El
Guerrouj is back
Phil Minshull for IAAF
23 February 2001 - Morocco's Hicham El Guerrouj failed to add the indoor two miles world record to his plethora of other accolades but there was only a tinge of regret in his voice after finishing his first race since he was unexpectedly beaten in the Olympic 1500 final four months ago.
The world indoor champion over 1,500 in both 1995 and 1997 was on course to reduce the year-old best of 8:09.66, held by Ethiopia's Hailu Mekonnen, until the final three laps of the Flanders indoor arena on the outskirts of Ghent. However, El Guerrouj tired over the final 600 metres to finish with 8:09.89.
"But I am still very happy with my comeback, especially as it was my first race since the Olympics. And, you all know what happened at the Olympics," joked El Guerrouj.
"This race was all about confidence, because I didn't have any confidence in my running for a long time. To be honest, the record didn't go because I wasn't ready enough. Until a few weeks ago, I didn't plan to run any indoor races at all. However, the main thing is that I have regained my confidence and I've rediscovered the sensation of racing again. Yes, you can say I'm back!"
El Guerrouj was lead through the first five laps by Belgian pacemaker Patrick Grammens before his compatriot and training partner Youssef Baba took over.
Baba lead El Guerrouj through one mile in 4:03.8 but stepped to one side with just over six laps to go and from that point El Guerrouj was on his own. The 3000 split of 7:36.85 indicated that the record might just slip from El Guerrouj's grasp despite being the fastest time of the year over the championship distance at which El Guerrouj confirmed later he will contest at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Lisbon next month. A distant second, nearly half-a-lap behind was Kenya's Paul Bitok in 8:20.55.
Kenya's Noah Ngeny -- El Guerrouj's conqueror in Sydney -- only had the lead in the men's 1000 for a single metre but fortunately it was the final one and the Olympic 1500 gold medallist crossed the line in a world best for the year of 2:17.26, in his first ever indoor race over the distance.
He becomes the tenth fastest man ever over the distance and immediately behind him on the rankings list went France's Mehdi Baala and Portugal's Rui Silva, who both set national records with 2:17.36 in Ghent. Both men were given the same time but an examination of the photo-finish gave second place to Baala.
However, for much of the final lap it looked as though Silva was going to get his second victory of the season over Ngeny, following his mile victory in Stockholm on February 15, until both men squeezed past him on the line.
South Africa's Shaun Bownes set a new personal best and African record in winning the men's 60 hurdles in 7.52, improving both figures from the 7.57 he ran in Vienna two weeks ago. The fact that he went so fast was not a surprise to Bownes but the fact that he did it in Ghent certainly was.
"I'm in good shape but I injured my hip in Birmingham and only had two training sessions this week. I came here with the intention of just doing the first round and seeing how I felt but after running 7.59, I felt good but even so it's a great time," said a delighted Bownes.
Bownes will now go to Lisbon as one of the main challengers to the American hurdler Terrence Trammell for the world indoor gold medal, having made a significant improvement this winter after only reaching the Olympic semi-final.
American hurdler Anjanette Kirkland got into her running quickly after an indifferent start in the women's 60 hurdles to also go second on the 2001 world lists with 7.94.
A second US victory on the night went to Tim Montgomery in the men's 60. Montgomery narrowly came out on top in the latest of a series of duels, which could extend all the way to Lisbon, with Nigeria's Deji Aliu. Montgomery ran 6.53 to equal the second fastest time of the year, which he himself ran in Athens on Wednesday, beating the former world junior 100 champion by one-hundredth of a second, with the United States' Greg Saddler third in 6.55.
Austria's Stephanie Graf got back to winning ways after her disqualification in Birmingham last weekend with a narrow victory in the women's 800 over her regular sparring partner Mozambique's Maria Mutola.
Graf took the lead just before the bell and, try as she might, Mutola could not get past her. Graf stopped the clock in 1:58.82 with Mutola just three hundredths further back. "I'd been thinking about an attempt on the world record before the race but when someone like Mutola is in there as well, you have to concentrate on just winning and a world record is impossible," Graf said.
Venelina Veneva won the women's high jump with a soaring second time clearance at 1.95 and then put the bar up to what would have been a world-leading and indoor personal best of 2.00, but the Bulgarian had three failures at the height.
Leading Results
Men
60m 1. Tim Montgomery (USA) 6.53sec, 2. Deji Aliu (Ngr) 6.54, 3. Greg Sadler (USA) 6.55
60m hurdles 1. Shaun Bownes (Rsa) 7.52, 2. Robert Kronberg (Swe) 7.62, 3. Stanislavs Olijars (Lat) 7.62
400m 1. Jamie Baulch (Eng) 46.74, 2. Ramon Clay (USA) 47.11, 3. Jiri Muzik (Cze) 47.54
800m 1. Joao Pires (Por) 1:47.97, 2. Emmanuel Kemboi (Ken) 1:48.44, 3. Paskal Owor (Uga) 1:48.90
1000m 1. Noah Ngeny (Ken) 2:17.26, 2. Rui Silva (Por) 2:17.36, 2. Mehdi Baala (Fra) 2:17.36
Two miles 1. Hicham El Guerrouj (Mar) 8:09.89, 2. Paul Bitok (Ken) 8:20.55, 3. Said Berioui (Mar) 8:21.16
Long Jump 1. Gregor Gankar (Slo) 7.94m, 2. Alexei Lukasevic (Rus) 7.87, 3. Bogdan Tarus (Rom) 7.72
Pole vault 1. Radion Gataulin (Rus) 5.70m, 2. Romain Mesnil (Fra) 5.60, 3. Adam Ptacek (Cze) 5.60
Women
60m 1. Petya Pendareva (Bul) 7.12, 2. Mercy Nku (Ngr) 7.17, 3. Susan Jayasinghe (Sri) 7.20
60m hurdles 1. Anjanette Kirkland (USA) 7.94, 2. Lacena Golding (Jam) 8.00, 3. Svetlana Laukhova (Rus) 8.07
800m 1. Stephanie Graf (Aut) 1:58.82, 2. Maria Mutola (Moz) 1:58.85, 3. Helena Fuchsova (Cze) 1:59.89
High jump 1. Venelina Veneva (Bul) 1.95m, 2. Monica Iagar Dinescu (Rom) 1.92, 3. Olga Kalitourina (Rus) 1.92
