IAAF World Athletics Championships 2017: Shaunae Miller-Uibo bounces back to ease into 200m final

London: Shaunae Miller-Uibo shrugged off her extraordinary collapse within sight of winning the 400 metres world title to coast into the women’s 200m final on Thursday. The 23-year-old Bahamian, who went from first to fourth inside the last 20m to miss out on adding world 400m gold to her Olympic title, timed 22.49 seconds to win her semi-final. [caption id=“attachment_3917477” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Shaunae Miller-Uibo in action at the World Championships in London. Reuters[/caption] “It feels good to get back on the track. I just want to wash it away and just focus on the 200m, so that’s what I’m doing,” said Miller-Uibo. “I know a lot of people thought I hurt my hamstring or something along that line, but it was kind of weird, I had the race under control and I looked up at the screen and mis-placed my foot and completely lost balance. It’s a part of being in sport.” Miller-Uibo was joined in Friday’s final by the other favourites, defending champion Dafne Schippers and Ivory Coast’s 100m silver medallist Marie-Josee Ta Lou. Miller-Uibo led from the gun at the second time of asking and eased to the line ahead of American Kimberlyn Duncan. Brazilian Rosangela Santos missed out entirely as she was disqualified for a false start. Schippers looked impressive in her semi-final storming into the lead and was metres clear rounding the bend into the finishing straight. She was able to look round 50m out and coasted to the line in 22.49sec with young American Deajah Stevens taking the second automatic qualifying spot to reach her second successive major final having finished seventh in last year’s Olympics. Ta Lou, who had victory in the 100m snatched from under her nose as Tori Bowie dipped on the line to win, looked good for another medal in winning her heat in 22.50sec beating home Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith, who in the 2012 Olympics was a kit bag carrier. The British runner timed a season’s best 22.73sec.