Pen Freitas Reinstated For 1500m Olympic Semifinals

TOKYO, Japan – Marta Pen Freitas is not done.

Late Sunday night, the Portuguese Olympic Committee announced its appeal was upheld and the former Mississippi State runner was reinstated for the semifinals of the women's 1500m at the Tokyo Games.

Running in the third heat, Pen Freitas, a former national champion at Mississippi State, in ninth place in her heat when Morocco's Rababe Arafi pulled up and stopped on the track. Pen Freitas' stride was disrupted as she could not get around Arafi, and she ended up missing a qualifying time by 1.11 seconds.

""I feel I was in incredible shape," the former Bulldog told The Record in her home country. "I have done a lot of work to come back here five years later, working with the right people. This generates and it often demands of me, some sacrifices, which are worth it for being able to come here. And here nothing is deserved, it is conquered! Unfortunately, for something external to me, I was not able to conquer what I was capable of. Sport is like that. It costs a little bit, but I'm super proud, I'm lucky to do what I love."

Now Pen Freitas, will have another opportunity to do what she loves. In her second Olympic Games, she has now advanced further than she did while competing in Rio in 2016. Two semifinal heats will be contested on Wednesday, Aug. 4 with the first gun scheduled for 5 a.m. CT.

All events can be streamed online on NBCOlympics.com or the NBC Sports app. Nearly-live results are available on Olympics.com along with MSU's State to Tokyo webpage and social media feeds. Tokyo is 14 hours ahead of the central time zone.

For more information on the Mississippi State track and field program, visit HailState.com and follow "HailStateTF" on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Mississippi State University Athletics

Pen Freitas Reinstated For 1500m Olympic Semifinals

Players Mentioned

Marta Pen Freitas

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