Incoming Husker Hits Olympic Track

Beijing ? Incoming Husker Pieter Smith made his Olympic debut in the 4x400-meter relay Monday night at the Bird’s Nest in Beijing. Smith and his South African teammates were fifth in the first heat of the two- heat preliminary. With Smith running the first leg, the team posted a season-best time of 3:01.26, just .53 seconds short of claiming the final spot in the semifinals.<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>

Smith and his teammates qualified for the Olympics after winning the African Senior Championships in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where the squad posted a time of 3:03.58. Individually, Smith also reached the 400-meter semifinals at the African Senior Championships. On June 26, in Biberach, Germany, Smith ran a personal-best time of 46.05 in the 400 meters. The time would rank seventh all-time at Nebraska outdoors.