Nel stumbles over hurdle, still came third at event in Europe
In spite of a slight setback, Wenda Nel's European season started so well that she has received invites to compete in two major Diamond League Meetings in Paris and London.
Tuks athletics star Wenda Nel proved at the Ostrava Golden Spike meeting last week that she is not only good enough to compete against the world’s best 400-hurdlers, but also good enough to beat them.
If she had not tripped over the final hurdle and lost her rhythm and balance for a brief moment, she might well have beaten the current world champion, Zuzana Hejnova (Czech Republic). The South African was leading up to the final hurdle.
To Nel’s credit, she kept her cool and managed to stay upright to finish third in a time of 55.47s. Hejnova’s won in 55.13s with another Czech, Denisa Rosolova, second in 55.45s.
As usual the local athlete was modest about her performance. “It was an interesting experience. Naturally going into the race as the athlete who holds the world-leading time (54.37s) made me slightly nervous, especially considering the calibre of athletes I was up against. As far as the race was concerned, I won’t lie, I was really tired when we got to the second-last hurdle. I think the long travel from Beijing to Europe was probably part of the reason I was not able to execute my technique to perfection when I started to tire, but I am not looking for excuses.
“The truth of the matter is that I made a mistake going over the last hurdle. This threw me slightly off balance and caused me to lose momentum. Still, I think I fought back quite well to finish third. It would have been interesting to see what would have happened if I did not knock the last hurdle, but mistakes like this are part and parcel of the game. I don’t think the time I ran was bad and I am satisfied.”
According to Nel, weather conditions during the race were quite a shock to her system. “Just before I went onto the track it was as if my body went into a slight shock. It was really cold and rainy and I am more of a sunshine athlete.”
Nel’s victory at the IAAF World Challenge meeting in Beijing and her performance in Ostrava last week, proved that she has improved tremendously as an athlete during the last year. For the first time she is really able to hold her own against the world’s best.
When asked about this, Nel was slightly embarrassed. “I think I am now allowed to say that perhaps I am good enough to deserve the opportunity to compete against the world’s best hurdlers. I am looking forward to the rest of the season. I am confident that I am able to improve even more. If I can run a smooth race I could again clock a time of 54 seconds.”
Nel’s good performances over the last two weeks have not gone unnoticed. She has received invitations to compete in the Diamond League meetings in Paris (4 July) and London (24 July).
Her next meeting will be on 8 June in Prague.
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