'My goal is to do something special': Adeleke cruises through heat to keep her dreams on track

Gavin Cooney reports from the Stade de France

THE STORY HERE was there was no story; the drama came in the fact there was none. 

Rhasidat Adeleke this morning did what the rest of the world’s elite 400m runners did and eased into Wednesday’s semi-finals, slowing up at the line to win her heat in a time of 50.09. Alexis Holmes of the USA was next to cross the line in 50.35. 

“I just kind of shut down the last 100, I didn’t want to use too much energy,” said Adeleke. “I just wanted to do what I needed to qualify, so I don’t know exactly what percentage [effort] but it didn’t feel like a really hard run.

“That’s what my coach told me to do: as soon as you can shut down, shut down. We have two more rounds, so, well hopefully we’ll be looking forward to that.” 

No disasters befell any of other medal rivals. World champion Marileidy Paulino was the fastest qualifier in 49.42, but given semi-final places were allocated solely via a top-three finish, don’t read much into the times. 

Nickisha Pryce of Jamaica, Poland’s Natalia Kaczmarek, and Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser each won their heats too. The three medals will likely be divvied up between that quintet. 

Still, Adeleke had to deal with a false start in her heat, for which Nicole Caicedo was disqualified. 

“I was just like, I hope that wasn’t me!,” said Adeleke. “I made sure that it didn’t affect me, and to just go out there and execute the exact same way I was going to execute the first time.” 

And that she did. This is already Ireland’s most successful Olympic Games, but an Adeleke medal on the track would take it into another stratosphere. The competition, though, is brutally intense. 

“The standard,” agreed Adeleke, “is absolutely phenomenal.” 

So let’s see what the week brings. Adeleke will run in the semi-finals from 7.45pm Irish time on Wednesday, at which point we will see her against some of her biggest rivals. To win a medal, Adeleke will have to run faster than she has ever run before. Her current PB is 49.07, so she will have to take it to 48.something. 

Sharlene Mawdsley was watching Adeleke on a TV within the bowels of the Stade de France. 

“She is just such a superstar,” said Mawdsley. “I was cheering her on the whole way even though I knew she had it in the bag. To run a 50.0 looking around you…hopefully I can run that some day without looking around me!” 

Mawdsley during her race. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

Mawdsley would be forgiven for looking around her at the end of the heats and feeling cursed. She clipped a hundredth of a second off her personal best in the fifth heat, but finished fourth and outside of the automatic qualifying positions, beaten to third by 0.04 by Austria’s Susane Gogl-Walli.

You might recognise the name: it was Gogl-Walli whose appeal led to Mawdsley being disqualified from the world indoor 400m final this year, having been harshly deemed to have transgressed by cutting in ahead of her. 

“We made peace afterwards,” said Mawdsley. “I congratulated her and I said well done, and she thanked me, so I think that’s water under the bridge now.

“It’s bittersweet. You run a PB, it’s the standard for next year’s worlds – and you don’t make the semi-final.

“But no, I’m happy. I think I really committed to it. I haven’t done that really this year. I’m actually really proud of myself for that performance. Had I been in a different heat I would have qualified automatically, which is a bit annoying.

“But we all know I love running so I have another round tomorrow to try and get into the semi.” 

Mawdsley will run the repechage tomorrow, with the winner of each of the four heats getting into the semi-finals along with the next two fastest losers. As the highest ranked runner in her heat, she stands a strong chance of progressing. 

Sophie Becker, meanwhile, will also run the repechage having finished sixth in her heat in a time of 51.84, more than seven-tenths outside her PB. 

“I was hoping for a good bit faster than that,” said Becker.

“To make a semi, run a PB or both is obviously what I would like to do. It’s disappointing but I’m happy with my first 250m. I ran that really well. I put myself in the mix. And then, I don’t know, I was overthinking going with them.

“Upon reflection, I should have just, when the girl came up on my inside, just gone with her and seeing what happens. If I blow up, I blow up. Instead, I was a bit reserved, I think.

“I tried to keep my energy but it’s a 400m, you’re going to lose it anyway. It’s definitely a learning curve for tomorrow.” 

Becker confirmed she would run tomorrow’s repechage, rather than drop out and conserve energy for the women’s 4x400m relay later this week. 

Adeleke, meanwhile, admitted she may have run in Sunday’s mixed relay final had the Irish team qualified, but her priority is her individual event. 

“I’m not happy to participate, I want to achieve my goals”, she said. “My goal wasn’t just to come to the Olympics, my goal was to do something special. And that’s what my goal will remain.” 

Written by Gavin Cooney 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.