KARACHI: Pakistan’s hockey match against Korea for seventh place will be the country’s final representation in the London Olympics after its second athlete, the 800m runner Rabia Ashiq, was knocked out of the event as she finished a disappointing sixth in her heat.
Rabia’s timing, a 2:17:39, was seven seconds slower than her personal best as South African star Caster Semenya moved a step closer to adding the Olympic title as she eased into the semi-finals.
Meanwhile, Rabia said that she was pleased with her show that saw her finish the track 17 seconds slower than the winner of the heat. She dispelled the notion that the Mondo track, which is being used in London, was easy to run on as it required more power and energy compared to the tartan track that they were used to.
“I’m happy with my timing in the race because I only had a week to get used to the track conditions and the girls in my heat were very quick,” Rabia told The Express Tribune.
“I put in everything I could in the first round to keep up with the pace but that extra yard of sprint took a lot of energy out of me. The gap widened a lot during the second lap and that de-motivated me.”
The Lahore-based athlete left for the mega event with an aim to break the national record of 2:08:04, set by her mentor Parveen but was pleased with the experience she gained while in London.
“For me the Olympics were okay because it wasn’t just about the experience. I wanted to break the national record. Now I’ll shift my focus to the SAF Games.”
Saudi woman takes slow lane into history
Meanwhile, middle distance runner Sarah Attar made history, becoming the first female athlete to represent Saudi Arabia in Olympics track and field — but limped home a distant last in
her heat.
Attar timed 2:44:95 in heat six of round one of the 800m, nearly 44 seconds behind Kenya’s Janeth Busienei (2:01.04). Wearing a white hood, long-sleeved green top and black leggings, the 19-year-old student described appearing in the Olympics as ‘an incredible experience’. (With additional input from afp)
Published in The Express Tribune, August 9th, 2012.
COMMENTS (7)
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Maybe we expected magic without spending resources and time to train people.
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“I put in everything I could in the first round to keep up with the pace but that extra yard of sprint took a lot of energy out of me"
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That is the worst mistake a runner could make (trying to match pace with runners beyond one's capability) Wonder if she and the coach studied the heat linup and made strategy of not attacking in the first lap. She should have ran her own race for her target 2:08
If we want to have medal winners coming from us then we need to become an active nation. Every person young and old, men or women who takes up a physical activity will contribute towards building a society that will generate medal winners. Rabia's run at the olympics will be success if people back home pick up running and experience what they have been missing all their life.
Well done our Athletes! Poor show by Ministry of Sports!!!!
Why do our sports officials waste valuable resources on junkets instead of using these funds for promotion of athletics at school and college levels. Many medal winners from other developing countries were teens. They must truly believe that horses can fly, to expect our athletes to even qualify olympics heats while knowing what the qualification timings would be.
How conveniently Our news Outlets are using the words like Crashed, Trashed, Failed to make an impression like the nation has spent millions and in the end they failed to make certain impression. These guys for the first time tried with such disgusting facilities in Pakistan and our ungrateful media and people are bashing these athletes. I read the UK article and they were appreciating Pakistani Women Athletes to take part in Olympics but Our media is whining all the time.