Steve Solomon has wound back the clock in spectacular style, smashing his nine-year-old personal best to power into the men's 400m semi-finals on the track in Tokyo.
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Solomon first burst to prominence as a precociously-talented teenager at the 2012 London Games, when he became the first Australian man in 24 years to contest an Olympic one-lap final.
In the intervening nine years, he has never been able to run faster than the 44.97 he clocked in the semis in London.
Until now.
The 28-year-old Sydneysider stopped the clock at 44.94 to finish second in the fourth of six heats on a brutally hot and humid Tokyo morning, relegating world record holder Wayde van Niekerk from South Africa into third spot in the process.
Fellow Australian Alex Beck also bettered his PB with a time of 45.54 but came up just short in his bid to advance to Monday evening's semis.
Evergreen Genevieve Gregson also defied the conditions in Tokyo to book her spot in a second successive Olympic 3000m steeplechase final.
Gregson was sixth in her heat in nine minutes 26.11 seconds - just good enough to claim the last available spot in the medal race, which will take place on Wednesday night.
The later start time will be a blessing for the 31-year-old Gregson after the temperature reached the high 30s Celsius on Sunday morning.
Gregson did her final preparation for the Games with her Melbourne Track Club teammates at altitude in Switzerland in conditions far different from those in the Japanese capital on Sunday.
"We made the decison that we knew it was going to be hot and humid but we wanted the trade-off of high altitude, hard training," she told the Seven Network.
"The fitter you are, the better you're going to handle the heat.
"I'm as fit as I've ever been.
"It didn't show there, I kind of just gritted that out (but) I think I can compete up there with the (fifth-to-eighth) girls and that's where I belong."
Gregson ran three personal bests at the 2016 Olympics, finishing ninth in the steeplechase and 12th in the 5000m.
Fellow Australian steeplechasers Georgia Winkcup and Amy Cashin were eliminated on their Olympic debuts.
Winfred Yavi from Bahrain was the fastest qualifier in 9:10.80.
Brooke Stratton will get the chance to better her seventh-placed finish in Rio five years ago after squeezing into the final of the women's long jump.
Stratton's best qualifying effort of 6.60m was 45cm short of her national record set five years ago in Perth, but it proved enough to advance in 12th spot for the final on Tuesday.
Ivana Spanovic from Serbia led the qualifying round with 7.00m.
Australian Associated Press
