00:00She broke the American record and set the second fastest time in the history of women's hurdles.
00:05But as the Olympics arrived, Kendra Harrison was nowhere to be seen.
00:09In 2016, Kendra had seemed unstoppable.
00:12She was winning every single event she entered, and on the day of the Prefontaine Classic,
00:17she ran the 100-meter hurdles in a mind-blowing 12.24 seconds,
00:21second only to the world record of 12.21, set 28 years earlier in 1988.
00:28As the Olympics closed in, all eyes were on Kendra to bring home a gold medal and make America proud.
00:34But there was one thing standing between Kendra and her Olympic dream,
00:37the ruthless and somewhat controversial U.S. Olympic trials.
00:41See, around the world, each event in each country has their own rules for determining which athletes are sent to
00:47the Olympics.
00:48Many countries have a discretionary selection process,
00:51which takes into account the athletes' past performances in world athletics-sanctioned events.
00:56But in the U.S., the athletes are selected via a brutal, all-or-nothing trial event.
01:01Only the top three athletes in the final race of the U.S. Olympic trials will go on to represent
01:07the U.S.
01:08So, on the final race of the trials, Kendra lined up at the starting line and...
01:13Kendra in lane two.
01:15She's not even close.
01:16Brianna Rollins wins it.
01:18She came in at sixth place.
01:20Kendra Harrison had failed when it mattered most, and she wouldn't be going to the Olympics.
01:25Kendra was heartbroken.
01:26However, just two weeks after that devastating loss, Kendra's coach encouraged her to shake it off and enter another race
01:33as soon as possible.
01:34Kendra swallowed her pride and once again dragged her feet to the starting line,
01:38this time at the London Diamond League. Kendra looked along the starting line, spotting the other three U.S. runners.
01:45The same three runners who were getting ready to head to Rio to live her dream.
01:49She knew that people would be watching this race closely, eager to see the three U.S. Olympic picks in
01:54action.
01:55So it was at that moment she decided that this race would be her revenge.
01:59If she could manage to run her personal best, she'd likely leave the others far behind, making a mockery out
02:05of the U.S. selection process.
02:07As the starting pistol fired, Kendra powered over each hurdle, and she absolutely decimated the other runners.
02:14Look at Kenny Harrison, storming away with this, and look at the margin of victory!
02:17But as Kendra crossed the finish line and looked at the clock, her victory felt hollow.
02:22She realised that the time was only barely better than her time two weeks prior.
02:25The others must have just been taking it easy in the lead-up to the Olympics.
02:30Right? Let's look at that ending again.
02:32Well, that was strange. The clock seemed to run on and on long after she'd gone through the line.
02:36Kendra had ducked under the timing beam as she crossed the line, and the clock hadn't stopped until second place
02:43finished.
02:43When the officials reviewed the footage to get an accurate time, the figures on the screen reset.
02:5012.20! She's broken the world record!
02:53A young woman who's not even going to the Olympic Games.
02:55I mean, that is one of the question marks against the American selection system, isn't it?
03:00A young woman who's not even going to the Olympic Games.
03:01A young woman who's not even going to the Olympic Games.
03:01A young woman who's not even going to the Olympic Games.
03:03A young woman who's not even going to the Olympic Games.
03:04A young woman who's not even going to the Olympic Games.
03:04A young woman who's not going to the Olympic Games.
03:04A young woman who's not going to the Olympic Games.
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