Shanti Pereira clocks 11.50sec to reach semis of Asian Athletics Championships

BANGKOK – Bangkok is a familiar place for Shanti Pereira, who has visited the city for holidays and competitions in the past.

Returning to the Thai capital “always feels comfortable” for Pereira and

Singapore’s sprint queen

seemed at ease as she easily qualified for the women’s 100m semi-finals of the Asian Athletics Championships after clocking 11.50 seconds in the heats on Thursday.

While she enjoys shopping and eating while on holiday in Bangkok, it is strictly business this time for Pereira, who topped the first of four heats and placed fifth overall among 25 runners.

After achieving a historic sprint double at the SEA Games by clinching the 100m and 200m titles, Pereira could stand a chance of winning a medal at the Asian championships.

“The last time I wasn’t one of the top contenders, but this time I am. So it’s a very different feeling coming into a championship knowing that I’m one of the top few,” said the 26-year-old, who did not qualify for the final at the previous edition in 2019 after placing 11th in the semis.

“The fact that I can put myself in that position is something that I am very thankful for already, so I’m excited to see how it turns out.”

Her season-best time of 11.26sec is the second quickest in the region in 2023. Only China’s 2014 Asian Games champion Wei Yongli, who is not competing at the Bangkok meet, has gone faster, posting 11.24sec in June.

While the field in Bangkok does not feature 2018 Asian Games champion Edidiong Odiong of Bahrain and defending champion Olga Safronova from Kazakhstan, there are a few others who could challenge Pereira for a podium finish.

Based on this season’s times, Pereira’s biggest threats could come from Iran’s Hamideh Esmaeilnezhad and Japan’s Arisa Kimishima, who clocked 11.37sec to finish second in the Fuse Sprint in Japan in June.

Esmaeilnezhad topped the heats in 11.33sec, with fellow Iranian Farzaneh Fasihi (11.42sec) placing second. China’s Ge Manqi (11.45sec) was third followed by Kimishima (11.46sec).

Singaporean Elizabeth-Ann Tan is also in the 16-strong field for Friday’s semi-finals after clocking a personal-best 11.81sec to place 12th.

Singapore’s last medal at the regional meet came in 2007 when Rachel Yang won silver in the women’s pole vault. The last time the Republic won a medal in a track event was back in 1975.

Knowing that she is in contention for a medal has not changed Pereira’s game plan.

She said: “It’s the same, still focusing on the execution and small bits of the race and focusing on each race one at a time because there are a lot of rounds.”

Fellow Singaporean Marc Louis qualified for the men’s 100m semi-finals after he finished second in his heat in 10.43sec and 12th overall. The Republic’s other male sprinter Mark Lee clocked 10.63sec to finish fifth out of seven in his heat, missing out on the semi-finals as he placed 27th.

Japan’s Hiroki Yanagita topped the 100m heats in 10.10sec, while Malaysia’s Azeem Fahmi, who missed the SEA Games in May, clocked 10.24sec to place fifth.

Also in action on Thursday were high jumper Michelle Sng and hurdler Ang Chen Xiang. Sng finished joint-14th in the field of 16 with 1.70m, while Ang’s time of 13.99sec in the men’s 110m hurdles saw him finish 12th, outside a spot for the final.

Going into the meet, the SEA Games gold medallist Ang believed that he could rewrite his national record of 13.84sec. While he did not achieve the objective on Thursday, that remains the goal for him heading into the Sept 23-Oct 8 Hangzhou Asian Games.

Ang, 29, said: “My first and last hurdles weren’t good, but in between those two, it was something that I was very happy with because I managed to do what I had been training for over the past few weeks.

“There’s a lot of room to improve. I think the timing is reasonable and it’s a good check mark in the lead-up to the Asian Games.”