Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Breaking News

Aussie Sprinter Comes Up Short in 400 Meters

Australian sprinter Steven Solomon ran out of steam in the 400m Olympic final.

After posting two personal best times to become the first Australian man in 24 years to qualify for a 400m Olympic final, Solomon trailed the pack on Monday night, finishing eighth in 45.14 seconds – his second fastest time and just 0.17 seconds outside his landmark semifinal time.

Kirani James won gold in a blistering 43.94 seconds.

Solomon, who played soccer at the 2009 Maccabiah before taking up sprinting, said he was thrilled just to make the final. “I’m really happy,” he told Australia’s Channel Nine TV. “Although I came last in the final, I got to the final. I gave it absolutely everything I had.”

And he heaped praise on his Jewish Ukrainian coach, 78-year-old Fira Dvoskina, who could not travel to London but was coaching him via Skype.

“It just shows what a master she is,” he said. “She can still get a 19-year-old into the final.”

His father, South African-born Dr. Michael Solomon, wrote in an email to supporters after the thrilling semifinal: “I don’t care who it is that makes it onto the podium. Today I witnessed and experienced scenes that will live with me forever.”

Solomon is scheduled to race in the 4x400m relay later this week alongside John Steffensen, the black South African-born sprinter who triggered a race row when he was overlooked in favor of Solomon for the 400m.

Australian media has widely reported that Athletics Australia’s decision to select Solomon has been vindicated by his qualification for the final.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.