Paris.- Marileidy Paulino, the Olympic runner-up in the 400 meters at Tokyo 2020, started her Paris 2024 campaign with a direct pass to the semifinals by winning her qualifying heat.
The 27-year-old Dominican, coached by Cuban Yaseen Pérez, dominated heat 5 with a time of 49.42 seconds, finishing more than a second ahead of American Aaliyah Butler, who also advanced to the next round.
Paulino recorded the fastest time of all participants in the qualifying round, surpassing notable competitors such as Cuban Roxana Gómez (50.38) and Mexican Paola Morán (51.04).
As the Dominican Republic’s flag bearer at the opening ceremony, Paulino has two goals in Paris: to win gold in the 400m and to surpass her personal best of 48.76 seconds, set at the 2023 Budapest World Championships.