Monday, October 30, 2023.- The local favorite, Martina Weil, achieved the fastest time in the semifinals to secure a spot in the final of the female's 400 meters at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games. This took place on the day that marked the reopening of the central coliseum at the Estadio Nacional.

The Chilean athlete, who had the third-best pre-competition mark (51.07 seconds), clocked in at 51.47 in the first qualifying round, surpassing Guyana's Aliyah Abrams (51.82), who had the second-best previous time, and Ecuador's Nicole Caicedo (52.70).

In the second heat, Colombian Evelis Aguilar was the fastest with a time of 53.11, followed by Canada's Grace Konrad (53.64) and Brazil's Tabata Vitorino (55.57), the only three athletes who completed the race.

In this heat, Dominican athlete Anabel Medina was disqualified for a false start, while Cuban Roxana Gómez, the top performer in the preliminary round (49.71), did not compete due to a thigh injury and opted to prioritize her preparation for the 2024 Paris Olympics, for which she is already registered.

These withdrawals resulted in the fourth and fifth finishers from the first heat, Canada's Madeline Price (52.70) and Brazil's Tiffani Domingos (52.83), also securing spots in the final on Wednesday.

For the final, Weil, Abrams, and Aguilar appear to be the top contenders for the Pan American gold, especially considering that the leading favorite, Dominican athlete Marileidy Paulino, chose not to compete and will only participate individually in the 200 meters.

Written by Felipe Hurtado H.; translated by Andrés Castro / Photosport
Photo: Marcelo Hernández/Santiago 2023 by Photosport