Louie Hinchliffe of Team GB delivered an impressive performance in the 100m heats at the Stade de France, narrowly defeating the favorite Noah Lyles to secure a spot in the semi-finals scheduled for Sunday. Despite Lyles' strong track record, including gold medals in the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay at the 2023 World Championships, it was Hinchliffe who stole the spotlight with a remarkable time of 9.98 seconds.
Lyles, who had also triumphed at the London Diamond League last month, finished in 10.04 seconds, just 0.08 seconds behind Hinchliffe. Reflecting on his performance, Hinchliffe expressed his dissatisfaction with his previous result in London, where he had finished fourth. He was pleased to reclaim his form and achieve victory in his Olympic heat.
Though pleased with his heat win, Hinchliffe remained focused, acknowledging that the job was far from complete. He emphasized the importance of performing well in both the semi-finals and the finals to achieve his goals.
Following the heat, Lyles admitted to Eurosport that he was excited to see his hard work pay off but recognized the challenges posed by his competitors. He vowed to improve and not let such an outcome happen again, acknowledging the readiness of his rivals.
In another notable performance, Zharnel Hughes of Team GB had a challenging start but managed to finish third in his heat with a time of 10.03 seconds, securing his place in the semi-finals. He finished behind Fred Kerley of the USA and Letsile Tebogo of Botswana.
Tokyo 2020 gold medallist Lamont Marcell Jacobs also advanced to the semi-finals, clocking 10.05 seconds and finishing second in his heat behind Nigeria's Kayinsola Ajayi. In heat seven, Kenneth Bednarek of the USA posted the fastest time of the session at 9.97 seconds, narrowly ahead of Cameroon's Emmanuel Eseme.
In the opening heat, Team GB's Jeremiah Azu was disqualified due to a false start, ending his hopes for a medal in the 100m event. Canada's Aaron Brown also faced disqualification for a similar issue, further impacting the field of competitors.
ADD A COMMENT :