RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — Georgia rising junior Keturah Orji shattered her own American record on her first attempt in the triple jump finals to highlight the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday.
Orji, a native of Mount Olive, N.J., finished fourth and out of medal contention by just an inch and a quarter after soaring 48 feet, 3 ¼ inches. This topped her school and American records of 47-8, which captured her the 2016 NCAA outdoor title. Orji became the first American to qualify for the women’s triple jump finals after she finished as the last qualifier with her one and only fair mark on Saturday.
Orji opened her night on Sunday with the longest jump of her career with conditions that included a 0.0 meters/second wind. Following a pair of fouls next, Orji then traveled 47-7, 47-3 and 47-2.50 on her fourth, fifth and sixth attempts, respectively. She completes a year that included a pair of Southeastern Conference crowns, two NCAA championships and a variety of records at every level.
Georgia also had one former sprinter in the 400-meter dash semifinals and one current sprinter in the 100m semis. Lining up in the same heat as Team USA’s Allyson Felix, who won gold in the 200m in 2012, former Lady Bulldog Shaunae Miller was the runner-up to Felix in the 400m semifinals on Sunday with a 49.91 to automatically qualify for the finals.
Miller, a native of the Bahamas, came into the Games with two of the world’s top three 400m times this year, including a world-leading mark of 49.55. This is Miller’s second straight trip to the Olympics after she advanced in 2012 while still in high school.
Antigua’s Cejhae Greene completed his first Olympics by tying for 18th place in the 100m semifinals. Greene, who raced in the same heat at Jamaica’s eventual gold medal winner Usain Bolt, trimmed .07 off of his first round time and finished in 10.13. After redshirting in 2016 following a transfer from Florida State, Greene will make his Bulldog debut in 2017.
