Andre De Grasse wins silver for Canada in 200 m final

Aug 19 2016, 12:51 am

Canada’s Andre De Grasse has won his second medal of the Rio 2016 Olympics, winning the silver medal in the 200-metre final.

Usain Bolt won gold with a time of 19.78 seconds, De Grasse second (20.02), and Christophe Lemaitre of France third (20.12).

This was Bolt’s race from the start, with the remaining sprinters effectively running for silver. De Grasse was neck-and-neck with a number of other racers coming out of the bend, but pulled away for silver.

The 5-foot-9 sprinter from Markham, Ontario adds an Olympic silver medal to his collection, after winning bronze on Sunday in the 100 m final.

While happy to win silver, De Grasse sounded a little disappointed he didn’t do better.

“I wanted to come in here and challenge [Bolt] for a gold medal,” De Grasse said. “It is what it is.”

He’s the first Canadian to win a medal in the 100 and 200 metres since Percy Williams in 1932, who won gold in both. This is also the first time since 1936 that Canada has won two individual medals in track and field on the same day, as Damian Warner secured bronze earlier in the evening.

For Bolt, this is his eighth-career gold medal. Without a doubt the greatest sprinter of all-time, Bolt now has three straight gold medals in the 100 and the 200 sprints.

With Bolt likely in his final Olympics, the sky is the limit for the 21-year-old Canadian.

Bolt and De Grasse aren’t done yet, as they will race in the 4 x 100 m relay final on Friday night.

Canada now has 18 medals, tying their total at London 2012.

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