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The 200 metres event comes under the Athletics category at the Summer Olympics.
While the men's 200m has been part of the multi-sport event since 1900, the women's 200m event was introduced in 1948.
With the Tokyo Olympics fast approaching, let's look at the most successful female 200m sprinters at the Summer Olympics.
We shall see where Veronica Campbell-Brown and Allyson Felix, two of the most successful 200m female sprinters in recent times, as well as Florence Griffith Joyner, feature on this list.
(Note: Ranking is based on gold medal count. If athletes have equal number of gold medals, the number of silver medals followed by bronze medals has been used as the deciding factors for the rankings)
(* - Total Medals won here refers to total medals won by the respective athlete only in the individual 200m Olympic event)
#5 - Florence Griffith Joyner (USA)
Total Medals Won*: 2 (G - 1, S - 1, B - 0)
1984: Silver, 1988: Gold
Florence Griffith Joyner, also known as Flo-Jo, won 200m silver at the 1984 Summer Olympics with a time of 22.04 seconds.
Four years later, the American picked up the 200m gold medal with a world-record timing of 21.34s, which still stands to this date.
Flo-Jo has, whose unique fashion sense made her a trend-setter, won 3 additional medals at the 1988 Games, including the 100m event.
#4 - Irena Szewinska (Poland)
Total Medals Won: 3 (G - 1, S - 1, B - 1)
1964: Silver, 1968: Gold, 1972: Bronze
Irena Szewińska won the silver medal at the 1964 Summer Olympics with a timing of 23.1s.
At the 1968 Games, the Pole struck gold with a timing of 22.5s.
Szewińska also won bronze in 200m at the 1972 Summer Olympics with a timing of 22.74s.
The Pole was a versatile athlete, winning 7 medals in all during her Olympic career. This came from events including the 100m, 200m, 400m and long jump.
#3 - Allyson Felix (USA)
Total Medals Won: 3 (G - 1, S - 2, B - 0)
2004: Silver, 2008: Silver; 2012: Gold
Allyson Felix won 200m silver at the 2004 Summer Olympics with a time of 22.18s
Four years later, the American picked up her second silver medal with a timing of 21.93s (+0.6). In both finals, she was pipped to the post by rival Veronica Campbell-Brown.
Felix's perseverance finally paid off as she went on to claim 200m gold at the 2012 Summer Olympics with a timing of 21.88s.
The American has a total haul of 6 Olympic gold and 3 silver medals. That makes her the most successful female track athlete in Olympic history.
Felix is not done yet as she plans to compete at the Tokyo Games after giving birth to her daughter in 2018.
#1 - Barbel Eckert-Wockel (German Democratic Republic)
Total Medals Won: 2 (G - 2, S - 0, B - 0)
1976: Gold, 1980: Gold
Barbel Eckert-Wockel won gold at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal with a timing of 22.37s.
Four years later, Eckert-Wockel won her second gold in the event with a timing of 22.03s.
Eckert-Wockel has 2 additional gold medals in athletics at the Summer Olympics.
#1 - Veronica Campbell-Brown (Jamaica)
Total Medals Won: 2 (G - 2, S - 0, B - 0)
2004: Gold, 2008: Gold
Veronica Campbell-Brown won 200m gold at the 2004 Summer Olympics with a time of 22.05s.
At the Beijing Summer Olympics, the Jamaican won her second consecutive 200m gold with a timing of 21.74s (+0.6).
Campbell-Brown, the first woman from Jamaica to win gold in a sprint race at the Olympics, has 8 Olympic medals across her glittering career.
VCB, as she is known by her fans, returned to athletics earlier this month. This after a two-year absence during which she gave birth to her first child.
It will be fascinating to see if she is able to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics later this year.
(With inputs from the official Olympic website)
Also Read: Usain Bolt tops list of most successful male 200m sprinters
