, in which the Aussie’s have a crack team and will be out to defend their silver medal from Athens. The heats of the relay are on Friday evening from 10:10pm AEST.

Earlier this morning, Queenslander Bronwyn Thompson was in action with the qualifying of the women’s long jump.

She needed to leap 6.75m, or be in the top 12 overall to progress to the final. Her only measured jump was 6.53m, which was enough for 17th overall, despite a third and final jump that was well over automatic qualifying, albeit, a foul.