Delhi / World Athletics Championships: Dutee Chand fails to reach 100m semis, misses Olympic quota

Star Indian sprinter Dutee Chand failed to qualify for the women's 100m semi-finals at the World Athletics Championships on Saturday after finishing 7th in the third heat of the event.

Dutee clocked 11.48 seconds in her heat, well below her season best which stands at 11.26s. Dutee had failed to meet the qualifying standards for world championships in 2019 but she made it to Doha meet after getting an invite from the IAAF.

Dutee finished in 37th place overall and also failed to secure a berth for the Tokyo Olympics as a result. The qualification standard for the 2020 Games was set at 11.15 seconds.

The top three from the six heats and the next six best times overall make it to the semifinal that will be held on Sunday. Chand's timing puts her out of contention on both counts. It is also 0.22 seconds lesser than her best time, which is also the national record in the category.

In a heat that included Jamaican reigning Olympic champion Elaine Thompson, Dutee had the fastest reaction time which led her to having a good start. She was ahead of the pack at the halfway stage but then fell behind in the final stretch.

Dutee's heat was won by reigning Olympic champion Elaine Thompson (11.14 seconds) of Jamaica.

The timing of the last qualifier for the semifinals was 11.31 seconds and it was well within Dutee's reach but she could not do it. The first three in each of the six heats and the next six fastest qualify for the semifinals.

All eyes now will be on India's mixed relay team as the Asian Games gold medal-winning team will be in action in the heats later in the day.

The Athletics Federation of India is pinning its hopes on the relay team to reach the final and clinch a Tokyo Olympics berth despite the absence of Hima Das and Arokia Rajiv who were part of the Asian Games medal-winning team.

Muhammad Anas is not running in his pet event 400m but he will join the mixed relay team in a bid to boost their chances. Notably, India are not in the heat that USA and Jamaica and their chances of making the next round look good.