Heffernan added: "She has Naser [of Bahrain] in her heat. Naser was world champion in Doha in 2019 and she came from nowhere in that year.
"She looked really good in the heat the last day so I wouldn’t write her off. It’s going to be very interesting to see how she [Adeleke] handles her.
"I’d imagine, either way, she’ll still get top two in the heat if everything is good. It’s great she’s avoided the girls [Natalia Kaczmarek and Nickisha Pryce]," he said.
'This is certainly the type of semi-final you'd pick for Rhasidat'
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 6, 2024
Derval O'Rourke and Rob Heffernan look forward to tomorrow's 400m semi-finals as Rhasidat Adeleke looks to book a spot in the Olympic final #Paris2024 #OlympicGames #RTESport pic.twitter.com/ZVaT3qlV22
Former Olympic hurdler Derval O’Rourke described the field in the women’s 400m as "very deep", but also homed in on Naser as the threat to Adeleke’s hopes.
"I was in Doha in 2019 when she won, and it was such a shock. She did the mixed 4x400m relay and she came out and she split a really fast split, then she came back, and she did the women’s relay, then she won the individual.
"It was like 400m, 400m, 400m. No fatigue setting in, she ran like 48.14. A ridiculously quick time," she said.
O’Rourke added: "She was gone for two years for missing doping tests; she appealed that to the highest court in sports and now she’s back after missing those two years.
"She will feel she was robbed of that Olympics [Tokyo 2020] and now this is her Olympics to come back. So, for me, she is the danger in this whole field.
"She ran 49.6 this season, which is really fast. So, she’s just someone I wouldn’t be thinking 'Rhasidat will just put her away easily’. It’s going to be a really good race."
However, the Bahraini athlete will not be the only person to keep an eye on. Heffernan said Dutch runner Lieke Klaver could also pose problems for Adeleke.
"She’s so, so good, Klaver," he said.
"But if everyone is firing to their full potential, I think Klaver will end up fifth. But if people come off, she’ll be there to suck them up."
That view was shared by O’Rourke too, who added it was important for Adeleke to ensure that she finishes in the top two.
"You don’t want to kind of play games when you’ve someone like Lieke Klaver and you’ve got Naser.
"Because how it looks on paper you’d go: Rhasidat, then Naser or Klaver. But that’s three for two places; very exciting for us.
"I’d be surprised if she didn’t try to win the semi because that’s the only thing that makes sense. It’s too dangerous not to try to win it in terms of lane draw and in terms of the fact that only top two will go through," she said.
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