by Larry EderThe womens’ 800 meters was one of the finest races of the 2017 European Indoor Athletics Championships. It was on the third day, Sunday, March 5, 2017, and it was a battle between Selina Buchel, Switzerland, Shelayne Oskan-Clarke, GBR, and Anita Hinriksdottir of Iceland.
Buchel is the defending champion of Euro Indoors, and Shelayne Oksan-Clarke, a former field hockey player, looked great in the rounds. Anita Hinriksdottir had only been successful is she lead the entire way.
The close 800 meter finish, courtesy of European Athletics
Over the last 200 meters, Selina Buchel was able to hold of Shelayne Oksan-Clarke, to the delight of the crowd. The big surprise was that Iceland’s star, Anita Hinriksdottir stayed on her feet when there was a physical challenge with less than 200 meters to go, and Anita stayed on her feet and was able to hold onto the bronze.
I called this race live, and it was fun, and tiring. Listen to the screaming and enthusiasm of the 15,000 plus fans in the Kombank Arena, the finest site to host an indoor championships that I have seen so far anywhere.
