With a brisk 20km walk through the morning sunshine, Olympic champion Olga Kaniskina won her third straight world title to push Russia to the top of the overall medals standings halfway through the International Association of Athletics Federations World Championships in Daegu, South Korea, yesterday.
After the failures of champions like Usain Bolt and pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva, Kaniskina went out strong and never faltered as she continued her domination of athletics’ quirky event.
Liu Hong of China took silver and Russian teammate Anisya Kirdyapkina added bronze in the only race on yesterday’s program.
PHOTO: AFP
Victory gave Russia 10 medals overall and four gold. The US also has four gold medals, but nine overall.
Disqualification has been too much of a story already during the first half of the championships. Bolt false started in the final of the marquee 100m and saw his chance for a third golden triple in as many global championships evaporate when he was shown the red card.
Compounding that, world-record holder and Olympic champion Dayron Robles was disqualified for obstructing rival Liu Xiang in the 110m hurdles final, handing the title to US outsider Jason Richardson.
Until yesterday, every star that organizers put on the front of their official program, from Bolt to Robles to sixth-place finisher Isinbayeva, met with debacle. Kaniskina in the only one to have broken the “curse of the cover” as it became known.
“I wasn’t even aware that I was on the cover today,” Kaniskina said. “I’d like to thank everyone for not telling me about it before the race.”
Bolt seemed a certainty for a sprint double. Now that -possibility is open only to Carmelita Jeter of the US.
She got the better of Veronica Campbell-Brown in the women’s 100m, but during today’s 200m heats, Jeter moves into the territory long dominated by the Jamaican at the Olympics and by Allyson Felix at the world championships.
Felix was seeking a 400m-200m double, but a loss to Amantle Montsho of Botswana in the 400m has forced the American to focus on defending the 200m title she has already won three times. She is also slated to run the two relay races over the weekend.
Bolt, too, still has a chance of a double. After the blow in the 100m, he has his best event -coming up in the 200m. He will start running again tomorrow in those heats, with the 4x100m relay final the very last race of the championships on Sunday.
When it comes to doubles, Kenyan runner Vivian Cheruiyot is going for the long-distance one in tomorrow’s 5,000m. She already won the 10,000m.
After winning the first six available medals on the opening day, 800m champion David Rudisha and Cheruiyot have added to the haul that has pushed the east African country into third place with eight medals, three of which are gold.
“At the moment,” Rudisha said, “we Kenyans are very happy to see our flag rising so often.”
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