Osaka, Japan - New Zealand's Valerie Vili upset defending champion Nadezhda Ostapchuk of Belarus on her final attempt to win the women's shot put gold medal at the world championships here Sunday.
Ostapchuk looked certain to lift a second straight world title with her first throw of 20.04 metres but the 22-year-old New Zealander heaved the year's best of 20.54m in the sixth round.
Coming to the arc next, the 26-year-old Belarusian could hurl no farther than 20.48m in a valiant attempt to claw back her lead
It prompted Vili, dressed in all black, to dash to the stands and celebrate with New Zealand fans a success which meant she was the only second non-European women's shot put champion since China's Huang Zhihong in 1993.
It was the first major title for Vili, who was eighth at the 2004 Athens Olympics and third at the 2005 worlds.
Olympic silver medalist Nadine Kleinert of Germany finished third at 19.77m, as she did at the European championships last year.
China's Ling Li finished fourth at 19.38m.