Nakaayi Aims for Semifinal Spot in Women’s 800m

In Summary:

Event: Women’s 800m, Heat 2
Ugandan: Halimah Nakaayi
Date: Friday, August 2
Time: 7:54pm

Halimah Nakaayi has her sights set on semifinals as she competes in the Women’s 800m round one event at the ongoing Olympics in Paris, France.

Nakaayi became a global sensation in 2019 when she captured the gold medal in the 800m at the World Championships in Doha.

However, her journey since then has been challenging, as she did not reach the final at the Tokyo Olympics.

Recently, Nakaayi has shown a resurgence in her form. Last month, she set a new Ugandan National Record in the 800m with a time of 1:57.26, finishing sixth at the London Diamond League.

This impressive performance came shortly after she had lowered the National Record to 1:57.56 to defeat Ethiopia’s Duguma Tsige in Los Angeles two weeks earlier.

On Friday, Nakaayi will look to build on this momentum as she competes in Heat Two of the 800m heats.

She will face tough competition from South Africa’s Prudence Sekgodiso, Brunei’s Nelly Jepkosgei, and Cuba’s Daily Gaspar, among others in that second heat.

The top three finishers in each heat will advance directly to the semifinals, while the rest will have another chance through the repechage.

With the absence of the United States’ Athing Mu, who did not qualify from the trials, Nakaayi’s main competitors include Kenya’s Mary Moraa, Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson and Jemma Reekie, and Jamaica’s Natoya Goule.

But Nakaayi’s first goal is to successfully navigate this initial challenge and secure her spot in the semifinals.