Another day at the Olympic Games in the Stade de France, with various events for Team NL. This morning we saw a strong Nadine Visser, but also a crash by Mike Foppen. Tonight we will Lieke Klaver and Nick Smidt in action in the semi-finals.
Lieke Klaver misses 400m final
It has become clear in recent days that Lieke Klaver is in top form at the Paris Games. She already won a gold medal with the 4×400 mixed relay, and in her 400 meter series on Monday evening we also saw a particularly strong runner, who was able to run the last part quite relaxed and crossed the finish line after 49.96. In July she ran a PR of 49.58 in London.
Tonight, however, it seems that Klaver is not having a good day. At the starting shot, she sits down again while everyone else takes off. What is going on here? She gets a warning, the ladies start again. New chance, now she gets off to a good start but is clearly struggling. In a messy race, she cannot keep up with the first three and finishes fourth in 50.44.
The next two series are the fingers crossed in the hot seats, but it is not enough. The number three of the third heat, Sada Williams, is just faster with 49.89.
Meuwly: ‘Combination of factors’
Klaver herself is too emotional to speak to the press after the race, but according to her coach Laurent Meuwly it was a combination of factors. She has already run three exceptionally strong races in the past few days, which means she already had a lot less energy than she would have liked. The start also does not go smoothly: it takes a remarkably long time before the starting shot is fired, which makes Klaver assume there is a technical problem. She has to explain herself and is given a warning, which makes her lose her focus. At the restart she makes a wrong step and cannot find her rhythm. The result is a forced, poorly controlled race.
Nick Smidt eliminated in 400m hurdles, ‘must be proud of myself’
The road to the semi-finals was a little less effortless for Nick Smidt. In the series on Monday, he finished sixth. With 48.64, he ran his best time of the season. With that, he was still allowed to go through to the semi-finals via the hot seats. ‘I am very happy that I can chill for another day and recover in my own bubble for the next race. Every race here is like a final for me, that is why I want to start it well rested,’ Smidt told the NOS on Monday.
Despite the rest day, Smidt is having a tough time tonight. He makes a confident, strong impression at the start, but it is precisely that strong start that breaks him. Again he finishes sixth, this time unfortunately not enough to progress to the final. The 27-year-old runs 49.61. The Norwegian Karsten Warholm, the big favorite for the win and winner of this semi-final, is almost two seconds faster.
Smidt doesn’t mind that this time is now behind his name. ‘After the Tokyo Games I collapsed, I had a really hard time. I don’t want to end up in a hole like that again, so I have to be proud that I’ve come this far,’ he says after the race. ‘I had such strong competitors today, I had to dig deep to keep up. But I forced too much, the tank was empty, I broke down and couldn’t keep up.’
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