03:49: Right. That’s where we end our coverage for today. A quick recap. Wayde van Niekerk bossed his semi. Luvo Manyonga bossed the long jump. Akani Simbine bossed the 100m heats. Carina Horn and Reynhardt van Rensburg didn’t progress from their semis. And Mo Farah is still the boss of the 10 000m. There’s another jampacked day tomorrow. We’ll be back from around lunch time to take you through it all.

**

03:35: Between all that excitement, Rynhardt van Rensburg has run his 800m semi and he didn’t qualify. Oh well.

**

03:20: SILVER! Manyonga takes silver in what will surely go down as one of the greatest comebacks in sporting history. You can read about it here.

**

03:13: Manyonga has had another no jump…so now we wait…

**

03:03: Meanwhile, in the long-jump. Samaai has been eliminated and Manyonga has leapt into the lead with a distance of 8.37m! 

**

03:00: Wow. What a race from Farah. He started off completely unfussed, sitting at the back and just chilling, waving to the crowd. Not long into the race, Farah was tripped up and tumbled, but he got up soon enough and settled in the front of the pack. Kenya and Ethiopia’s runners tried absolutely everything to get Farah down. 

Every single runner in that race tried to get Farah, while still trying to win a medal. But Farah is just so calm and so composed, he kept his cool and kept on pushing the pack leaders all the way. The last few hundred meters came down to a near sprint finish, Farah is very good on the last lap and he found some strength to cruise home.

South Africa’s Mokoka ended in 18th.

**

02:38: Oh dear. It’s not gone so well for Manyonga. He’s had back-to-back no jumps in attempts two and three. Samaai also had a no jump in round three.

**

02:27: While the long jump gets going, we’ve also got the men’s 10 000m coming up. Stephen Mokoka will represent South Africa, but will need something special to unseat Mo Farah.

**

02:22: Samaai is getting very frustrated out there in the sandpit. We’re two jumps in and his best is 7.94. Manyonga’s best is 8.16, he’s in fourth.

**

02:16: Gardener and Thompson win their heat with ease. They are the two fastest women in the world this year, so it’s hardly a surprise. Nigeria’s Blessing Okagbare ends in third, but it won’t be good enough to qualify. South Africa’s Carina Horn won’t be in the finals. 

**

02:08: Fraser-Pryce wins the heat of the second 100m heat. She’s in tears…and she’s limping. Oh dear. Schippers is second. Just. Bowie and Ayhe were tied for first in the first head and will both go through to the finals.

**

02:04: Manyonga has just had his first jump, it’s not perfect, but it’s effective. He gets in at 8.16m, just 2cm behind GB’s Rutherford.

**

02:01: We’ve also got the women’s 100m semis on the go. Carina Horn is running here. Ivory Coast’s Murielle Ahouré finishes fourth after a very fast start. She will have to wait and see if she cracks it as the fastest loser. 

**

01:48: Coming up shortly: Luvo Manyonga and Ruswahl Samaai in the men’s long jump final. These two qualified in fourth and fifth respectively and Manyonga set a world-leading distance earlier in the year. It’s going to take something really special from both of these guys to grab a medal, but that’s something the country’s athletes seem to do best.

**

01:45: The commentators ask an important question. Van Niekerk has never won a race under this much pressure before. Merrit and James have. Well, personally I don’t think there’s anything to worry about. Van Niekerk didn’t looked fussed in that race, so his best is definitely yet to come. The final is 3-am South African time on Monday morning.

**

01:43: The 400m final could very well be the race to watch.  Wayde van Niekerk started off quickly, but then slowed down just a bit… because he didn’t need to push himself too much. He didn’t look like h even broke a sweat. Slowed down towards the end, but he’s definitely into the final.

**

01:40: Five men were under 45 seconds in the first heat. Seven of the athletes in this heat have run quicker than 44.8 in the last season. 

**

01:35: Wonderful race from the men we expect it from – Meritt and James finish in first and second – and Sibanda from Botswana sneaks in third. He’s just 18 years old and he’s run a personal best. He might very well sneak through to the final as one of the fastest losers.

**

01:27: We’re just about ready to go with the first semi-final…Van Niekerk is in the second one.

