Aug. 21, 2009

BERLIN, Germany - Former Olympic gold medalist and World champion Jeremy Wariner finished second in the finals of the 400 meters at the World Championships in Berlin, Germany on Friday.

Wariner, who won the World Championships in the 400 meters in 2005 and 2007, placed second, finishing .54 seconds behind fellow United State competitor LaShawn Merritt. Wariner and Merritt pulled away from the field with 100 meters to go, but Merritt held on to a two-stride lead down the homestretch.

Wariner finished with a time of 44.60, his fastest time in 2009, nearly one second ahead of third-place Renny Quow of Trinidad. Quow crossed the line with a time of 45.02 seconds to claim bronze.