RHASIDAT ADELEKE FINISHED first in her qualifying heat for the women’s 400 metres, putting a massive distance between her competitors for the first 300 metres before having a couple of glances at the clock and over her shoulder before pulling up.
Her time was 50.09, and while her personal best is 49.06, it would seem certain she could have blown that apart as she left Alexis Holmes and Junelle Bromfield in her wake after a false start threatened her composure.
As for her main rivals, Nickisha Pryce of Jamaica recorded a time of 50.02 in Heat 2.
Natalia Kaczmarek of Poland, a silver medallist in the World Championships, came first in Heat 4 with a time of 49.99.
Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic dominated Heat 5, while in the same race, it was heartbreak for Sharlene Mawdsley as she finished a narrow fourth while setting a personal best of 50.61.
Running out of Lane 8, she opened aggressively, but fell back as the race progressed and Paulino blew the field apart.
Earlier in the day, Sophie Becker failed to progress from Heat 1. She finished sixth after a promising start, so missed out on a semi-final place with a time of 51.84.
Both Mawdsley and Becker will return for a second chance in the repechage.
Meanwhile, Ciara McGing’s Olympics ended on Monday morning on the 10 metre diving board.
The Ohio State University Masters student finished in 28th after Round 3 of 5. The top 18 progress.
