Lamont Marcell Jacobs wins historic 100m gold at Tokyo Olympics

1 August 2021 09:18 pm

Lamont Marcell Jacobs set a new European record as he claimed a shock victory in the men's 100m at the Tokyo Olympics.

Jacobs' winning time of 9.80 seconds on Sunday saw him finish 0.04 seconds ahead of the USA's Fred Kerley in second and 0.09 seconds ahead of Canada's Andre De Grasse in third.

It capped a glorious few minutes for Italy at the Olympic Stadium with Jacobs' victory coming shortly after Gianmarco Tamberi's gold medal in the high jump.

The two men embraced as Jacobs -- the first Italian man to win 100m gold at the Olympics and the first European man to do so since Great Britain's Linford Christie in 1992 -- surged across the finish line.

"It was my childhood dream to win an Olympic Games, and obviously, a dream can turn into something different, but to run this final and win it is a dream come true," said 26-year-old Jacobs.

"I want to thank my family that has always supported me, my children, and my mom, who has been my number one fan since I was a child, and my team who have followed me and those who support me."

In the first men's 100m final since three-time champion Usain Bolt retired from athletics, Jacobs -- whose winning time was 0.01 seconds faster than Bolt's in Rio -- was an unlikely successor to the Jamaican. He had been competing in the long jump until as recently as 2017 before switching his focus solely to sprinting. (CNN)