The recent Olympic Games brought us a number of breathtaking moments, and our athletes were right there. In this series, we’ll highlight their performances and recap their most notable achievements.
In the men’s 200 meters, we were represented by Brendon Rodney. The experienced 32-year-old Canadian started in the heats, where he achieved a new SB of 20.30. However, this wasn’t enough to advance to the next round, so he had to go through the repechage. With a time of 20.42, he won his heat and advanced to the semifinals. There, battling a headwind, he clocked 20.59 and finished in 16th place overall.
In the 400 meters, a national hero, Kirani James of Grenada made his fourth Olympic appearance. After smoothly advancing from the heats, he put on a stellar performance in the semifinals, clocking the fastest time of all the competitors – 43.78 seconds, just four-hundredths off his personal best. He broke the 44-second barrier for the first time since 2021. Heading into the final, he was the only athlete in history with a complete set of Olympic medals (He is the first athlete ever to achieve this). His maximum effort in the fight for medals earned him a time of 43.87, but unfortunately, this marked “only” the fastest fifth place in history. In any other previous final, that time would have secured a medal. Kirani deserves immense respect and admiration for his determination. He serves as a great example to many, both on and off the track.
Cyprian hope in the 110m meters hurdles, Milan Trajković, advanced to the semifinals with a time of 13.43s. This was his third consecutive Olympic games appearance. Having finished seventh in Rio 2016, he came close to repeating his appearance in the finals, clocking 13.32 and finishing ninth overall.
Our greatest joy came in the 4x100m relay. Canadians Jerome Blake and Brendon Rodney were part of the team that won gold with a time of 37.50 seconds. They repeated the unique feat of their compatriots from Atlanta 1996. For Jerome, this was his first Olympic medal, while Brendon added it to his previous bronze and silver from past editions.
The British quartet finished third, securing bronze. Ageless sprinter Richard Kilty also competed in the heats. After a heartbreaking disqualification in Tokyo, he now finally celebrates his first Olympic medal. The former world champion in the 60 meters achieved this milestone at the age of 34.
In the women’s 100 meters, we had a fourfold representation. Alongside Boglárka Takács, Karolína Maňasová, and Viktória Forster, Shashalee Forbes joined the team after the withdrawal of Shericka Jackson, who was the first choice in Jamaica’s stacked lineup.
Takács from Hungary shone in the heats with a fantastic national record of 11.10 seconds, securing her direct advance to the semifinals. In the same heat, young Czech sprint talent Maňasová performed excellently in her debut, achieving a personal record of 11.11 seconds and also advancing by time. She came just two hundredths short of the 43-year-old national record held by Jarmila Kratochvílová. Forbes also met the expectations, marking a big Q with a time of 11.19 seconds.
Unlike the heats, the semifinals were affected by lower temperatures and precipitation. Forbes performed best among our athletes, recording a time of 11.20 seconds and finishing in 16th place overall. Boglárka came in 18th with a time of 11.26 seconds, while Karolína finished 24th with a time of 11.35 seconds in a tough field.
After making her Olympic debut and improving her SB to 11.44 seconds in the flat 100 meters, Viktória Forster also participated in the 100 meters hurdles. Unfortunately, she faced misfortune when she finished third in her repechage heat, just one hundredth of a second shy of qualifying fot the semis. Her time of 12.88 seconds was the seventh-best in the repechage.
In the 200 meters, Bianca Williams from the team Great Britain & N.I. made her Olympic debut in the heats, achieving a time of 22.77 seconds that allowed her to advance directly. In the semifinals, she set a new season best of 22.58 seconds and finished in 10th place overall. The mother of a four-year-old son was also part of the 4×100 meter relay team, where she helped the squad dominate the heats and earn a fantastic silver medal.
One of our youngest stars, Lurdes Gloria Manuel, traveled to Paris with the goal of breaking the 51-second barrier in tge 400 meters for the fourth time this season. The 19-year-old Czech athlete, who finished fourth at this year’s European Championships, not only achieved her goal with a time of 50.81 seconds, but also qualified for the semifinals, where she placed 22nd overall.
Jessie Knight, after the misfortune in Tokyo where she stumbled at the first hurdle, was determined to improve her Olympic experience. In Paris, she ran three times. After advancing to the semifinals through the repechage, she covered the one lap with hurdles in 54.90 seconds and finished 15th.
Congratulations to all.
Photo credit: Lukasz Szelag
