Namibia’s 200 metre (m) female sprinter Christine Mboma reached the second round of the 200m women’s semi-final at the Commonwealth Games after winning her heat on Thursday morning.

Namibia’s Olympic 200m silver medallist made her return to the track for a competitive competition after two months of absence due to a thigh injury she sustained while competing in the 100m sprint at the Kip Keino Classic continental tour meeting in Kenya in May this year.

In her first competitive race at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, Mboma clocked 23.20 seconds to win heat one of the 200m sprint. Her time of 23.20 seconds was the sixth fastest time in all six heats held on the day.

The fastest time from the heats was 22.71 seconds, which was clocked by Nigerian sprinter Favour Ofili in heat four.

In an interview with Nampa after the race, Mboma said she was happy to qualify for the next round of the competition but she dreaded injuring herself once more.

“The race was easy in the heats, I took it slow. I was a bit worried about the injury and I had that feeling of fear in my head of maybe getting it back again, but once the race started I felt good and did my pace,” she said.

She added that she is now looking forward to the semi-finals that will be held on Friday.

“I was away from the track for a long time but after competing in this event I feel good and ready to compete in the semi-finals,” said Mboma.

The women’s 200m semi-finals will be held on Friday at 21h35 Namibian time, while the men’s 400m semi-finals that will see Mahmad Bock and Ivan Geldenhuys in action will follow at 22h00.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency