Leading into the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Sanya Richards-Ross was the favourite to claim the women’s 400m gold.
Sanya was among the world’s best, racking up timings under the 50 second-mark. A couple of years earlier, Sanya had finished the World Cup race in 48.70 seconds, which was a new United States record. This mark, incidentally, has held good to this day.
