Holder Da Silva of Guinea-Bissau competes in the Men's 100m Preliminary Round Heats on Day 8 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 4, 2012 (© Getty Images)
Gerard Kobeane was the fastest of the ten sprinters in the Preliminary Round who clinched places in this afternoon's first round heats with one or more of the them certain to line up against reigning Olympic champion and World record holder Usain Bolt.
The concept successfully introduced by the IAAF at last year's World Championships enables those countries who have no athletes with Olympic qualifying standards in any event to enter them (one man; one woman) in this innovative 100m round, giving them the opportunity to qualify for the first of the main 3 rounds.
Kobeane of Burkina Faso a landlocked west African nation, won the final qualifier in a season's best 10.42 where the first two in the four heats and next two fastest athletes progress into the main competition. The next equal fastest were Berenger Aymard Bosse and Jurgen Themen from the Central African Republic and Surinam who took their respective races both in a time of 10.55, with Artur Bruno Rojas of Bolivia winning the first contest in 10.62.
One national record - recorded by Azneem Ahmed of the Maldives who qualified as one of the fastest losers when third in his race clocking 10.79 - eight personal bests and five season's fastest times were recorded by the competitors.
David Martin for IAAF
The concept successfully introduced by the IAAF at last year's World Championships enables those countries who have no athletes with Olympic qualifying standards in any event to enter them (one man; one woman) in this innovative 100m round, giving them the opportunity to qualify for the first of the main 3 rounds.
Kobeane of Burkina Faso a landlocked west African nation, won the final qualifier in a season's best 10.42 where the first two in the four heats and next two fastest athletes progress into the main competition. The next equal fastest were Berenger Aymard Bosse and Jurgen Themen from the Central African Republic and Surinam who took their respective races both in a time of 10.55, with Artur Bruno Rojas of Bolivia winning the first contest in 10.62.
One national record - recorded by Azneem Ahmed of the Maldives who qualified as one of the fastest losers when third in his race clocking 10.79 - eight personal bests and five season's fastest times were recorded by the competitors.
David Martin for IAAF
