Shaunae Miller’s Controversial Dive Made For The Ultimate Photo Finish

by abournenesn

Aug 16, 2016

Allyson Felix was denied a gold medal Monday night, but the rest of the world witnessed one of the most dramatic finishes in Olympic track and field history.

Felix was gunning for a fifth Olympic gold medal in the women’s 400-meter final in Rio de Janeiro, and she seemed to be in good position down the stretch. But Shaunae Miller of the Bahamas had other plans, diving head-first across the finish line to edge Felix by .07 seconds and capture gold.

It’s not unprecedented for runners to dive across the finish line, but Miller’s last-ditch effort still was controversial. A winner is determined by which runner’s torso crosses the finish line first — not his or her head or feet — and some wondered if Felix actually had won despite Miller’s dive.

But since this is the 21st century, screenshots were able to determine that Miller’s torso did, in fact, cross before Felix’s.

Those screenshots didn’t fully do this finish justice, however. Olympic photographers captured the moment in real time, leading to some incredible images of what quite literally was a “photo finish.”

Olympics: Track and Field-Evening Session

Photo via Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY Sports Images

Bahamas runner Shaunae Miller

Photo via Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY Sports Images

Olympics: Track and Field-Evening Session

Photo via Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY Sports Images

Olympics: Track and Field-Evening Session

Photo via Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports Images

Olympics: Track and Field-Evening Session

Photo via Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY Sports Images

Thumbnail photo via Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY Sports Images

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