Masilingi sets European track alight 

Beatrice Masilingi qualified for next month’s World Indoor Athletics Championships in China after some brilliant performances in Europe over the past month. 

Competing at four events in Belgium and Finland, Masilingi won several medals, while she broke the national 60m indoor record once and the 200m record three times.

On 1 February she smashed the 200m record of 25,71 by more than two seconds when she won the silver medal at the IFAM Meet in Ghent in a time of 23,65 seconds. 

In the 60m she won her initial race in a new personal best time of 7,44 seconds, to be invited to the main race where she finished eighth in her heat in a new Namibian record of 7,35 seconds. She came close to that in the final where she came seventh in 7,39 seconds. 

Five days later in Tampere, Finland she equalled that time in her heat and then won the bronze medal in the final in 7,52 seconds. 

On 8 February she competed at the Youth Open Meet in Ghent where she again broke her 200m record and won the gold medal in 23,54 seconds, while she won silver in the 60m in 7,52.

A week later she once again improved her 200m record at the Aalsterse Meet in Ghent when she won gold in 23,32 seconds, while she won the silver medal in the 60m in 7,45 seconds. 

It was the first time that she had competed at an international indoor event and her coach Henk Botha said he was amazed by her performances. 

“Beatrice’s performances were unbelievable if you consider that we 

didn’t have much time to prepare, and it was done at short notice. The idea was just to see how Beatrice would do on the international scene, but she was very focussed and determined, and I’m very proud of her,” he said. 

“I was half shocked by her times, but she has now also been accepted

to compete at the World Indoor Championships in China,” he added. 

Botha said that both he and Masilingi were still learning the ropes to master the shorter 60m dash. 

“You cant afford to make a mistake, it’s only 60m, so your reaction time and training must be perfect.”

“We are going to work a lot, especially on Beatrice’s starts, because her reaction time is still a bit slow, and we must improve that. We don’t really know the indoor arena so well so it’s also a bit trial and error and I also have to learn a lot as well,” he said. 

Masilingi’s new 60m record of 7,35 seconds is only the 80th fastest time in the world this year, with Jacious Sears of the United States the fastest at 7,02, but Botha was optimistic about her chances at the world championships. 

“More than 60 percent of the top times are by USA athletes, but they can only send three athletes to the world champs so that improves her chances. There is no margin for error, but if she can get the right start and with a bit of luck I think she can reach the final,” he said. 

Athletics, meanwhile, will continue on the local scene when Athletics Namibia’s Grand Prix meet will continue as planned at Swakopmund tomorrow. 

Botha said it will continue without spectators as per government stipulations to honour Namibia’s founding president Sam Nujoma, but he did not agree with the decision. 

“I don’t understand the sports ban and I think we could have done a lot of things to honour his legacy. We could have held events in his honour, wearing black armbands or setting balloons free, it could have been a great opportunity, but that has been banned, while shebeens are still open,” he said.