ATHLETIX GRAND PRIX
Semenya primed for her maiden 1,000m
Caster Semenya would race her maiden 1‚000m when she competes alongside world 100m champion Justin Gatlin at the Athletix Grand Prix meet in Pretoria on March 8‚ organisers said on Tuesday. Semenya said that if she felt good on the day she might go for the South African record of 2min 37.20sec‚ set by Ilse de Kock Wicksell in 1983. "My training is going very well‚" she said. "I am fit‚ I am confident. If the conditions are right I may just see how close I can get to the record. It does depend on the pace of the race. If the time is on‚ I will try and chase it." The required pace translates into a 2min 05.76sec 800m – comfortably slower than her 1:55.16 national record — or a 3:55.80sec 1,500m‚ which is substantially quicker than her 4:01.99 personal best. It would also equate to a 1:34.32 600m‚ where Semenya holds the 1:21.77 world best. The Olympic champion regained her 800m crown at the 2017 World Championships in London‚ but took the bronze medal in the 1,500m. The 1,000m is not ...
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