Wait for 800m gold continues as Mary Moraa bows out of Tokyo
Kenya's Mary Moraa (left) lies flat on the track after finishing third in the women's 800m semi-final Heat 1 during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on July 31, 2021.
What you need to know:
- In the race won by Jamaican Natoya Goule in 1:59.57, Moraa came third in 2:00.47 after digging deep to sprint past American Ajee Wilson (2:00.79) in the home straight
- Jemma Reekie of Great Britain was second in 1:59.77 to automatically qualify for the Tuesday final alongside race winner Goule
- The top two athletes in each of the three semi-finals automatically qualify for the final alongside two athletes with the fastest times
Kenya's hope to reclaim the women's 800 metres gold was on Saturday dashed after the country's sole representative in the semi-finals failed to make it to the final.
Mary Moraa bowed out of the Tokyo Olympic Games after finishing third in the 800 metres semi-final Heat 1
Jamaica's Natoya Goule (right) wins the women's 800m semi-final followed by third-placed Kenya's Mary Moraa (left) during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on July 31, 2021.
won by Jamaica's Natoya Goule in 1:59.57.
Moraa came third in 2:00.47 after digging deep to sprint past American Ajee Wilson (2:00.79) in the home straight.
Jemma Reekie of Great Britain was second in 1:59.77 to automatically qualify for the Tuesday final alongside race winner Goule.
Jamaica's Natoya Goule (right) wins the women's 800m semi-final followed by third-placed Kenya's Mary Moraa (left) during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on July 31, 2021.
The top two athletes in each of the three semi-finals automatically qualify for the final alongside two athletes with the fastest times.
Kenya's only 800m gold in the women's race was won by Pamela Jelimo in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The other Kenyans who had qualified for the Tokyo Games in 800m, Eunice Sum and Emily Cherotich, bowed out in the first round.
