The Dominican Republic’s best chance at gold medal in the Paris Olympic Games, Marileidy Paulino won again in the Diamond League competition held in Paris at the new Olympic Games facilities.
Marileidy Paulino clocked 49.2 to win the 400m women event at the Meeting de Paris Wanda Diamond League. She was followed by Natalia Kaczmarek of Poland and Salwa Eid Naser of Bahrain, who tied for 49.82. Naser is coached by Jose Rubio, who prepared Dominican Luguelin Santos to win the silver medal in the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Marileidy Paulino has the race record at 49.12 set on 9 June 2023.
Paulino was interviewed by the race website before the race and had stated:
“It’s always a pleasure to come to Paris. France is one of my favorite countries. My main aim is to run the best possible time in the best possible way. A time of 48’’ would be perfect, which is what I prepare for with every competition. I feel very good and very well prepared. I’ve worked on all my muscle groups and I hope to secure the gold medal in a month’s time.
“The Olympic title would be a real achievement, not just for myself, but also for all the people of the Dominican Republic. The last gold medal for our country dates back to Félix Sanchez at London 2012, in the 400 m hurdles.
“Mentally, I feel extremely good thanks be to God and to reading the Bible. That is where I draw my motivation from and it is thanks to God that I’ve managed to accomplish everything I have in my life. I’m very proud of my faith and my relationship with God, who is very important to me. I am very happy to be in Paris as the Olympic Games approaches, but I need to ensure I remain calm and quietly confident so as not to get overwhelmed by the emotion and the challenge ahead. It’s a mental work-up to make sure I arrive at the Stade de France as fresh as possible in three weeks’ time.”
Winning the Diamond League race came with a cash reward of US$10,000 for the first place. Marileidy Paulino has won all her Diamond League races and US$40,000 in the four individual races plus the US$30,000 bonus for winning the first three races.
Meanwhile, in the same race, her fellow silver Olympic medalist Alexander Ogando won the 200m race in 10.98.
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Paris Diamond League
Paris Diamond League
8 July 2024