IRELAND’S LEON REID has finished seventh in his men’s 200m semi-final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
In the fastest semi-final, which was won by Canadian superstar Andre de Grass in a 2021 world’s best time, national record and personal best of 19.73, Reid produced another brilliant run to clock 20.54, just outside his season’s best from this morning.
Running in Lane 3, Reid started brightly and his first 50m into the bend was excellent. He held his form well down the home straight, though it wasn’t enough as de Grass and Kenny Bednarek of USA took the two fastest qualifier spots.
#Athletics
— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) August 3, 2021
7th place for Leon Reid in 20.54
Another brilliant run, just outside his SB from this morning, but the end of his campaign.
One of very few Irish athletes ever to make an Olympic sprint semi-final 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼#TeamIreland #Tokyo2020 pic.twitter.com/IHjcRfuAIn
“It wasn’t enough,” the 27-year-old told RTÉ Sport afterwards. “I felt good, but I don’t know, it must just be where I am right now.
“I just wanted to go a little bit quicker. It’s quite frustrating, to be honest… I just didn’t have that kick and rhythm off the bend that I usually have.
“I want to be more in the mix than just on the race sheet. Back to the drawing board.”
“It’s been amazing, obviously all the support back home and [from] the Irish federation, Irish Athletics, Olympic committees… it’s been amazing,” he added on the Olympic experience in general.
Seventh in the 200m semi-final, Leon Reid gives his reaction to RTE Sport following a busy day on the track for the Irish sprinter. #RTEsport pic.twitter.com/bngZAVdMpf
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 3, 2021
Reid got through this morning’s heats at Tokyo’s National Stadium, running a season’s best time of 20.53 seconds to finish fifth in a strong field.
His Irish team-mate Marcus Lawler missed out, though also clocked a season’s best time of 20.73 on his Olympic debut as he came in sixth in his heat.
“I like to achieve high, it might not be enough but I’ll give it a good lash in the semis,” Reid said after the heat.
Elsewhere in the semi-finals, world champion Noah Lyles endured a finish-line gaffe, but managed to qualify. The 24-year-old inexplicably slowed up with 10m of his semi to run and was promptly overtaken at the line by Canada’s Aaron Brown and Liberian Joseph Fahnbulleh, all three credited with 19.99 seconds.
It meant Lyles didn’t qualify automatically as one of the first two finishers, instead handed an anxious wait for times as the third and final semi-final — Reid’s — went ahead.
“It is not a win-lose situation,” Lyles insisted. “I’m glad I made it to the finals and that is all that matters. I knew I was going to make it. It was a bit risky, I wouldn’t lie, but I made it.”
US 17-year-old sensation Erriyon Knighton won the opening semi-final convincingly in 20.02, scoring a psychological blow by casually looking across the field no less than four times on the back stretch through to the line.
- Additional reporting from © – AFP, 2021.
