Tonight’s the night that Melissa Bishop goes for 800m gold in Rio
Canadian Melissa Bishop will run in the women's 800m final tonight at the Rio Olympics in search of her first-ever medal at the Games (photo: Team Canada).
Canadian Melissa Bishop will run in the biggest race of her life tonight.
The 28-year-old from Eganville, Ont., the fastest 800m runner this country has ever seen, will run in the women’s 800m final at the Olympics in Rio. She is the reigning world silver medallist and is one of the top-ranked athletes in the two-lap event. Athletes run in their lanes for the first 100m before being able to cut into lane one.
When
Women’s 800m final – 8:15 p.m. EDT. See here for streaming information.
The favourites
Caster Semenya (South Africa), Francine Niyonsaba (Burundi), Margaret Wambui (Kenya), Melissa Bishop (Canada)
How it will play out
The 800m is one of the most exciting events to watch on the track as it’s an extended sprint that typically results in some wild final 100m moments. The heavy favourite, Caster Semenya, has run 1:55.33 this year, a personal best, and is expected to take the gold medal. Some have even suggested that the world record of 1:53.28 is under threeat considering she looked very smooth when she ran 1:55 in Monaco in July. Semenya is the reigning Olympic silver medallist.
Lets all of SA support #CasterSemenya @caster800m in her quest to win Olympics gold Sun 2.15am #ChampionSouthAfrica pic.twitter.com/ofBO0s9aOO
— ChampionSouthAfrica (@ChampionSAfrica) August 20, 2016
Francine Niyonsaba, the world indoor champion in the 800m, is also a favourite to contend for a medal. The 23-year-old is based in Oregon and trains with the Oregon Track Club.
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One of the main talking points in the women’s 800m has been Semenya. The South African is believed to be intersex as her body produces higher-than-normal levels of testosterone for a woman. She is noticeably more muscular than her competitors and she will be a tough athlete to beat tonight in the women’s 800m.
The governing body for international athletics (IAAF) has suspended its policy on hyperandrogenism because it failed to produce sufficient evidence that high levels of testosterone bettered female performance. Semenya was temporarily suspended from competition after her 2009 win at the world championships and was forced to undergo gender testing. The IAAF received scrutiny for how it handled the situation.
Be on the watch for Bishop
Bishop has looked extremely good in the heats and semifinals of the women’s 800m. She is coming off a Canadian record performance in July (1:57.43) and is peaking at just the right time. She’s based in Windsor, Ont. after she graduated from the University of Windsor. Bishop continues to train under her university coach Dennis Fairall who has since taken long-term medical leave from the university.
The world silver medallist in the 800m and Pan Am Games champion has the third fastest lifetime best of the eight women in the final. One would think that she has to match her 1:57 best to make it onto the podium as all eight women in the final have run faster than 1:58.79.
Watch Bishop’s silver medal run at the 2015 world championships
To get to the final, Bishop ran 1:58.38 in the heats and proceeded to run 1:59.05 in the semifinals. Both those runs were good for an automatic spot into the next round. A Canadian has never won an Olympic medal in the women’s 800m.
RELATED: Americans still upset about iffy DQ call in men’s 1,500m.
A gold for Bishop will be really tough as Semenya has shown this season that she’s ready to run 1:55 or faster. Her chances depend on whether the South African takes the race out really hard and is able to maintain the pace in the final 200m. If not, Bishop, who is doubtful to take the lead in the opening lap, could surge in the final 200m to snag a medal.
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Based on the field, her experience and the times she has run this year, a bronze medal is well within Bishop’s reach. If everything comes together, don’t be surprised to see a silver-medal performance or an upset to win gold.
Women’s 800m final start list
Aug. 20 – 8:15 p.m. EDT
| ORDER / LANE | BIB | ATHLETE | COUNTRY | SB 2016 | PB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1345 | Kate GRACE |  USA |
1:58.79 | 1:58.79 |
| 2 | 1102 | Joanna JÓZWIK |  POL |
1:58.93 | 1:58.35 |
| 3 | 1170 | Caster SEMENYA |  RSA |
1:55.33 | 1:55.33 |
| 4 | 959 | Margaret Nyairera WAMBUI |  KEN |
1:57.52 | 1:57.52 |
| 5 | 370 | Francine NIYONSABA |  BDI |
1:56.24 | 1:56.24 |
| 6 | 468 | Melissa BISHOP |  CAN |
1:57.43 | 1:57.43 |
| 7 | 724 | Lynsey SHARP |  GBR |
1:57.75 | 1:57.71 |
| 8 | 386 | Marina ARZAMASOVA |  BLR |
1:58.44 | 1:57.54 |
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