Jockeying for Position in the Women’s 400

LONDON – The rain came down hard as the American sprinter DeeDee Trotter raised her arms high in the air before starting her first 400-meter race at the Olympic Games. Because of an injury, she failed to make the final at the Beijing Games. She is hoping that on Sunday she will be in the final here.

It felt “pretty good,” Trotter said of the run. She led her heat with a time of 50.87 seconds and qualified for the next round, in one of track’s most punishing events. Soaked, she smiled after hearing she had advanced.

“The rain couldn’t have come at a more appropriate time,” she said, still catching her breath. “In spite of that, I still think it was a great race.”

Preliminary heats can be an oddity of Olympic competition. Runners want to qualify for the final, but not burn out too quickly. Many slow down as they hit the finish line (provided they have a good lead on their competition) and bypass interviews, lest it throw off their focus before a medal event. But the level of competition even in preliminaries was enough to drive the crowd here wild on the first day of track events.

“It’s about qualification,” Trotter said. “You just got to make it to the finals, and doing so, you want to qualify in a fashion that’s going to get you into a good lane.”

Unlike badminton players throwing matches, many of the runners showed their hands early, hoping not only to make the next round but position themselves for good lane assignments. Some, like Trotter, even began making jokes about being able to feel the lactic acid build up in their legs as they exited the stadium. She joked that an escalator should be installed for the athletes’ use