News02 Jun 2007


Chernova, Barras the overnight leaders in Arles – IAAF Combined Events Challenge

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Tatyana Chernova finishing day one in Arles (© Lorenzo Sampaolo)

Arles, FranceReigning World junior champion Tatyana Chernova from Russia and Frenchman Romain Barras are the overnight leaders of the IAAF Combined Events meeting in Arles where wind blew very strongly as usual in the Southern French town aiding the sprint competitions but affecting technical disciplines like the High Jump which was held in very difficult conditions.

Despite the winds, Chernova cruising

The women’s Heptathlon was highlighted by an impressive display by Chernova who totalled 3906 points after winning the 100m Hurdles in a windy 13.04 and the 200m in 23.59. Chernova scored two new PBs in the High Jump (1.82) and the Shot Put (13.57 m.). Chernova emerged as the overnight leader after a very interesting battle with Canadian record holder Jessica Zelinka, who was fourth in Götzis last weekend with 6343 points.

The Russian, who was born in 1988 and is still a junior athlete, showed her impressive form clocking 13.04 for a score of 1118 points aided by a very strong tailwind of +6.1 m/s which makes the result illegal for ratification. Zelinka responded by running the following heat in 13.19 aided by +4.5 m/s scoring 1096 points.

Chernova mantained the overall lead totalling 2121 points after clearing 1.82 in the High Jump after taking second place in this event on countback behind 2004 World junior silver medallist Viktorija Zemaityte from Lithuania, who went into fourth overall place with 1964 points in a close competition with Zelinka (1987 points) and reigning Commonwealth Games silver medallist Kylie Wheeler (1967 points).

Natalya Dobrynska from the Ukraine, fifth after the High Jump, moved up into second place in joint position with Zelinka after winning the shot put with a 14.82m throw (849 points). Chernova smashed her PB putting 13.57, backing up her overall first place with 2886 points to lead by 88 points over Dobrynska and Zelinka.

Only an illegal strong tailwind of +5.2 m/s prevented Chernova from setting a new PB in the 200 metres. She crossed the finish line in 23.59 beating Zelinka, second in 23.82, and Wheeler (24.41). The Canadian and the Australian finished day one in second and third place, respectively with 3796 and 3658 points.

“I feel very good in my first competition in the Challenge,” said Chernova. “I am very happy with my PBs in the High Jump and the Shot Put. In the 200m I ran faster than my previous PB (23.70) but wind, which made my race very hard, will not allow the ratification.”

Narrow advantage for Barras

In the Decathlon Wilfried Gouacide from France took advantage of very favourable windy conditions of +6.8 m/s to win the fastest 100m heat with 10.70. Second in the same heat was Belgium’s François Gourmet who shared the same time as Guoacide.

Louis Alberto De Arahujo, who finished third in the 100m with 10.80, won the Long Jump with a 7.56m leap (wind-assisted 5.1 m/s) for 950 points and took second place in the overall scoreboard with 1856 points, twenty points behind Gouacide who leapt to 7.55m (also wind-assisted +4.8 m/s). Lamri Boualem from Algeria, who clocked 10.82 (+7.1 m/s) and jumped 7.51 (+6 m/s), stood in third place with 1838 points.

Gouacide defended his overall lead (2637 points) after a solid 14.53m in the Shot Put (761 points). Behind him De Araujo (13.93m) took second place with 2580 points; Frenchman Mattias Cerlati (14.27m in the Shot Put) followed in third place with 2570 points.

Barras, who missed the qualifying standard for the World Championships in Osaka set by the French Federation last week in Götzis where he finished tenth with 8064 points, lined up in Arles one week later in the attempt to book a berth for Japan. In the Shot Put Barras claimed second place with 15.00m behind event winner Lassi Raunio of Finland (15.25m) going into overall fourth place with 2549 points ahead of Gourmet (2536 points).

The High Jump shook up the overall ranking. Barras cleared 2.01m (813 points) finishing fourth, three centimetres behind event winner Christophe Pechet, also from France. With this result Barras clinched the overall lead before the final 400m.

Running 50.64 Barras managed to maintain his lead ahead of Gouacide (49.50) by just 19 points (4147 to 4128 points). An exciting second day of competition is expected.

Third after five events is Gourmet (4091 points) following his 400m win in 48.69. But the fight for the third spot is also wide-open with Gourmet defending just a margin of 17 points over France’s Mattias Cerlati.

“I am fit but after Götzis I was mentally very tired and I did not want to train,” Barras said. “I was not very confident after my bad performance. Last week I went to the beach to relax. Only on the eve of the competition I decided to come to Arles. Now I am more confident to qualify for Osaka.”

Diego Sampaolo for the IAAF

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