SA's poor showing in track and field at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo continued, with Anaso Jobodwana, Shaun Maswanganyi, and Clarence Munyai failing to make the 200m final yesterday.
Antonio Alkana also failed in his bid to make the 110m hurdles final when he finished in sixth place in a time of 13.55.
The search for the first medal continues for SA, with the last day of the Olympics on Sunday fast approaching.
Seasoned campaigner Jobodwana finished last in his semifinal race in 20.88. His eighth-place finish shows that he is a shadow of the athlete who secured a place on the podium with the greatest Olympian of all-time Usian Bolt at the World Championships in China in 2015.
Munyai qualified for the semis with the fourth-fastest qualifying time, and he ended his race in sixth place in 20.49.
American-based sprinter Maswanganyi finished his semis in fourth place in a race won by Canadian superstar Andre De Grasse.
The 20-year-old former SA junior champion missed the two non-automatic qualifying places. He was the best performer in Team SA colours in the semis.
At the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Qatar, SA failed to win a medal, and so far, the performance on the track is not convincing.
Jobodwana, the 2015 World Championships bronze medalist, is nearing the end of his career. He is the oldest of the sprinters and the worst performer from yesterday's races. He looked lethargic in his race, and he admitted that he had no power in his batteries after the race.
The Eastern Cape-born sprinter qualified for the Olympics based on the World Athletics rankings.
“It was a tough day and I don't think that there is anything else to say about that,” said Jobodwana.
“I am just glad to be here to compete at this level again. When you run against the top athletes in the world, you learn a lot from each race. I have learned a lot by being here. I don't have excuses for my poor performance,” he said.
Jobodwana is not entertaining thoughts of retiring, and he said that he would go back to the drawing board to review his season.
“I will go back to figure out what is wrong with my performance. I want to improve my performance and keep it going. I have a low battery because of Covid-19 and the way I started my training. I am making excuses. I need time to fix all of that,” he said.
Munyai said: “It was my the fourth race of the season after injury, and coming to the Olympics to make the semifinal, I am happy. I will take the semifinals achievement,” he said.
Munyai said he wants to go home, focus on rehabilitation, and think about the World Championships in the US next year. “I want to go home and rest and fix myself, to prepare for next season,” he said.
SA sprinters fail to make cut for 200m at Olympics
Poor form on track continues
Image: Phil Noble
SA's poor showing in track and field at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo continued, with Anaso Jobodwana, Shaun Maswanganyi, and Clarence Munyai failing to make the 200m final yesterday.
Antonio Alkana also failed in his bid to make the 110m hurdles final when he finished in sixth place in a time of 13.55.
The search for the first medal continues for SA, with the last day of the Olympics on Sunday fast approaching.
Seasoned campaigner Jobodwana finished last in his semifinal race in 20.88. His eighth-place finish shows that he is a shadow of the athlete who secured a place on the podium with the greatest Olympian of all-time Usian Bolt at the World Championships in China in 2015.
Munyai qualified for the semis with the fourth-fastest qualifying time, and he ended his race in sixth place in 20.49.
American-based sprinter Maswanganyi finished his semis in fourth place in a race won by Canadian superstar Andre De Grasse.
The 20-year-old former SA junior champion missed the two non-automatic qualifying places. He was the best performer in Team SA colours in the semis.
At the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Qatar, SA failed to win a medal, and so far, the performance on the track is not convincing.
Jobodwana, the 2015 World Championships bronze medalist, is nearing the end of his career. He is the oldest of the sprinters and the worst performer from yesterday's races. He looked lethargic in his race, and he admitted that he had no power in his batteries after the race.
The Eastern Cape-born sprinter qualified for the Olympics based on the World Athletics rankings.
“It was a tough day and I don't think that there is anything else to say about that,” said Jobodwana.
“I am just glad to be here to compete at this level again. When you run against the top athletes in the world, you learn a lot from each race. I have learned a lot by being here. I don't have excuses for my poor performance,” he said.
Jobodwana is not entertaining thoughts of retiring, and he said that he would go back to the drawing board to review his season.
“I will go back to figure out what is wrong with my performance. I want to improve my performance and keep it going. I have a low battery because of Covid-19 and the way I started my training. I am making excuses. I need time to fix all of that,” he said.
Munyai said: “It was my the fourth race of the season after injury, and coming to the Olympics to make the semifinal, I am happy. I will take the semifinals achievement,” he said.
Munyai said he wants to go home, focus on rehabilitation, and think about the World Championships in the US next year. “I want to go home and rest and fix myself, to prepare for next season,” he said.
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