RHASIDAT ADELEKE HAS qualified for the women’s 400m Olympic final after finishing second in her semi-final this evening.

The 21-year-old athlete from Tallaght ran a strong race coming home in a time of 49.95 seconds and finishing behind Brunei’s Salwa Eid Naser.

Only the top two from each race are guaranteed places in the final, with the remaining places going to the two fastest losers across the three semi-finals.

The final takes place at 7pm Irish time on Friday 9 August, where Adeleke will hope to be in contention for a medal.

Adeleke cruised through her heat on Monday in a controlled performance that included time for a few looks either side of her as she eased down the home straight, posting a time of 50.09 seconds.

She also managed to avoid a semi-final with 2023 world champion Marileidy Paulino from the Dominican Republic, and Nickisha Pryce from Jamaica, both of whom run in the second semi-final.

Her coach Edrick Floreal, also known as Coach Flo, will be hoping the good fortune of Adeleke’s training group continues into Friday’s final.

Julien Alfred, the Saint Lucian sprinter and training partner of Adeleke has already come away with a gold and silver medal in the women’s 100m and 200m respectively.

She will be the sole Irish representative in the final after teammates Sharlene Mawdsley and Sophie Becker failed to advance past the repechage heats yesterday.