- He is ranked 7th in the qualification standings
Although he is not yet at his usual
best this year, Isaac Makwala is
still stacking up Wanda Diamond
League points that could see him lining up
in the final. Makwala will have to main–
tain or improve his last few performances
to ensure that he remains in the top nine
for the grand final in Zurich, Switzerland
on September 7.
Makwala finished eighth in his latest
race in Rome, Italy last week. The race
continued his unwanted theme of strug–
gling in this year’s Diamond League edi-
tions. He was placed in the seventh lane
which is usually regarded as a good lane.
However, he could not accelerate at a
point when the race approached the last
200m. As the runners’ pace bent against
the curve, Makwala could not manage to
increase his pace and assert himself in the
contest. For a while it appeared he was
poised to finish fifth but he was outpaced
by the trailing pack and he finished eighth
in the end.
As it stands Makwala is
ranked seventh in the qualifica–
tion standings, and he is still in
the mix to reach the final. He
will get another opportunity
to gain more points tomorrow
(Thursday) in Oslo, Norway.
After the Oslo race he will
participate in the Paris edition
on June 18 as well as the Chor-
zow, Poland edition on August
6. The Chorzow race will be the
last qualifying race before the
September 7 scheduled final.