Tokyo Olympics: Dutee Chand finishes last in 200m heat race
Sprinter Dutee Chand ran her season's best in 200m but that was not enough for a semifinals berth as she made a disappointing exit from the Olympics after finishing last in her heat race in Tokyo on Monday. Chand, who had also crashed out of her 100m pet event in the first round, clocked 23.85 seconds to finish seventh and last in Heat 4.
Chand finished 38th overall out of 41 competitors
Top three finishers from each of the seven heats and the next three fastest qualify for the semifinals. The 25-year-old Chand finished 38th overall out of 41 competitors to end her second Olympic campaign on a disappointing note. She has a personal best of 23 seconds, which she had clocked while winning a silver at the 2018 Asian Games.
She had qualified on the basis of world rankings
The Odisha runner had come to Tokyo Olympics with modest ambitions of at least reaching the semifinals considering the gulf in the timings between the top performers and herself. But even that ambition eluded her. She had qualified for the 200m on the basis of her world rankings, unable to breach the automatic entry standard of 22.80 seconds.
Namibia's Christine Mboma topped the heats with 22.11 seconds
Christine Mboma of Namibia, who won Chand's heat with a timing of 22.11 seconds, topped the heats ahead of American Thomas Gabrielle (22.20). On the other hand, the likes of Tokyo 100m gold winner Elaine Thompson-Herah (22.86) and silver medalist Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (22.22) - both Jamaicans - made it to the semifinals at third and 16th respectively.
Jamaica's Shericka Jackson didn't make it through to the semifinals
The biggest shock was that the 100m bronze medalist Shericka Jackson of Jamaica didn't make it through to the semifinals. The Jamaican tried to take it easy in her heat, but eased off too much before the finish and eventually crossed the line in fourth. Her 23.26 was not enough to advance to the semifinals.
Chand had failed to progress to the women's 100m semifinals
On Friday, Chand had failed to progress to the semifinals of the women's 100m event as well, finishing seventh in her heat and 45th overall with a timing of 11.54 seconds. Chand was nowhere near her best in the 100m heat race also.
