Maia Ramsden broke her own New Zealand record but still could not make the women’s 1500m final at the Paris Olympics.
Ramsden, 23, found herself in the slower of the two semifinals, but spent most of the race well back. When the pace went on in the last lap, she moved through the field, as she had done in her heat.
LATEST HEADLINES:
Showing good pace, she passed several runners and with 60 metres to go, briefly got into the crucial sixth place (with six going through to the final). But she tied up and slipped back to eighth over the final 10m.
Ramsden ran 4 minutes 2.20 seconds and missed a top-six spot by 0.30 seconds.
“I’m a bit sad,” she said. “I got close and that makes it sting a little more. But it fuels the fire.
“I need to get stronger. I sat near the back – that was the strategy. I made the move forward when I saw the pace go on, and I’m proud of that.
“But my legs turned to jelly over the last 60 metres and the girls came blazing past me. I didn’t even have time to register and couldn’t physically respond anyway.
“That’s the way it goes. I’ll be back.”
Ramsden said lining up alongside Olympic and world champions felt surreal.
“Some of the big names are in their third Olympics. I remember asking my parents if I could miss school so I could watch them run in the Olympics. Then there I was lining up with them.”