Sekgodiso cruises into 800m semis to keep SA medal hopes alive

PRUDENCE Sekgodiso powered through the women’s 800m heats at the Paris Olympics yesterday to secure her place in tomorrow’s semi-finals.

Sekgodiso finished second after leading at some point in the second of six heats.

Sekgodiso came into the race at a personal best time of 1:57.26 but Cuban Cooper Gaspar’s time of 1:58.88 was enough to finish first, with Sekgodiso second at 1:59.84. Switzerland’s Pellaud Rachel completed the top three in a time of 2:00.07.

Blood sweat and tears go into preparation for a race that lasts only two laps. It is the two laps though, that the world of athletics and the rest of South Africa would have watched with a lot of interest, because not only were they crowned the world champions in Rio de Janeiro (2016) and London (2012) … but because a star could be born and at the age of just 22, the shoes so far seem to be a perfect fit for her.

Caster Semenya couldn’t defend her gold medal win at the Tokyo Olympic games due to a ban for her high testosterone levels but South Africa has a chance at history in Paris 2024.

In yesterday’s heats, Sekgodiso was out the blocks and looked in good rhythm through the first 400m. Crossing the line for the final 400m, the track took its shape with the leading pack pulling away. Brazil’s Flavia Maria De Lima showed a lot of interest with 300m to go but as the battle for places heated up, cracks started to show but the 2022 African champion maintained her composure and ensured her race remained intact.

Leading to the final 100m, De Lima fell off and Sekgodiso seemingly had the race in control, but in came Gaspar, and she eased into the semi-finals in first place and also set the pace for the rest of the heats to come.

Kratochvilova Jarmila holds a world record that stands for over 41 years at 1:53.28, set in Munich, Germany, in 1983. The Olympic record is held by Olizarenko Nadezhda at 1:53.43 set in 1980. It has been a huge task to break the long-standing records and today was no different, but a chance to rewrite history is still alive for Sekgodiso.