RIO DE JANEIRO -- Exploding out of the blocks in lane eight, Wayde van Niekerk didnt see another runner during the entire Olympic 400-meter final.He didnt need to. It was just him against the clock.The South African sprinter broke Michael Johnsons 17-year-old world record on Sunday night in Rio de Janeiro, leaving two of the greatest one-lap runners of this era in his dust. Van Niekerk finished in 43.03 seconds -- 0.15 seconds faster than Johnson ran on Aug. 26, 1999 in Seville, Spain. To think, Johnsons mark was considered one of the almost untouchable records in track, too.I was running blind all the way, Van Niekerk explained. I thought someone was going to catch me -- whats going on, whats going on, and it gave me motivation to keep on pushing.The 24-year-old Van Niekerk leaned at the finish line, which he really didnt need to do as Kirani James of Grenada and LaShawn Merritt of the Unites States werent even in the picture. James, the defending Olympic champion, finished with the silver and Merritt, who won gold eight years ago in Beijing, hung on for bronze as he staggered across the line.Van Niekerk drove a wedge in the rivalry between James and Merritt at the world championships last August, when he beat them both with such a lung-searing performance that he left the track on a stretcher.Now, hes the fastest ever.Instead of collapsing at the finish this time, Van Niekerk dropped to one knee and put his head in his hands. Moments later, he draped the multi-colored South African flag around his shoulders and took off his spikes. As he did so, Van Niekerk pointed at the clock to make sure everyone saw his time.Hard to miss. It was that impressive.Even Usain Bolt thought so, seeking out Van Niekerk and congratulating him moments after the Jamaican won his unprecedented third 100 title. The compliments kept on coming with Johnson, a track and field TV analyst for BBC, weighing in as well.Oh my God! From lane eight, a world record. He took it out so quick, Johnson told the BBC. I have never seen anything from 200 to 400 like that.That was a massacre from Wayde van Niekerk. He just put those guys away.They didnt stand a chance. James thought he possibly had enough in the tank to catch Van Niekerk around the final curve. No way.No one did. This was really a race for silver, with James easily holding off Merritt, who had to dig deep to cling to the bronze.He just wouldnt slow down, James said. Usually, what happens is the last 100 (meters) guys start to slow down a little bit, but he just kept going. When you keep going like that, obviously a record is going to fall.Akani Simbine, who is Van Niekerk roommate in the Olympic Village, said his teammate was targeting the record.But we didnt bring it up much because thats just added pressure, you know, said Simbine, who finished fifth in the 100 final. He knows what he needs to do and we believe in what he can do.It was just a thing of, OK, he said hes going to do it, break the world record, and here he did it.A world record -- precisely what the sport needed in the wake of a Russian doping scandal that grabbed the headlines before the Olympics.A fast, fresh face -- also a boost since Bolt cant be around forever.Van Niekerk is so young, what else can he do? Can he go under 43 seconds? Johnson said. It is something I thought I could do, but never did. Usain Bolt will be retiring soon. This could be the next star of the sport.---AP Sports Writers Gerald Imray and Jenna Fryer contributed. Nike Vapormax Sale . -- Whether Jeremy Hill deserves a prominent role in LSUs offence this early in the season is a matter for debate. Discount Vapormax Uk .com) - The Montreal Canadiens embark on their first road trip of the season as they head out west to battle the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. http://www.discountvapormaxuk.com/ . The Brazilian goalkeeper signed a loan deal with the Major League Soccer club on Friday as he looks to get playing time ahead of this summers World Cup in his home country. Nike Vapormax Wholesale . Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee? Green had bounced around the NBA when he wasnt playing overseas. The Pacers gave up on Plumlee after just one season. Now Green and Plumlee are key cogs in the Suns surprising breakout season. Discount Nike Vapormax . Defenceman Yannick Weber scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and the Canucks breathed a sigh of relief with a 2-1 win on Saturday night. PHILADELPHIA -- Luke Weaver is learning that he doesnt need to be so perfect.Weaver took the loss in his second major league start as Cesar Hernandez homered, doubled and singled to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 4-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday night.Weaver (0-1), a 22-year-old 2014 first-round picks, went five innings and allowed three runs on nine hits with six strikeouts and no walks.I might be trying to make too good of pitches, which pushes the pitch count up, said Weaver, who was lifted after 96 pitches. Its not about making the perfect pitch, just making a quality one.Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said Weaver just needs to trust the stuff that got him to the big leagues.If theres one thing I think hes doing, he might be giving hitters at this level too much credit, Matheny said. Hes a guy thats been able to work in the zone and the bottom of the zone and trust his stuff and not feel like he has to be perfect. It looks like hes trying to be perfect here.Jeremy Hazelbaker homered and Jhonny Peralta had three hits for St. Louis, which had won five in a row. The Cardinals are 1 1/2 games ahead of Miami for the second wild-card spot in the National League.We had a hard time getting anything going against their starter, Matheny said. We couldnt get a lot of those late hits weve been accustomed to getting.St. Louis fell short of setting a major league record of 10 straight games with multiple home runs. The Cardinals tied the mark with a pair of homers Friday night.Its hard to hit one a game for a consistent amount of time, Matheny said. I thought today might be a day, especially when Hazelbaker hit one early. You could it the way guys were taking their at-bats there was an opportunity to maybe do it again.Maikel Franco had two hits, including a double and the winning RBI, and Aaron Altherr homered for the Phillies. They have hit home runs in 14 straight games.Great night for us, Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said.Jeremy Hellickson (10-7) became the first Phillies starter to throw seven innings since July 26.That was just what the doctor ordered, Mackanin said.Hellickson skipped his last start because of back tightness. The right-hander looked healthy and sharp, allowing two runs on seven hits with eight strikeoouts and one walk.dddddddddddd He pumped his fist into his glove after striking out pinch-hitter Greg Garcia to finish the seventh.I felt good, Hellickson said. It was good to save the bullpen tonight. I was just getting ahead and kept the fastball down for the most part.Franco put the Phillies ahead for good with a two-out single to left in the fifth that scored Hernandez from third.Jeanmar Gomez pitched a scoreless ninth for his 33rd save in 37 opportunities.The Phillies jumped on Weaver with a pair of runs in the first.Hernandez led off by driving an 0-1 pitch into the seats in right field for his fourth homer of the season. The Phillies have gotten Hernandez to level his swing midseason, and he is batting .350 since June 27. He is hitting .500 with a pair of homers in seven games during Philadelphias current homestand.Hes really swinging the bat well, Mackanin said. We had a harsh reality check for him -- keep the ball out of the air.Cameron Rupp put Philadelphia in front 2-0 with a broken-bat RBI single to left.The Cardinals tied it in the third. Weaver singled to center for his first career hit and scored on Hazelbakers two-run homer to left.After the Phillies took the lead in the fifth, Altherr made it a 4-2 game by drilling an 0-1 pitch from Jonathan Broxton over the wall in left.YOU AGAIN?Altherrs homer was the first the Phillies have hit off Broxton since Matt Stairs pinch-hit homer in Game 4 of the 2008 NLCS at Los Angeles.WEAVERS OUTINGRARE WINThe Phillies won for just the third time in their last 12 games against St. Louis.FAN HITA young fan sitting about 20 rows behind the Cardinals dugout was struck by a foul ball off the bat of Freddy Galvis in the eighth inning. After being treated at the seat for several minutes, the fan was carried out to the concourse by an adult into the waiting arms of medical personnel.TRAINERS ROOMPhillies: Hernandez was back in the starting lineup after a two-game absence due to a sore right foot. He did pinch-hit in Friday nights game.UP NEXTThe teams conclude their three-game series Sunday when Cardinals RHP Mike Leake (8-9, 4.78) faces RHP Vince Velasquez (8-5, 4.14). ' ' '