Sophie Becker and Jodie McCann make quota for Paris Olympics
Sophie Becker and Jodie McCann have made the final athlete qualification quota for the Paris Olympics and will now contest the 400m and 5,000m respectively.
Five Irish athletes had already sealed a quota qualification spot for Paris after last Sunday’s cut-off date, ensuring they will join the 10 Irish athletes who already qualified automatically, along with the two relay teams, the women’s and mixed 4x400m.
As expected, Thomas Barr just misses the 40-athlete quota in the 400m hurdles, after the final list of qualifiers was published by World Athletics on Sunday. Barr, who turns 32 two days before the Olympics begin, is still set to travel to Paris as part in the 4x400m mixed relay having played a key role in the gold medal performance at the European Championships in Rome last month.
Becker had moved four places outside of the 48-athlete quota in her 400m event after last Sunday, but now makes the cut ranked 46th. The Wexford athlete will join Rhasidat Adeleke and Sharlene Mawdsley in that event in Paris, giving that event full Irish representation.
McCann also moved up several places in the 5,000m, and is now ranked 39th of the 42 entries for Paris. The Dublin athlete joining her brother Luke, who had already qualified in the men’s 1,500m
Both Becker and McCann improved their qualification chances after winning national titles last Sunday. Becker was also part of the women’s 4x400m relay which won silver at the European Championships in Rome.
These quota qualifications make up the final Paris event numbers on top of those with the automatic qualifying marks (with a maximum of three entries per event for each country).
For the 1,500m in Paris, there are 45 entry spots, with McCann qualifying in 37th, and Cathal Doyle in 43rd, joining automatic qualifier Andrew Coscoran.
Jodie McCann will run in the 5,000m at the Olympic Games. Photograph: Bryan Keane/Inpho
Kate O’Connor had also met the highly competitive qualification in the women’s heptathlon, ranked 23rd of 24, as did 20-year-old Nicola Tuthill in the women’s hammer, ranked 31st of the 32 athletes.
Eric Favors will also be competing in his first Olympics in the shot, qualifying in 30th of the 32, making for two field event, and one multi-event specialists for Paris.
All national athletics federations had until midnight on July 4th to accept or reject the places. World Athletics then published the final Road to Paris on Sunday. It’s a complicated process for a variety of reasons, not least the fact some athletes who qualified in two or more events may opt out of one.
The 10 Irish athletes with the automatic qualifying marks for Paris are Adeleke (200m and 400m), Mawdsley (400m), Ciara Mageean (800m and 1,500m), Sarah Healy and Sophie O’Sullivan (both 1,500m), Sarah Lavin (100m hurdles), Fionnuala McCormack (marathon), Coscoran (1,500m), Brian Fay (5,000m), and Mark English (800m).
Adeleke will only opt for the 400m, but Phil Healy missed out, unable to make up the quota places required, as she needed 12 places to clear ahead of her to make the 200m cut.
The women’s and mixed 4x400m relay selections will be confirmed by Athletics Ireland next week, with two men’s places in the mixed event still up for grabs. Jack Raftery did his selection chances a huge favour by winning his first senior 400m title last Sunday in 45.95 seconds, ahead of Chris O’Donnell (46.07), Callum Baird (46.20) and Cillín Greene (46.85).
Barr produced another class run to win his 12th national title in the men’s 400m hurdles, but admitted afterwards his ranking was unlikely to get him to Paris in that event: “I’ve a feeling I’m going to be the nearly man.”
For Becker and McCann, however, the countdown to Paris now begins for real.
