Juan van Deventer cut it fine, but was helped to qualify for the 1 500m final by the speed of his A semifinal at the Bird’s Nest on Sunday night.
Van Deventer positioned himself on the inside lane behind Belal Ali of Bahrain. They covered the first lap in 57,9 seconds, with Spaniard Carlos Higuero on his outside and Italian Christian Obrist just off the shoulder.
The status quo remained for the next lap with the pace getting an initial boost 700m out. As Ali took it through the bell in 2:58,11, the bunching commenced and Van Deventer moved out with 280m to go to put him into an ideal position on the final bend.
Then things started to go pear-shaped. Entering the bend in second position, he suddenly found himself sitting in fourth and fifth with 70m left.
The situation was exacerbated when the 25-year-old started to check his position, but he had the strength to hang on to finish sixth in 3:37,75.
”I was just panicking; I mean, it’s just not good enough. I can’t afford to do that in an Olympic semifinal,” said a chastened Van Deventer, referring to his having looked around on the final run-in.
”I was just too concerned on the back straight. I could feel them coming — I could see five and feel another two coming. At 180 [to go] I was second in a good position, then all of a sudden my legs started feeling heavy and I tensed.”
There were more than a few anxious moments for the Johannesburg-based athlete who had to await the outcome of the second heat to learn that he qualified as the first of two fastest losers. Bahrain’s Rashid Ramzi won the second semifinal in 3:37,11 ahead of France’s Mehdi Baala, in a race that was slower in the lower placings.
”I think it’s going to be a fast final; the two Kenyans will work together,” said Van Deventer. ”I’m going to make sure I’m in a winning position from the start and see what happens. I’m not going there just to be part of it — there’s nothing to be gained by that. Anything can happen and if it works, great; if not, I’ve lost nothing.”
It is this brave and bold approach that makes Van Deventer an exciting prospect, but the outcome will only be known on Tuesday night. — Sapa