European indoor and outdoor champion Muriel Hurtis of France quickly set the standard for all qualifiers with 22.75 in the opening heat, but the year’s top 200 runner, Russia’s Anastasiya Kapachinskaya, followed with 22.80 in the next race.
Defending champion Juliet Campbell of Jamaica was a heat winner in 23.12, as were US indoor champion Michelle Collins (23.01) and Cydonie Mothersill of the Cayman Islands (23.16).
The top two placers in each heat advanced to the semifinals, to be held later this afternoon.
The lane inspectors were kept busy, as four of the six heats produced disqualifications for lane infractions. Among those caught in this net were African Record Holder Mary Onyali of Nigeria and former European indoor silver medallist Alenka Bikar of Slovenia.
A pair of 17-year-old sprinters advanced to the semifinals: Amy Spencer of Great Britain (2nd in heat at 23.59) and the United States’ Allyson Felix (2nd in heat with 23.36), the latter moving onward after Onyali’s disqualification.
