English misses out on 800m final

With the current fastest losers coming in at a fraction outside 1:45, the Letterkenny man knew something close to his personal best of 1:44.84 would likely be enough, but he left himself far too much to do coming into the last 200metres, finishing quickly in fifth in a time of 1:45.55.

“I’m through to my first ever semi-finals at a World Championships and I’m delighted with that”, English said this morning.

There was always going to be some element of luck needed for both Mark English and Thomas Barr if they were to make a World Championships final in their respective events, and unfortunately for them it just didn’t shine. The Kenyan won his heat in a pedestrian 1:47.70 and went through as an automatic qualifier.

With three heats still to go, English was tentatively perched in the second fastest-losers spot with six of those to go through. But I don’t really think, given the injury I had this season, I was going to do any more than that.

The Waterford athlete will go in the semi-finals tomorrow at 11:40. I was trying to keep it as even as possible.

“Having seen the guys in the heats ahead, I knew I’d have to run fast”.

English had to endure a long wait before making it through to tomorrow’s 800m semi-final at the Bird’s Nest, while World University Games champion Barr had to produce one of his famous kicks to automatically qualify in third out of his 400m hurdles heat.

“Running blind from lane 9 is so hard”.

As it turned out, only two other athletes would be unplaced in times faster than him, meaning he takes his place in tomorrow’s semi-finals as fourth fastest loser.

Barr may take some small consolation in that he was at least in good company through the early exit.

“I thought that it would be a fast track and with the good conditions, it would bring out the best in me – but I had to work a little for it”.

That time was. 65 outside his personal best set in 2013.

The 24-year-old was penalised three times for losing contact with the ground and pulled from the race after 50 minutes.