Night of truth for SA's hopes

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Athens - Hestrie Cloete treads the golden thread in the Olympic high jump as 800m runners Mbulaeni Mulaudzi and Hezekiel Sepeng take up the medal chase on Saturday night.

It's an explosive start for South Africa's marathon men on Sunday when they run the thin blue line on the course where the marathon was born.

Cloete carries a massive burden when she reaches for Athens Olympic glory in the women's high jump.

The double world champion must compete against a high quality field with the knowledge that the nation has soaring expectations that she wins the gold medal to lift the SA Olympic athletics team that has produced only two finalists in 400m hurdler Alwyn Myburgh (seventh) and discus-thrower Frantz Kruger (fifth).

There is a real chance at three medals in the final two days of Athens Olympic competition to add to the gold, silver and two bronze won by Roland Schoeman and his golden relay swimmers and the rowers.

Cloete enters as favourite not only on record, but on the exceptional form she showed in clearing 1.95m in the qualifying round on Thursday night.

She leads the field with her personal best 2.06m and her season's best 2.04m in Zurich three weeks ago - a performance that was spot-on for her Olympic peak.

"My timing and my technique feels perfect," said Cloete after her qualifying round. "My legs feel good. Lot's of speed and bounce."

Her strongest challengers are Russians Yelena Slesarenko and Anna Chicherova who also have season's bests of 2.04m.

"All I can say is that I will give 110 percent on Saturday night," said Cloete. "Whatever happens, the people back home must know that I've tried my very best."

Gold for Cloete, who turned 26 on Thursday, will be the birthday gift of her life.

She has hinted that she might take a break from athletics when she completes the IAAF Golden League this year and have a baby.

Cloete's legs may be in great shape, but spare a thought for Mulaudzi and Sepeng who have had two tough races over the latter part of the week to make Saturday night's final.

Mulaudzi has made an amazing comeback from injury and illness to hit his best possible form and he thanked his coach Ian Harries for that.

Harries had his work cut out injecting confidence into Mulaudzi after the talented runner's form hit the doldrums on the European circuit.

All that is behind him now. If Sepeng is the greyhound over the two-lapper, Mulaudzi has showed that he is the staffie and once he gets into a scrap, he'll fight to the death.

"The tougher the race the better," said the serious-minded Mulaudzi. "My speed is back, so if the race is fast to soften the field, I want to be in a good position to test my sprint."

Sepeng complained about sore hamstrings after squeezing into the final on fastest-loser's time when he finished fourth in a mercurial 1:44,75.

Kenya's Wilfred Bungei showed why he's the favourite after his winning 1:44,28.

"With Wilson Kipketer and Bungei in the field, it's going to be a very tricky race," said Sepeng. "But we've achieved the final - Mbulaeni has really got my admiration with his fighting spirit - and you know, anything can happen in an 800m. If the timing is right, the underdog can come through."