It looks like being the final act of a glorious career for one of the finest athletes Great Britain has produced. The Brit was the only competitor to duck in under 13 seconds and while the time was slower than her effort in London four years on her way to Super Saturday gold, it was faster than she achieved in winning last year’s World Championship gold in Beijing. I need to go home and think about what I want to do for the rest of my life. I make sure that he’s taken care of.
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“When he said 10 seconds I thought “That is so much” but I just ran hard like I always do in the 800m and just tried to see what I could do”.
Kenya’s Ferguson Rotich also progressed to the semi-finals, a day after the International Olympic Committee opened disciplinary proceedings against him and Kenyan coach John Anzrah, who was allegedly caught providing a urine sample for a drugs test on behalf of the athlete. ‘The older ones have to move on and call it a day and the younger ones come through and the sport continues.
“It’s insane. I wasn’t expecting that – maybe top eight, but not the gold”, said the youngster. It’s like, have you still got stuff in the basement?’ “It is a tough decision and it is such a tough event and I have done it for so long so we will see”, she added.
But she was left happy with silver.
The reigning Olympic champion had sensed her moment had gone when Thiam, despite apparently nursing a sore shoulder, threw an astonishing 53.13 metres in the javelin, the penultimate event.
“It’s not over”, she said.
‘I gave what I had on those two days, ‘ she said.
In the pool Australia’s Cate Campbell has one last chance to claim an individual medal in the women’s 50m freestyle and Monica Puig is aiming to win Puerto Rico’s first Olympic gold in the women’s tennis singles.
“I’m just proud to be back on the podium”. ‘I just want to be remembered as one of the great athletes that came into the heptathlon, ‘ she said.
The timetable at the athletics, with much longer gaps than normal between morning and evening sessions for the sake of American television, hampered the heptathletes.
But, whatever happens in the future, Ennis-Hill is just so inspiring.
Despite clocking an impressive time of 2:09.07, some seven seconds ahead of Thiam, it was not enough to overturn the lead and Ennis-Hill was forced to settle for the silver medal.
Johnson-Thompson’s technique deserted her as she relinquished her grasp in the lead, failing to hit the 12m line as she slumped to sixth.
The champion from the 2012 London Olympic Games and pre-Games favourite, Ennis-Hill, 30, finished with a total point tally of 6,775 to beat Canada’s Brianne Theisen-Eaton into the silver-medal position by 122 points.
Ennis-Hill broke down in tears when speaking to journalists in the mixed zone after the 800m.
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Justin Gatlin will be hoping to throw a spanner in the works in the first event for the 100m world record holder, though. I train most days in the shot put, I try so hard in it.
