Print

Mail

wiki links

Allyson Felix retains 200m title

France's Romain Mesnil competes in the men's pole vault qualifications at the World Athletics Championships in Osaka on Thursday. PHOTO: AFP

Allyson Felix yesterday proved that, at least for her, less is more.

Days after skipping the 100m to concentrate on the 200m at the World Athletics Championships yesterday, she had all the power her competitors lacked to surge away on the home stretch and win a second successive world championships gold over the distance.

Her face intense with concentration, she let go of a big "yes" and broke into an immediate smile once she streaked across the line in a season's best of 21.81 seconds.

She was .53 seconds clear of Veronica Campbell, who had to settle for silver after winning gold in the 100m.

Jamaica's Campbell had the best start and kept ahead until halfway. But then, the toil of eight races in six days started weighing heavily. Felix swept away and, keeping her lithe body and elegant stride under control, won the US' seventh gold medal of the meet.

Susanthika Jayasinghe of Sri Lanka won bronze in 22.63. Americans filled fourth and fifth places with Torri Edwards in 22.65 and Sanya Richards in 22.70.

Competitors take part in the 100m dash in the men's decathlon at the World Athletics Championships in Osaka, Japan, yesterday. PHOTO: AP

Not all was well for the US, though.

Bryan Clay's defense of the decathlon world title was over by the end of the first day.

Defending champion Clay hurt his right leg when he planted his foot for his second attempt in the high jump at 2m, and slumped under the bar onto the mat. He limped away and never came back.

"He heard something pop," his agent Paul Doyle said, adding he injured his right quadriceps muscle, making it impossible to start the 400m, the last of five events yesterday.

After four of 10 events, Jamaican Maurice Smith had 3,591 points for a 28-point edge over Czech Olympic champion Roman Sebrle. Clay had faded to third with 3,558.

After failing to defend his 1,500m title and finishing with silver, Bahrain's Rachid Ramzi could not even make the final of the 800m yesterday. In his semi-final, he faltered badly and finished last of his race. Favorite Yuri Borzakovsky easily won his semi-final to advance to tomorrow's final.

While Clay and Ramzi had trouble in the stadium, for Russia it was a walk in the park earlier yesterday.

Olga Kaniskina led a 1-2 finish in the women's 20km through the muggy parkland outside the Nagai stadium, keeping Russia in close contention with the US in the medal standings.

And Russia had to do it without defending champion Olimpiada Ivanova, who walked out early when the pain of an old skiing accident became too much.

Instead of 37-year-old Ivanova, a new generation took over. Kaniskina, 22, who walked away from the pack early, was never troubled again. Behind her, 19-year-old Tatyana Shemyakina got silver.

"To be world champion after two-and-a-half years of serious walking training is great," Kaniskina said.

Her and Lebedeva's results improved Russia to 13 medals, including 4 gold. The Russians were second to the US, which had seven gold and 14 medals overall.

In the high jump, season leader Blanka Vlasic of Croatia was among 16 who reached the qualifying mark of 1.94. Defending champion Kajsa Bergqvist of Sweden, Olympic champion Yelena Slesarenko and European titlist Tia Hellebaut also advanced.

In the javelin, defending champion Andrus Varnik of Estonia failed to qualify for the final.

Vadims Vasilevskis of Latvia had the top throw of 87.37m. Season's leader Breaux Greer of the US, Olympic champion Andreas Thorkildsen and Finland's Tero Pitkamaki also advanced.

Ethiopian-born Maryam Yusuf Jamal of Bahrain produced a strong final sprint to win her 1,500m semi-final in the quest for gold yesterday.

The 22-year-old Asian Games champion, one of only two women in the world to duck under four minutes this year, took the lead around the final bend to clock 4 minutes, 14.86 seconds and easily qualify for tomorrow's final.

In a faster-paced second semi-final, Russian Yelena Soboleva struggled for the lead with Kenyan Viola Kibiwot into the final straight, but both eased up to let Iryna Lischchynska cross the line first in 4:03.84.

Soboleva, who holds the world's fastest time this year of 3:57.30, followed home in 4:03.87 with Kibiwot third in 4:03.97.

The field was thrown open when Russia's Tatyana Tomashova, the 2003 and 2005 world champion, decided not to defend her title due to a persistent foot injury.

"Easy one. Under control," said 24-year-old Soboleva, who won the silver at the world indoor championships last year. "I expect a very fast race in the final. I am ready."

Teen flounders in wrong event

Three days of travel is not the best way for an athlete to prepare for the world athletics championships, but for 16-year-old Palestinian Gharid Ghrouf the odyssey was just the start of her woes.

The teenager arrived in Osaka at the end of her circuitous trip from Gaza to find that because of a clerical error by her federation she had been entered in the wrong event.

Instead of competing in the 100m and 200m she found herself lining up in a women's 800m first-round heat against the great Maria Mutola.

"I was very afraid to do the 800m but I tried to do my best. I recognized Maria Mutola and some of the other athletes," she said on the championships' Web site.

Ghrouf finished eighth in her heat in a time of 2:30.35, well behind Mutola's winning mark of 2:00.00. Unsurprisingly, it was Ghrouf's personal best.
This story has been viewed 1635 times.