Grava photo-finish fifth in European Championships 200m final
Latvian sprinter Oskars Grava finished fifth in the European Athletics Championships 200m final with a time of 20.28 seconds, though wind conditions mean the result won't count for records.
Eight sprinters lined up for the 200m final at the European Athletics Championships, where Latvia's Oskars Grava crossed the line fifth in 20.28 seconds. Heading into the race, Grava ranked ninth among the finalists by personal best, while Britain's Zharnel Hughes and Germany's Owen Ansah were considered the top favorites.
Grava was called to the blocks last, with the rest of the field waiting for him to take his position in lane nine. Officials needed an extended review of the photo finish to determine third, fourth and fifth place, as Grava's time was extremely close to those of Italy's Eseosa Desalu and Switzerland's Timothe Mumenthaler.
Wind rules out a record
Although Grava's time was faster than his previous personal best, a tailwind of +2.5 metres per second exceeded the legal limit, meaning the result cannot be registered for record purposes. Latvia's national 200m record therefore still belongs to Sergejs Inšakovs, who ran 20.41 at the 1996 Olympic Games.
Notably, Grava had run even faster in the semifinal, clocking 20.27 seconds, but a wind reading of +2.9 m/s there also prevented that time from counting as a personal best.
The European title went to Germany's Owen Ansah (19.95), with Britain's Zharnel Hughes taking silver (20.16). Bronze was shared by Italy's Eseosa Desalu and Switzerland's Timothe Mumenthaler, both timed at 20.26.
