Dutee Chand fails to advance in 200m, finishes last in her heat at Tokyo Olympics
The Indian sprinter clocked 23.85 seconds to finish seventh. Dutee Chand was 38th out of 41 in the overall standings. Her personal best in the 200m is 23.00s.
India’s Dutee Chand bowed out of the Tokyo Olympics following her early exit in the women’s 200m event at the Olympic Stadium on Monday.
Competing in the heats, the Indian sprinter clocked 23.85 seconds to finish seventh and last in what was her first run over the distance for the season. Dutee Chand’s personal best in the 200m is 23.00s, set at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta.
Namibia’s Christine Mboma won the heats with a timing of 22.11 seconds, a new national record, while Gabrielle Thomas of the USA -- the world-leading time holder for the season -- was second in 22.20 seconds.
Niger’s Aminatou Seyni came in third with a timing of 22.72 seconds to seal the three automatic qualifying slots for the semi-finals.
The top three finishers from each heat along with the three fastest timings across the seven races make the semi-finals, which will be held later in the day. The women’s 200m final is scheduled for Tuesday.
Dutee Chand’s timing placed her 38th in the overall standings. A total of 41 athletes competed in the women’s 200m event.
Earlier, the Indian sprint ace bowed out of the 100m competition at the Tokyo Olympics too.
Competing on the opening day of the athletics programme at Tokyo 2020, the 25-year-old Dutee Chand clocked 11.54 seconds to finish seventh in her heats that featured the two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica.
The world champion, however, was later pipped by her compatriot Elaine Thompson-Herah in the final for the gold medal. Shericka Jackson took the bronze medal in the women’s 100m to complete the all-Jamaican podium.