**

01:06: It’s been a successful night on the cycling track for Great Britain. Gold in the team pursuit, silver in the women’s keirin finals and two men will contest the silver and gold medals tomorrow. But we’re not too fussed about that now, it’s all about the track events. Coming up first: Wayde van Niekerk in the men’s 400m sem-finals.

**

18:38: We’ll take a short break from our coverage for now. We’ll be back from after midnight with updates from the track.

**

17:51: Now it’s time for our very own Akani Simbine. He has a good lane draw and takes full advantage to win the heat, despite a nasty surprise in lane one from the unexpectedly speedy Ryota Yamagata in lane one.

**

17:42: Bolt starts, Bolt runs fast, Bolt wins. You know the drill. He’s tidily through from his heat, despite something of a stuttering start off the blocks. There’s plenty more to come from the big man.

**

17:35: The good news: Henrico Bruintjies is up in the 100m. The bad news: he’s up against some bloke called Yohan Blake. A creditable effort from our man, but the Jamaican tentatively enters beast mode to cross the line ahead of the rest.

Another Jamaican fellah called Usain Bolt is next…

**

17:08: It’s men’s 100m heats time. That means a Bolt on the blue track just now. He’ll respond to arch nemesis Justin Gatlin’s winning time of 10.01 in the second heat.

**

16:35: In water-based news, the United States have won the women’s eight rowing. Great Britain secured silver and Romania bronze. The men’s race is just finishing now and… and… it’s gold for Great Britain! Germany second and the Netherlands third.

**

16:17: It’s Palframan’s turn in heat three of the 400m, stuck right out in the outside lane, which isn’t particularly helpful. She starts brightly as well but fades badly to finish stone dead last. Ah well, South Africa’s talents clearly lie elsewhere!

**

16:09: Allyson Felix almost walks down the home straight to qualify first from the second heat. Thipe, the diminutive South African, starts well, clings on, then collapses over the finish line in rather undignified fashion. And in fourth place. It won’t be enough. 

**

16:02: Stephenie Ann McPherson is the first of the 400m big guns to go in the first heat. She breezes through to qualify in third gear at most. Allyson Felix, Christine Ohuruogu and Co. to follow over the next little while. As well as South Africans Tsholofelo Thipe and Justine Palframan.

**

15:53: The women’s 400m heats are on the way shortly, by the way. One athlete you won’t see – much to the relief of the rest of the field – is Caster Semenya. She was up for it, her coach was most definitely not. Just the 800m it is for the gold medal favourite, then.

**

14:46: This story in from the Guardian, as the German canoeing coach fights for his life: 

“Stefan Henze, who won silver in 2004, is between life and death, according to doctors, after his taxi crashed in Barra. He might have been in better condition if Rio’s emergency teams were better equipped. Because there was no neurosurgeon nearby he had to be transferred. Extra quotes an unnamed doctor saying that is the reality of Rio de Janeiro. It’s absurd.”

**

13:23: The action officially gets underway on the track at 14:30 with the men’s prelim 100m rounds. South Africa’s sprinters were good enough to crack it straight into the proper rounds which will only take place later this afternoon. That doesn’t mean we won’t be watching, though. Have something to get off your chest? Email us: [email protected]

You can also catch up with South Africa’s highs and lows of week one at the Olympics.

**

13:06: You’re in for a treat today. If you’re not going to be distracted by the English Premier League starting, there’s plenty of South African Olympic action coming up. These are the South Africans competing in track and field events today:

16:00 Women’s 400m heats: Tsholofelo Thipe, Justine Palframan
17:00 Men’s 100m heats: Henricho Bruintjies, Akani Simbine (you might also want to look out for that chap called Usain Bolt).
01:30 am (Sunday), Men’s 400m semi-finals, Wayde van Niekerk
01:53 am (Sunday), Men’s long jump final: Luvo Manyonga and Ruswahl Samaai
02:00 am (Sunday), Women’s 100m semi-finals: Carina Horn
02:27 am (Sunday), Men’s 10,000m final, Stephen Mokoka
03:08 am (Sunday), Men’s 800m semi-finals, Rynardt van Rensburg

**

13:01: Hello ad welcome to the Daily Maverick’s live blog of the Olympic action. We’re into the track and field action and there’s loads of action to look forward to. DM

Photo: Wayde van Niekerk of South Africa won the men senior 200m final during the 2016 CAA 20th African Senior Championships at the Kings Park Athletic stadium in Durban, South Africa on June 26, 2016