Doha, Qatar — Rushell Clayton ran her lifetime best and delivered a bronze medal to her nation after finishing third in the 400m hurdles final in 53.74 seconds in the fastest race in history here inside Khalifa International Stadium yesterday.

American Dalilah Muhammad ran a mind-boggling 52.16 seconds and lowered her own world record of 52.20 seconds set in July, while her 20-year-old countrywoman Sydney McLaughlin chased her relentlessly into second and stopped the clock at a splendid 52.23 seconds.

It was Clayton’s first medals, at this level and it pushed Jamaica’s tally to seven medal inclusive of two gold, three silver and two bronze, but the country slipped a spot to fourth on the medals table.

The United States remain on top with nine gold and 21 medals overall, with China occupying second with nine medals including three gold. Kenya are up to third with three gold in five medals overall.

Clayton became the fourth Jamaican to win a medal in the 400m hurdles, following Deon Hemming (three), Melaine Walker (two) and Ristananna Tracey. In fact, Clayton’s bronze-medal run was identical to that of Tracey, who won bronze two years ago in an identical time of 53.74 seconds.

“I feel pretty emotional. I was waiting for the time and when I saw the 53.7 came up on the screen, I actually shed a tear because I had that time written down on piece of paper,” Clayton revealed.

“I haven’t said it before, my coach and I alone know. I wrote it from January,” she explained.

“My coach means everything to me, Okeel Stewart. This is a person that took a chance with me. When I finished college I was like, what am I going to do now [that] I don’t have a school anymore? I don’t have a scholarship any more, how am I going to get through this? And this person said, ‘I have your back, if you want to do this, let’s do this’,” she revealed.

“My coach and his family are like my second parents. So to be here with him celebrating a bronze medal just feels good. I can’t wait to go around the warm up track to see him,” said a beaming Clayton.

This was the fastest women’s 400m hurdles race in history and Clayton, who was some distance back in third as the Americans battled it out, was not perturbed.

“I was just focusing on me, because when you focus on other people you get thrown off your game.”

She continued: “I know these two ladies were about to race because that’s what they have been doing. They have been running consistent 52s and I know I haven’t gotten to 52 yet, so what I did was just ran my race. I know the race was about to be fast but my coach said once you stay in your zone that medal can be yours.

“And that’s what I did, I stayed in my zone and I am a World Championship bronze medallist and it feels good, it feels awesome,” said an ecstatic Clayton.

“It is so funny, when I was coming off that turn, I was like Rushell it’s time to go, it’s time to go, it’s time to go, just run over that last hurdle and run through the line because I have a tendency of not running through the line and I didn’t know exactly who was beside or behind me because I was in my zone and I executed what my coach taught me to,” said Clayton.

“My thing is to go out for the first four hurdles, go down back stretch and yesterday, I had that messed up part and I actually fixed that part that problem of getting into the turn fast enough to get that good transition off and I think I fixed that today,” she explained.