Yuan Yufang.
YUAN Yufang left no doubt about her participation in the Beijing Olympics after she sealed her spot with a storming finish at the Asian Race Walking (20km) Championships in Nomi City, Japan yesterday.
The China-born walker's time of one hour, 32 minutes, 48 seconds even bested the category A mark of 1:33:30 as the 32-year-old Yufang looks set for her third consecutive Olympic appearance without a shadow of a doubt.
Yufang, who fell 23 seconds short of her own national record of 1:32:25, finished fourth in Nomi City which made academic the argument of the validity of the 1:37:21 time she clocked in the unsanctioned race in Kunming, which bettered the category B mark of 1:38:00.
The Asian Race Walking Championships falls under the purview of the Asian Athletics Association and Yufang, who improved significantly from the 1:41:47 she timed for her fifth straight 20km Sea Games gold medal in Korat in December, can rest assured that the issue of sanction will not arise again.
Teoh Boon Lim and Loh Choon Seang, however, failed to match Yufang's effort as they fell some way short of Olympic qualification in finishing seventh and ninth respectively in the men's race.
Boon Lim, 31, only managed to clock 1:30:58 as he crossed the finish line 21 seconds slower than his Korat Sea Games winning effort.
The 23-year-old Choon Seang also failed to make his mark as he posted a poor 1:33:22, way off the Beijing qualification mark of 1:24:30.
Boon Lim, Choon Seang and Mohd Shahrulhaizy Abdul Rahman, who was unable to obtain leave from his employer to compete in Nomi City, will have another shot at Olympic qualification in the IAAF Race Walking Series over the next four months.
NST
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