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"contents": "<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On a night when Swedish pole vault superstar Armand Duplantis soared to previously unscaled heights, Team SA’s Prudence Sekgodiso showed she belongs at the top table of women’s 800m running.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was a wild programme in front of another 75,000 crowd, something which has been a feature of these Paris Olympics, with Duplantis leaping 6.25m into the night sky in the final act of the evening.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Earlier, Beatrice Chebet won the women’s 5,000m over Kenyan teammate Faith Kipyegon, but the silver medallist was sensationally disqualified for an in-race transgression. She was later reinstated after a protest by the Kenyan athletics delegation.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Earlier in the evening, Team South Africa’s men’s 200m hopes Wayde van Niekerk and Shaun Maswangani finished third in their respective heats to qualify automatically for the semifinals.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But Benjamin Richardson pulled up with 80m left, clutching his upper right leg. He managed to finish the race and was actually credited with a time of 51.26.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This means that if it was only cramp, he can still run in the repechage and reach the semifinals, while Team SA will be hoping he can recover to be part of the 4x100m relay.</span>\r\n\r\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2306201\" src=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-2165270554-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Sekgodiso\" width=\"1706\" height=\"2560\" /> <em>Prudence Sekgodiso of Team South Africa reacts after the 800m semifinal at Stade de France on 4 August 2024. (Photo: Hannah Peters / Getty Images)</em></p>\r\n\r\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2306199\" src=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-2165413970-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Sekgodiso\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" /> <em>Calab Law of Australia, Joseph Fahnbulleh of Liberia and Team SA’s Wayde van Niekerk in the 200m round one at Stade de France on 5 August 2024. (Photo: Hannah Peters / Getty Images)</em></p>\r\n<h4><b>Close race</b></h4>\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, the main talking point from a South African perspective was Sekgodiso, who many thought had a chance of earning Team SA their fifth medal at these Games.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It wasn’t to be though and she came over the line at the back of the group after visibly tiring in the last 50m.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The 800m gold was won by pre-race favourite Keely Hodgkinson in 1:56.72, with Sekgodiso eighth in 1:58.79. It wasn’t as tight as the men’s 100m final, but two seconds covering eight runners over two laps is an indication of a close race.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sekgodiso certainly did enough at her first Olympics to confirm she belongs at this level and there’s much to be excited about the 22-year-old as she builds towards the 2028 Games.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She was forced a bit wide early on as the runners jostled for position and she sat alongside Ethiopia’s Tsige Duguma in fourth spot, while Hodgkinson led Kenyan Mary Moraa through the bell in 58.4sec.</span>\r\n\r\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2306197\" src=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1332129029-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1708\" /> <em>Shaun Maswanganyi after competing in the 200m semifinal on 3 August 2021. (Photo: Christian Petersen / Getty Images)</em></p>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The speed was injected down the back straight and Sekgodiso went with the leaders. However, she was kept wide around the far turn, although still had a puncher’s chance entering the final straight. That’s when the race started to tell and she slipped back through the field, knowing her chances had evaporated.</span>\r\n\r\n<b>Read more:</b> <a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/2024-paris-olympic-games-news/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Olympic Games Paris 2024</span></a>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“The plan was to stick with the girls for as long as I could. I know I’m not good in the final 100m and when I saw the girls coming past me, I thought I must just keep my head up and keep going.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“I’m so happy I made the final, c’mon guys, it means a lot to me,” she told the media afterwards.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She also revealed that she has trouble sleeping after a race.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“This was a tough tournament, with three races in three days. I’m not used to that. Normally I can have a day or two to recover, but here I couldn’t. I have to take sleeping pills to sleep and then I wake up late, so the recovery period was difficult for a programme like this.” </span><b>DM</b>\r\n\r\n<i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gary Lemke is in Paris as part of Team SA.</span></i>",
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"description": "<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On a night when Swedish pole vault superstar Armand Duplantis soared to previously unscaled heights, Team SA’s Prudence Sekgodiso showed she belongs at the top table of women’s 800m running.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was a wild programme in front of another 75,000 crowd, something which has been a feature of these Paris Olympics, with Duplantis leaping 6.25m into the night sky in the final act of the evening.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Earlier, Beatrice Chebet won the women’s 5,000m over Kenyan teammate Faith Kipyegon, but the silver medallist was sensationally disqualified for an in-race transgression. 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Prudence Sekgodiso of Team South Africa reacts after the 800m semifinal at Stade de France on 4 August 2024. (Photo: Hannah Peters / Getty Images)
Calab Law of Australia, Joseph Fahnbulleh of Liberia and Team SA’s Wayde van Niekerk in the 200m round one at Stade de France on 5 August 2024. (Photo: Hannah Peters / Getty Images)
Shaun Maswanganyi after competing in the 200m semifinal on 3 August 2021. (Photo: Christian Petersen / Getty Images)