By Razeen Gutta
On a day of mixed results at the Paris Games, javelin thrower Jo-Ane van Dyk and high jumper Brian Raats booked their spots in the finals of their respective events to give Team SA a shot at some more medals.
In the high jump, Raats made the final with a memorable 2.24 metre leap that helped him finish sixth in Group A. The final will take place on Saturday at 19:00.
Van Dyk’s personal best throw of 64.22 metres made her the first South African field athlete to progress further than the qualifying round at the Stade de France.
The final will take place on Saturday at 19:30.
In heat five of the men’s 800 metre race, Edmund du Plessis finished second in 1:45.73 to gain automatic entry into the final which is scheduled for Friday at 11:30.
In the men’s 200 metre semi-finals, Shaun Maswanganyi (20:42) finished fourth behind the now qualified Kenny Bendarek (USA) and Alexander Ogando (Dominican Republic), but failed to book his spot in the final.
Wayde van Niekrk, too, missed out on a spot on in the 200 metre final, clocking 20.72 on a day where Erriyon Knighton (USA) and Joseph Fahnbulleh (Liberia) picked up automatic qualification.
In heat three of the women’s 400 metre semi-finals, Miranda Coetzee could not qualify with her time of 51.60. Instead, Natalia Kaczmarek (Poland, 49.45) and Amber Anning (Great Britain, 29.47) picked up the automatic qualifying places.
Pictured above: Jo-Ane van Dyk
Source: @officialteamrsa
