Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone brought the house down on Thursday by coming within a whisker of breaking the four-decade-old women's 400 metres world record while Botswana's Busang Collen Kebinatshipi impressively won the men's one-lap title.

McLaughlin-Levrone ran through the rain to take gold and post the second fastest time in history of 47.78sec at the Tokyo National Stadium.

It will surely only be a matter of time before the 400m hurdles world recordholder breaks the mark of 47.60 set by East Germany's Marita Koch in 1985, which has long had question marks hanging over it.

McLaughlin-Levrone's decision to switch from the hurdles to the flat this season paid off handsomely.

It was the same stadium where the 26-year-old American won her first 400m hurdles gold, but that was in front of e

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