Shanti Pereira gets 2nd chance to qualify for semis
PARIS – The Paris Olympics have been a difficult meet for national sprinter Shanti Pereira.
After a fantastic 2023 that saw her win titles at the Asian championships and Asian Games, she suffered a stress injury to the fibula in her right leg in April, derailing the progress she has made in recent years.
The emotional pain of this injury has lingered throughout these Olympics. After her 100m heats on Aug 2, Pereira had to compose herself as she cried while speaking to reporters at the mixed zone.
Two days later, following her pet event, the 200m, she was teary-eyed before her interviews.
At the Stade de France on Aug 4, she clocked 23.21 seconds in the 200m, placing her last in Heat 5 and into the repechage rounds. Only the top three qualify directly for the semi-finals, while the rest have another shot to progress through the repechage.
Pereira said: “That has been the hardest part of this season, that’s what has made this season probably one of my toughest.
“Going into (the season) it was going well, and then the injury gave me very little time to focus on these Games and be at my top fitness... Eight weeks of not sprinting can take a toll in such a big year and it was just unfortunate that it had to happen at that time.”
Pereira eventually placed 31st among the field of 45 runners. United States’ Gabrielle Thomas was the top qualifier in 22.20sec, with Nigeria’s Favour Ofili (22.24sec) and Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith (22.28) the second- and third-quickest overall in the heats.
She had to recover quickly from a disappointing performance in the 100m and she felt that she managed to do that going into the 200m.
Pereira said: “It was a lot of dealing with the mental part of things more than anything. My coach and I knew the 100 wasn’t a direct indicator of where I’m at right now, so I had to find a way to stay relaxed and focus on myself and the things that I can control, so that was what the whole time was like.”
She started the year well, breaking the national record for the 400m – an event in which she seldom competes – during a two-month training stint in Florida, before sustaining the injury.
After progressing to the 200m semi-finals at the 2023 world championships in Budapest, where she also set her national record of 22.57sec, Pereira had been hoping to repeat the feat in Paris.
Despite the setbacks, the multiple SEA Games champion has tried to maintain a positive mindset and is glad to be able to compete in her second Olympics.
She made her Olympic debut at the Tokyo Games, where she finished sixth in her 200m heat with a season-best 23.96sec for 39th out of 41 overall.
Pereira said: “Honestly, the timing was not bad. It was a bit slower than my season’s best (23.17sec) but honestly looking at it as a whole it’s not a bad time considering the lead-up to this race.
“My competitors have just been running really fast times this year, it’s very normal, it’s the Olympic year, everyone’s training hard and going faster. My mindset was there, I really did all I could to prepare myself and that’s all I can really say.”
In the repechage on Aug 5, winners of the four races and the next two fastest will progress to the semi-finals, which will be held on the same day.
It is a new format that World Athletics has introduced at the Paris Games in the 100m/110m hurdles, 200m, 400m, 400m hurdles, 800m and 1,500m.
Pereira added: “It’s a second chance, I get to run again, so it’s a bonus. But I guess I’ve got nothing to lose, go in with the same race plan, try to stay relaxed, stay focused and give it my all again.”
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