Zakithi Nene eager to focus on the relay after being eliminated in the semi-finals

Zakithi Nene eager to focus on the relay after being eliminated in the semi-finals

Former South African 400m champion Zakithi Nene is now concentrating on the 4x400m relay after being eliminated from the men’s 400m semi-finals at Stade de France on Tuesday night.

The KwaZulu Natal-born athlete finished sixth with a time of 45.06 seconds, missing out on a spot in Wednesday’s final.

Disappointed and puzzled by his performance, Nene is eager to move past the setback and redirect his energy towards the next race, which begins on Friday.

"Yeah, it is what it is, not much I can say about it. I can't dwell too much on it. I'll just switch focus on the relay now, that's all that I can say," Nene said.

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Adding to his frustrations is the fact that he had to run the repechage, which he considers an unnecessary race on Monday.

Unlike those who secured automatic qualification for the semifinals and enjoyed a day off, he missed out on both the automatic advancement and the rest day.

"I mean I just ran an unnecessary repechage yesterday, I shouldn't have done that to myself but it's okay," he added.

Nene admitted that racing on three consecutive days has left him exhausted. However, he has two days off before his 4x400m relay begins on Friday.

"I'm a little tired, I don't wanna lie but it is what it is. I just have to see how I feel and how all the other guys feel. I'll rest which is good."