Paris Olympics: China sprinters ‘too slow, too weak’ says Wu, after 100m hurdles failure

A “regretful” Wu Yannie delivered a withering assessment of her own abilities on Thursday, after crashing out of her Olympic 100 metres hurdles event in Paris.

The 27-year-old finished fourth in her repechage race, flunking a second opportunity to reach the semi-finals after a disappointing heat 24 hours earlier.

Compatriot Lin Yuwei, who claimed gold at last year’s Asian Games, was also eliminated after placing sixth in her race.

And after being knocked out, Wu said she had come to France aiming to top the podium, an about-turn on comments following her heat, when the Games debutant claimed she was primarily here to learn from her world-class competitors.

The Chinese men’s 4x100m relay team at least repaired some national pride with a smooth run to qualify for Friday’s final, even if it was in rather pedestrian fashion.

But Wu said the country was lagging behind the major athletics powers in a number of key areas, especially when it came to her event.