Mark English faces tricky semi-final in Prague

ATHLETICS/EUROPEAN INDOORS:

Ian O’Riordan, in Prague

In the 38 years since Sebastian Coe ran from the front to win the European Indoor 800 metres title some succeeded and others failed with variously audacious tactics. If Mark English is to emulate one of his heroes he almost certainly won’t be running from the front, although first of all he will need to get himself into the final.

Because after breezing through his qualifying heat English must still negotiate a tricky semi-final round - even if the task itself couldn’t be any simpler: finish in the top two, and he progresses to Sunday’s final; finish outside the top two, and he goes home empty handed.

Yet English came to Prague as our only medal contender, and so far anyway he’s been living up to that billing. Indeed he signalled both his medal ambitions and tactical cuteness by winning his heat in 1:48.10, after showing some sweet manoeuvring, and in the end with some room to spare.

Now he goes in the first of three semi-finals (5.25 Irish time), with the fastest season ranking of 1:47.17. Truth is English probably got the softest of the three races, avoiding the gold medal favourite Marcin Lewandowski from Poland. Still, with only two qualifying places, nothing can be left to chance.

“Well, I always want to make the final,” he confirmed. “We’ll see how it goes, in the semi, but I think if I do make that final, then I’m in with a really good shout.

“I’ve got the championship final experience. And have proved I can put three rounds back to back, and feel I have that bit of pedigree, at the minute. So I want to put all that out there, on the track.”

Indeed at 21 he may still be a student of the event, but his experience from winning that bronze medal at the European outdoors championships in Zurich last summer should ultimately help see him through. He also demonstrated considerable calmness in the way he shifted gears in his heat: “Yeah, I had a good acceleration, coming off the second last bend. It’s harder to do that, coming off a faster pace, but I was able to get by Thijmen Kupers (from the Netherlands), with ease, who is a World Championship finalist, so that’s a good sign.”

The day started in equally impressive style for Dara Kervick, making his senior international debut, as he won his 400m heat in 47.03. That set Kervick up with a decent shout of making the final, although that task wasn’t helped when he drew Pavel Maslak, the local favourite, in his semi-final.

Still Kervick gave himself every chance, getting out fast, and just missing the slipstream of Maslak at the break, who rounded the last lap untested, winning in 46.46. Kervick held third for a while, chasing Poland’s Lukasz Krawczuk, then ended up fourth, in 46.96. Again, only the top two went through.

“I think if I’d got to the break, before the Polish guy, I might have held on to that second spot,” said Kervick. “I didn’t get around the top bend as well as I could, and I was kind of in between - will I stay or will I go. I tried to go again, and he did too. But being out there, running with the likes of Maslak. I feel like I belong at this level now, and very much looking forward to outdoors, now. I always said indoor running doesn’t really suit me, so there is plenty to look forward now, over the next few years.”

Also progressing to this evening’s 800m semi-finals, joining English, albeit a little less convincingly, was Declan Murray: he survived a typically aggressive dash for the line to nail down one of the automatic qualifying spots, finishing second in 1:49.69.

It was close, however, as Poland’s Karol Konieczny effectively fell across the line to win, in 1:49.65, as he was taken out down by Andreas Rapatz from Austria, who had looked poised to qualify in second. Murray held his nerve on the outside, and will go in the second semi-final, almost certainly needing to improve his best of 1:47.59 to get through.

There was an nervous wait for Ciara Everard after she finished third in her 800m heat, despite running an impressive season best of 2:02.69. Again, only the top two were guaranteed, although also the fourth fastest losers, and it turned out that Everard was the second best of those. The Kilkenny athlete - the only Irish woman competing in Prague - made the final in Gothenburg two years ago, although it will take something special to repeat that. She will have Britain’s Jenny meadows to chase, with the top three here advancing, although Everard’s season best ranks her only fifth.

The day ended with Paul Pollock running a personal best of 7:58.78 in the 3,000m, although that was only good enough for 10th, and well short of a final place, and likewise for Gerard O’Donnell in his heat of the 60m hurdles, who ended up sixth in 8.06 seconds.

The Irish medal hopes, then, still rests solely with English, although there was some further hope for the sport here in Prague when news emerged Derval O’Rourke’s long wait for the bronze medal from the 2013 European Indoors would appear to be over, after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) confirmed the three-year ban for Turkey’s Nevin Yanit, who won that 60m hurdles gold two years ago, only to later fail a drugs test. Yanit had contested the suspension to CAS, but by upholding the ban, the upgraded bronze medal can now be awarded to O’Rourke, who originally finished a close fourth.

IRISH IN ACTION TODAY:

Men’s 1,500m heats: John Travers, Danny Mooney: 11.50

Women’s 800m semi-finals: Ciara Everard: 17:00

Men’s 800m semi-finals: Mark English, Declan Murray: 17:25