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Rhasidat Adeleke celebrates winning her heat. Morgan Treacy/INPHO
Paris 2024
Rhasidat Adeleke blows field apart as she wins 400 metre heat
Dublin runner showed her class and had plenty to spare in her heat, while Becker and Mawdsley bowed out.
RHASIDAT ADELEKE FINISHED first in her qualifying heat for the women’s 400 metres, putting a massive distance between her competitors for the first 300 metres before having a couple of glances at the clock and over her shoulder before pulling up.
Her time was 50.09, and while her Personal Best is 49.06, it would seem certain she could have blown that apart as she left Alexis Holmes and Junelle Bromfield in her wake after a false start threatened her composure.
As for her main rivals, Nickisha Pryce of Jamaica recorded a time of 50.02 in Heat 2.
Natalia Kaczmarek of Poland, a silver medallist in the Word Championships came first in Heat 4, with a time of 49.99.
Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic dominated Heat 5, while in the same race it was heartbreak for Sharlene Mawdsley as she finished a narrow fourth while setting a Personal Best of 50.61.
Running out of Lane 8, she opened aggressively, but fell back as the race progressed and Paulinho blew the field apart.
Earlier in the day, Sophie Becker bowed out of the individual discipline in Heat 1. She finished sixth after a promising start, so missed out on a semi-final place with a time of 51.84.
Meanwhile, Ciara McGing’s Olympics ended on Monday morning on the 10 metre diving board.
The Ohio State University Masters student finished in 28th after Round 3 of 5. The top 18 progress.
Written by Declan Bogue and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women’s sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here.
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