2016 Olympic GamesAug 12, 2016 by Taylor Dutch
Boris Berian, Clayton Murphy Advance to Olympic 800m Semifinal, Jock Out
Boris Berian, Clayton Murphy Advance to Olympic 800m Semifinal, Jock Out
U.S. Olympic Trials 800m champion Clayton Murphy can breathe easy after sneaking into the semifinal round on a time qualifier. <span id="sele
U.S. Olympic Trials 800m champion Clayton Murphy can breathe easy after sneaking into the semifinal round on a time qualifier.
Murphy finished fourth in an extremely physical third heat. Murphy tripped several times as a result of jostling around the 250-meter mark and later on at 400m. He closed in 1:46.18 behind Great Britain's Michael Rimmer (1:45.99), South Africa's Rynardt Van Rensburg (1:45.67), and defending Olympic champion and world record-holder David Rudisha (1:45.09). His 1:46.18 finish was the second mark to advance on time after each subsequent heat had slower fourth-place finishes.
In a last-minute burst to overtake Boris Berian, Djibouti's Ayanleh Souleiman charged for the finish line to easily claim the first heat of the men's 800m. Berian, who led for the majority of the race, faded to third to claim the last semifinal spot behind runner-up Amel Tuka of Bosnia.
The 1500m world indoor champion closed for a winning time of 1:45.48, Tuka finished right behind in 1:45.72, and Berian closed in 1:45.87.
World indoor silver medalist Adam Kszczot followed the performance with a victory in heat two. The Polish athlete overtook the field with a time of 1:45.83, and was followed by Ferguson Rotich, who closed for second in 1:46.00. Florida All-American Andres Arroyo of Puerto Rico claimed the final automatic spot with a third-place finish in 1:46.17.
On Thursday, Kenyan coach John Anzrah was sent home after being caught using Ferguson Rotich's credential to provide a urine sample for a drug test.
American Charles Jock, who took third in a tough field at the U.S. Olympic Trials, will not advance to the next round. He finished sixth with a time of 1:47.06 in heat four behind race winner Alfred Kipketer of Kenya, Andreas Bube of Denmark, Yassine Hethat of Algeria, Alvaro De Arriba of Spain, and Wesley Vazquez of Puerto Rico.
Two-time NCAA champion Brandon McBride established himself out of heat six by leading from the gun. The Canadian jumped to the front, and never looked back on his way to winning the section in 1:45.99 to automatically advance to the next round.
Pierre-Ambroise Bosse of France claimed the final heat with a winning time of 1:48.12. He was followed by Oregon Track Club's Mohammed Aman (Ethiopia), who finished second with a 1:48.33 finishing time. Amine Belferar of Ethiopia closed for third in 1:48.40 to round out the final qualifiers of the men's 800m.
The men's 800m semifinals will take place Saturday, August 13, at 9:05 PM ET.
Auto Qualifiers:
1:45.09Q David Lekuta Rudisha (KEN)
1:45.48Q Ayanleh Souleiman (DJI)
1:45.67Q Rynardt Van Rensburg (RSA)
1:45.72Q Amel Tuka (BIH)
1:45.83Q Adam Kszczot (POL)
1:45.87Q Boris Berian (USA)
1:45.99Q Michael Rimmer (GBR)
1:45.99Q Brandon McBride (CAN)
1:46.00Q Ferguson Cheruiyot Rotich (KEN)
1:46.17Q Andres Arroyo (PUR)
1:46.35Q Marcin Lewandowski (POL)
1:46.40Q Mark English (IRL)
1:46.61Q Alfred Kipketer (KEN)
1:46.67Q Andreas Bube (DEN)
1:46.81Q Yassine Hethat (ALG)
1:48.12Q Pierre-Ambroise Bosse (FRA)
1:48.33Q Mohammed Aman (ETH)
1:48.40Q Amine Belferar (ALG)
1:49.17Q Taoufik Makhloufi (ALG)
1:49.29Q Mostafa Smaili (MAR)
1:49.40Q Giordano Benedetti (ITA)
Time Qualifiers:
1:46.14q Kleberson Davide (BRA)
1:46.18q Clayton Murphy (USA)
1:46.65q Hamada Mohamed (EGY)
Team USA's Boris Berian ran 1:45.87 to finish third in heat one, Clayton Murphy ran 1:46.18 to finish fourth in heat three, and Charles Jock ran 1:47.06 to finish sixth in heat four.
