TOKYO, Japan — Shaunae Miller-Uibo advanced to the women's 400-meter finals after winning her heat on Wednesday at the Tokyo Olympics. The Bahamian Olympian placed fourth overall with a time of 49.60s.
The 27-year-old qualified for the women's 200m finals zooming with Bahamian blue hair and a matching outfit -- although she came in the last place for the medal race.
This isn't her first go at the Olympics. The University of Georgia graduate representing the Bahamas is a two-time Olympian.
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Miller-Uibo's athletic abilities run in her family. Her mom taught her to run around the bases on a softball diamond, racing against her older sister. When she was 10, she competed in the Caribbean Union of Teachers Games in Kingston, Jamaica.
"I ended up winning the overall championship for my division, and, on reflection, that is the moment I started to fall in love with the sport," she said. "I was so inspired I went home to my father and said, 'I want to one day be a Golden Girl'. I think they laughed at me at first, but that's what I am now doing."
The 27-year-old short-distance runner and Rio Olympics gold medalist met her husband while the two were freshmen at UGA. The two had classes in common as well as trained together. Her Estonian decathlete husband joined her in the Olympic journey to gold.
"We would always see each other," Miller-Uibo said. "We became really good friends and the story goes on from there."
In 2016, the sprinter dove across the finish line in the 400m event as she lost her balance. While on the ground, she didn't know if she had won or not. The dramatic and memorable moment of her winning gold remains in the memory of many track fans.
She scraped her knee, stomach and forearms, but it was all worth it for the gold medal.
RESULTS:
- Women's 400m Semifinals | Aug. 4 | Miller-Uibo advances to the finals at 49.60. She placed 4th overall and won her heat.
- Women's 200m qualifier | Aug. 1 | Miller-Uibo qualified and will race in the semifinals.
- Women's 200m Semifinals | Aug. 2 | Miller-Uibo qualified and will race in the finals.
- Women's 200m Finals | Aug. 3 | Miller-Uibo finished last with a time of 24.00.
The final will be held on Friday, 8:35 a.m. You can watch the event live here.