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Mutola takes US$1 million prize

Maria Mutola of Mozambique, right, sprints to win the women's 800m in the Memorial Ivo Van Damme Golden League Athletics Meeting, in Brussels, Friday. Mutola banked a prize of US$1 million for her sixth win in the event in the Golden League meetings.

Maria Mutola of Mozambique won a US$1 million jackpot on Friday, taking the 800m at the Van Damme Memorial to make it a perfect six-for-six in Golden League races.

Mutola left it late in the race but once she kicked for home, no one came close as she claimed the biggest payday in her career and one of the biggest paychecks in athletics.

She finished in 1 minute, 57.78 seconds, easily holding off Natalya Khrushchelyova of Russia by .75 seconds.

"As the race came closer I was nervous. Anything can happen in a race," she said. "I just hung on."

Hardly able to raise her arms in victory, she remained composed once she realized she had secured the jackpot. The 47,500 sellout crowd at the King Baudouin Stadium gave her a standing ovation as the public address system blared the West Side Story song "Maria."

IAAF president Lamine Diack handed her the check after the race. Soon, the Pointer Sisters started their concert in the stadium to the sound of ``You're an inspiration.''

Just beforehand, Haile Gebrselassie ran the third-fastest 10,000m in history, finishing in 26:29.22, just seven-hundredths of a second outside his world record.

Kenya's Nicolas Kemboi, just 19, finished second in a world junior record of 26:30.03. And Abdullah Ahmad Hassan, formerly known as Albert Chipkurui of Kenya, set an Asian record for his new nation Qatar, of 26:38.78.

In the shortest race, Kelli White shrugged off her doping worries and fought back from behind to edge fellow American Chryste Gaines and win the 100m.

One week after becoming embroiled in a doping scandal at the world championships, champion White was slow out of the blocks into a slight headwind. But she still timed 10.87 seconds, just .02 seconds off her best in Saint-Denis last week.

"It was my first time on the track for eight days," a relieved White said. "It was my first normal day."

After her 100m victory at the worlds, White tested positive for a minor stimulant. She escaped a suspension which would have kept her out of the Athens Olympics, but she could still lose her 100m and 200m gold medals.

She skipped the 400m relay at the championships because of the doping scandal.

"It's been hell, it's been tough," she said of the past week.

Gaines, who missed out on the 100m at the world championships, set a personal record of 10.88.

Tori Edwards, the silver medalist behind White last week, also beat the 11-second mark in 10.98 to make it an all-American victory stand.

Asafa Powell, who was disqualified at the world championships for a false start, set a personal best of 10.02 to upset the favorites in the men's 100m. The 20-year-old Jamaican surged ahead in the closing stages, beating US runner Justin Gatlin by .07 seconds. American Bernard Williams finished third in 10.10.

John Capel, the 200m world champion, disappointed in fourth place with 10.13.

Powell was tipped to make the final in Saint-Denis, but was a victim of the new false start rule which immediately disqualifies any sprinter following a first false start in a race.

"This is kind of revenge for what happened to me," he said. "I was very eager to win this one."

While Powell accepted the decision, American Jon Drummond threw a tantrum in Saint-Denis and held up racing for half an hour.

Hicham El Guerrouj dominated the 1,500m as he has done all season, never letting France's Mehdi Baala threaten him in an identical 1-2 finish as in Saint-Denis.
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