Rai Benjamin of Team USA claimed his first individual gold medal by winning the men’s 400m hurdles final at the Paris Olympics on Friday. He matched his season-best time of 46.46 seconds, defeating Norway’s Karsten Warholm, who secured the silver with a time of 47.06 seconds. Brazil’s Alison dos Santos completed the podium with a bronze medal after finishing in 47.26 seconds.
Benjamin previously earned a silver medal in Tokyo three years ago. “From tears in Tokyo to smiles here in Paris. Rai Benjamin of Mount Vernon, New York, you are an Olympic champion,” remarked NBC Olympics’ Leigh Diffey.
In the semifinals, Benjamin achieved the second-best time at 47.85 seconds, right behind Warholm’s 47.67 seconds. They were joined by France’s Clement Ducos, who tied Benjamin.
Warholm, who is 28 years old, holds the world and Olympic record of 45.94 seconds, a time he set during the Tokyo Olympics, becoming the first athlete to run the event in under 46 seconds.
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Benjamin now boasts three Olympic medals: a gold in the men’s 400m hurdles at the Paris Olympics, a silver in the men’s 400m hurdles, and a gold in the men’s 4x400m relay at the Tokyo Olympics. His medal tally is as follows:
– 2024 Paris Olympics – Gold – men’s 400m hurdles
– 2020 Tokyo Olympics – Gold – men’s 4x400m relay
– 2020 Tokyo Olympics – Silver – men’s 400m hurdles
At 27 years old, Rai Benjamin celebrated his birthday on July 27 during the Paris Olympics. Originally from the Bronx, he lists Mount Vernon, New York as his hometown, where he attended Mount Vernon High School. Currently, he resides in Los Angeles, California.
Benjamin had a successful collegiate athletic career, transferring to USC in 2018 after two seasons at UCLA, and he graduated in 2019. He has also volunteered as an assistant coach for the track program at USC.