Wayde Van Niekerk made a little bit of history at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Paris when he became the first African to dip below 44 seconds for one lap of the track, when he ran 43.96 on Saturday (4).
The 22-year-old South African not only snatched his first victory in the Diamond Race but also announced himself as a genuine world title contender as he beat London 2012 Olympic Games champion Kirani James, handing the Grenadian his first defeat of the year and moving up to 10th on the all-time list for the event.
With van Niekerk on his outside, James strained every sinew in lane four to make up ground in the home straight but had to settle for second in 44.17.
US champion David Verburg was well back in third in 44.81
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