Murphy finished fourth in an extremely physical third heat. Murphy tripped several times as a result of jostling around the 250-meter mark and later on at 400m. He closed in 1:46.18 behind Great Britain's Michael Rimmer (1:45.99), South Africa's Rynardt Van Rensburg (1:45.67), and defending Olympic champion and world record-holder David Rudisha (1:45.09). His 1:46.18 finish was the second mark to advance on time after each subsequent heat had slower fourth-place finishes.
.@Clayton_Murph gets tripped up a few times, finishes 4th in h3, currently 2nd fastest non-auto qualifier. #Rio2016 pic.twitter.com/Mpn8epvOD7
— FloTrack (@FloTrack) August 12, 2016
In a last-minute burst to overtake Boris Berian, Djibouti's Ayanleh Souleiman charged for the finish line to easily claim the first heat of the men's 800m. Berian, who led for the majority of the race, faded to third to claim the last semifinal spot behind runner-up Amel Tuka of Bosnia.
The 1500m world indoor champion closed for a winning time of 1:45.48, Tuka finished right behind in 1:45.72, and Berian closed in 1:45.87.
World indoor silver medalist Adam Kszczot followed the performance with a victory in heat two. The Polish athlete overtook the field with a time of 1:45.83, and was followed by Ferguson Rotich, who closed for second in 1:46.00. Florida All-American Andres Arroyo of Puerto Rico claimed the final automatic spot with a third-place finish in 1:46.17.
On Thursday, Kenyan coach John Anzrah was sent home after being caught using Ferguson Rotich's credential to provide a urine sample for a drug test.
American Charles Jock, who took third in a tough field at the U.S. Olympic Trials, will not advance to the next round. He finished sixth with a time of 1:47.06 in heat four behind race winner Alfred Kipketer of Kenya, Andreas Bube of Denmark, Yassine Hethat of Algeria, Alvaro De Arriba of Spain, and Wesley Vazquez of Puerto Rico.
Two-time NCAA champion Brandon McBride established himself out of heat six by leading from the gun. The Canadian jumped to the front, and never looked back on his way to winning the section in 1:45.99 to automatically advance to the next round.
Pierre-Ambroise Bosse of France claimed the final heat with a winning time of 1:48.12. He was followed by Oregon Track Club's Mohammed Aman (Ethiopia), who finished second with a 1:48.33 finishing time. Amine Belferar of Ethiopia closed for third in 1:48.40 to round out the final qualifiers of the men's 800m.
The men's 800m semifinals will take place Saturday, August 13, at 9:05 PM ET.
Men's 800m Olympic Semifinalists:
Auto Qualifiers:
1:45.09Q David Lekuta Rudisha (KEN)
1:45.48Q Ayanleh Souleiman (DJI)
1:45.67Q Rynardt Van Rensburg (RSA)
1:45.72Q Amel Tuka (BIH)
1:45.83Q Adam Kszczot (POL)
1:45.87Q Boris Berian (USA)
1:45.99Q Michael Rimmer (GBR)
1:45.99Q Brandon McBride (CAN)
1:46.00Q Ferguson Cheruiyot Rotich (KEN)
1:46.17Q Andres Arroyo (PUR)
1:46.35Q Marcin Lewandowski (POL)
1:46.40Q Mark English (IRL)
1:46.61Q Alfred Kipketer (KEN)
1:46.67Q Andreas Bube (DEN)
1:46.81Q Yassine Hethat (ALG)
1:48.12Q Pierre-Ambroise Bosse (FRA)
1:48.33Q Mohammed Aman (ETH)
1:48.40Q Amine Belferar (ALG)
1:49.17Q Taoufik Makhloufi (ALG)
1:49.29Q Mostafa Smaili (MAR)
1:49.40Q Giordano Benedetti (ITA)
Time Qualifiers:
1:46.14q Kleberson Davide (BRA)
1:46.18q Clayton Murphy (USA)
1:46.65q Hamada Mohamed (EGY)
Team USA's Boris Berian ran 1:45.87 to finish third in heat one, Clayton Murphy ran 1:46.18 to finish fourth in heat three, and Charles Jock ran 1:47.06 to finish sixth in heat four.