University of Northern Iowa Athletics
Panthers In Paris - Day Ten: Kerkhoff concludes program in 400-meter dash
9/7/2024 4:14:00 AM | Track and Field
Former UNI sprinter closes out second Paralympics with fifth-place showing in final event in France.
PARIS --- Former UNI sprinter Erin Kerkhoff rounded out eight days of Panther action at the Paralympic Games in the French capital with a fifth-place performance in the women's T13 400-meter dash at Stade de France on Saturday morning.
The Coralville, Iowa native who has dealt with optic nerve atrophy since birth competed in her fourth career Paralympic final and second of the Paris Games after taking seventh in the T13 100-meter dash earlier this week. She previously finished eighth in the 400 meters at the Tokyo Paralympics three years ago, and notably placed fourth in the event at this year's Para Track and Field World Championships in Kobe, Japan.
In the preliminary heats on Thursday afternoon, Kerkhoff ran a time of 57.42 seconds in the first of two heats, finishing second to Carolina Duarte (Portugal) by 1.43 seconds, earning an automatic qualifying spot in the finals by virtue of a top-three finish in the heat. Nantenin Keita (France) placed third in the opening heat, followed by Adiaratou Iglesias Foreiro (Spain) and Mariia Ulianenko (Neutral Paralympic Athletes). The second heat saw Rayane Soares da Silva (Brazil), reigning Paralympic champion and this Paris' T13 100-meter champion Lami Valiyeva (Azerbaijan) and Mana Saski (Japan) advance.
In Saturday's final, Kerkhoff maintained solid positioning among the top-six sprinters in the field after a 0.213 second reaction time off the starting blocks and finished strong to pass Keita in the final 100-meter straight away, edging out Keita by 0.24 seconds for the fifth-place finish. Soares da Silva captured gold for Brazil with a new world record time of 53.55 seconds, with Valiyeva in second (55.09) and Duarte winning bronze (55.52). Igelsias Foreiro, who took silver in the event in Tokyo, finished fourth (56.98).
ÂWOMEN'S T13 400-METER DASH FINAL RESULTS (Paris 2024 Paralympics)
- 1st | Rayane Soares da Silva (Brazil) - 53.55
- 2nd | Lami Valiyeva (Azerbaijan) - 55.09
- 3rd | Carolina Duarte (Portugal) - 55.52
- 4th | Adiaratou Iglesias Foreiro (Spain) - 56.98
- 5th | Erin Kerkhoff (USA) - 57.19
- 6th | Nantenin Keita (France) - 57.43
- 7th | Mana Saski (Japan) - 58.35
- 8th | Mariia Ulianenko (Neutral Paralympic Athletes) - 58.96
Kerkhoff's race brings to a close an impressive showing by both current and former UNI athletes in Paris. In addition to Kerkhoff qualifying for two finals on the track, current Panther swimmer Olivia Chambers became the first Paralympic medalist in UNI history with a gold medal performance in the S13 400-meter freestyle, with silver medal finishes in the SM13 200-meter individual medley and SB13 100-meter breaststroke at La Defense Arena. Chambers also finished fifth in the S13 100-meter butterfly, S13 50-meter freestyle and the mixed 4x100-meter freestyle relay (49 point). Additionally, former UNI athlete Jessica Heims, the first Panther to qualify for the Paralympic Games in 2016 and 2020, finished sixth in the F64 discus throw.
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FINAL RESULTS BY CURRENT/FORMER PANTHER ATHLETES (Paris 2024 Paralympics)
Olivia Chambers (Swimming)
- GOLD - S13 400m Freestyle (4:29.93)
- SILVER - SM13 200m Individual Medley (2:25.90)
- SILVER - SB13 100m Breaststroke (1:17.70)
- 5th Place - S13 100m Butterfly (1:06.32)
- 5th Place - S13 50m Freestyle (27.65)
- 5th Place - Mixed 4x100m Freestyle Relay [49 pt] (4:05.26)
Jessica Heims (Track & Field)
- 6th Place - F64 Discus (34.68m)
Erin Kerkhoff (Track & Field)
- 5th Place - T13 400m (57.19)
- 7th Place - T13 100m (12.75)
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UNI'S OLYMPIC & PARALYMPIC MEDALISTS
|
NAME |
GAMES |
SPORT/EVENT |
FINISH |
|
William "Red" Hamilton |
London 1908 Olympics |
Track & Field (Medley Relay) |
Gold |
|
Gerald Leeman |
London 1948 Olympics |
Wrestling (Freestyle Bantam Weight) |
Silver |
|
Bill Smith |
Helsinki 1952 Olympics |
Wrestling (Freestyle Welterweight) |
Gold |
|
Paris 2024 Paralympics ÂParis 2024 Paralympics ÂParis 2024 Paralympics |
Swimming (S13 400m Freestyle) ÂSwimming (SM13 200m Individual Medley) ÂSwimming (SB13 100m Breaststroke) |
Gold ÂSilver ÂSilver |
UNI track and field action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Track and Field), X (@UNITrackFieldXC) and on Instagram (@uni_tf_xc). Schedules and rosters, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
Players Mentioned
