With spot in Olympic relay pool, Clovis sprinter Jenna Prandini takes aim at favored event
Jenna Prandini, the former Clovis High sprint star, already has a spot with the U.S. Olympic Team, having sped through the 100-meters field to finish fourth and qualify for the 4x100 relay pool.
On Thursday she will attempt to make the team in the 200 meters, an event she has won twice at the national championships and earned a spot on the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team.
Prandini, her father Carlo Prandini said, is on lockdown. “Radio silence, I like to call it,” he said. But she is going into the 200 meters with momentum, after the 100 run.
“Me, I’m anxious, like always,” Carlo Prandini said. “Jenna seems to be fine. Her coach has a big plan all the time, from the beginning of this year, maybe the end of last year. But they’ve had it all focused and ready to go for the Trials.
“She’s feeling pretty good about her preparation, and it’s so competitive in the United States. Every round you have to beat a good field to just keep moving forward. She has the right mindset, though. She’s experienced that way. I think she feels pretty good about it.”
Prandini will run in the third of five first-round heats on Thursday that start at 6:31 p.m., with the top two finishers in each heat and the next six fastest runners advancing to the semifinals at 4:25 p.m. on Friday.
The top three finishers in the semifinal heats and next two fastest advance to the final on Saturday at 7:24 p.m.
In that third 200 meters heat five of the six sprinters have met the Olympic qualifying standard, but Prandini’s personal best of 22.16 seconds is matched by only Anglerne Annelus from USC and her season-best of 22.43 is matched by only Brittany Brown, who competed in college at Iowa.
Cambrea Sturgis from North Carolina A&T has the season’s best 200 meters time in the field, a 22.12. Sha’Carri Richardson ran a 21.11 back in April, but scratched from the 200 meters after winning the 100 last Saturday.
Prandini did not have one of the top 20 times in the 100 meters this season heading into the Olympic Trials, but finished fourth in the finals in 11.11 seconds, behind Richardson, Javianne Oliver and Teahna Daniels. Gabby Thomas and English Gardner also are in the relay pool.
Soccer: Lynn Williams an alternate
Former Bullard High star Lynn Williams is an alternate for the U.S. Olympic women’s soccer team. The 18-player squad was announced Wednesday.