Jessica Ennis Smashes 100m Hurdle Heptathlon And British Record

Jessica Ennis Smashes 100m Hurdle Heptathlon And British Record
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Jessica Ennis stormed to victory in the last heptathlon heat of the 100m hurdles, posting the fastest time for a heptathlete in 100m hurdles and breaking the British record in the process.

Ennis ran 12.54 - a personal best and the same as American Dawn Harper's time to win the 100m hurdles gold at the Beijing Games.

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Ennis wowed the British crowd

A packed Olympic stadium greeted her triumph rapturously, while even Britons stationed in the press tribunes broke from protocol to applaud the Sheffield athlete.

A breathless Denise Lewis, Great Britain's gold medal heptathlon winner at Sydney in 2000, said on the BBC: "That was incredible. Talk about pressure. I'm blown away by that time. we've always known she has more to give in the hurdles and what a day to show the world what she is capable of and a great start."

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Ennis in motion

Ennis, 26, then competed in the high jump, bowing out at the 1.89m mark, although leads the table after two events.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson, the 19-year-old world junior champion from Liverpool, lies in third.

The British pair will move on to the shot put phase later on today, followed by the 200m, long jump, javelin and 800m to complete the heptathlon.