Online Reporter
MAKANAKAISHE CHARAMBA made it three podium finishes from three Diamond League appearances this season after taking third place in the men’s 200m at the Athletissima meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Friday night.
The 24-year-old clocked 20.14 seconds into a 0.3m/s headwind as Botswana’s Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo won in 19.87.
South Africa’s Sinesipho Dambile finished second in 19.98 to complete a Southern African sweep of the podium.
Tebogo took control from the bend and held off Dambile, while Charamba finished strongly to secure third place.
“Today, I just wanted to execute,” said Tebogo. “I have been focused on training for the past few weeks. I did as much gym as possible.”
Charamba’s result strengthened his bid for a place in the Diamond League Final in Brussels on September 4 and 5.
He entered the Lausanne meeting fifth in the men’s 200m standings with 13 points.
Third place earned him another six points, taking his tally to 19 with one qualifying race remaining.
The top eight athletes qualify for the final. Charamba has now reached the podium in each of his three Diamond League appearances this season.
He opened his campaign with second place in Doha, where he matched his personal best of 19.88, before finishing third at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene in 20.11.
Although his Lausanne time was outside his season’s best, the result kept him in contention for Brussels.
The final men’s 200m qualifying race will be staged in Zurich on Thursday. — Zimpapers Sports Hub/Agencies
