Wed. Oct 2nd, 2024
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Jonnie Peacock in action in the heats in Paris
Peacock won the world title in 2017 but missed the 2019 event through injury
Venue: Charlety Stadium, Paris Dates: 8-17 July
Coverage: Daily reports across BBC Sport.

Britain’s Jonnie Peacock said he only has himself to blame after he finished fifth in the T64 100m final at the Para Athletics World Championships in Paris.

Peacock finished out of the medals in a race won by Italian newcomer Maxcel Amo Manu in 10.71 seconds.

Tokyo silver medallist Sherman Guity of Costa Rica was second with German Paralympic champion Felix Streng third.

“I ran quicker in the heats and have no excuses – I just messed up,” Peacock, who clocked 10.98, told BBC Sport.

“All I can do is learn from it. The only solace I can take is that this year was always about finding myself again and I do feel like I have found myself and will show that for the rest of the season.

“I believe I have a quick time in me this year and it was just really poor execution in the final – I am better than that.

“I back myself to turn it on when it counts and I didn’t do that today.”

Before the championships Peacock, the double Paralympic champion who took joint-bronze in Tokyo in 2021, believed the world record of 10.61 – set at the 2015 Worlds by American Richard Browne – could be under threat.

But although Manu, who had his leg amputated after a motorbike accident in August 2017 and took up athletics two years later as part of his rehab, equalled Peacock’s European record of 10.64 in the heats, he was unable to improve on that in the final.

“If someone had told me before the championships that 10.71 would be the winning time in the final, I’d have bitten their hand off,” Peacock went on.

“I’d have said I could go a lot faster than that because I felt like I was in really good shape coming here.

“But fair play to Maxcel he is running well and it isn’t getting any easier. I don’t believe that is going to be the same result in Paris [for the Paralympic Games] next year. I think Felix and Sherman have both had shocks today.

“I think I lost a bit of confidence in the heats which carried through into the final.”

Peacock was also critical of competition organisers for not allowing athletes who use prosthesis to have a towel at the start line, with Wednesday’s race delayed while athletes made adjustments as well as the condition of the blocks, but refused to blame that for his loss.

“It is about who deals with it best and we were all in the same situation. Chaos happens and it is about who deals best with the chaos. We are used to that.”

Elsewhere on Wednesday, fellow Briton Kyle Keyworth marked his World Championships debut with fourth in the T35 200m final.

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