Jason Gardener of Great Britain wins the 60m final (© Getty Images)
Budapest, HungaryUSA’s Gail Devers successfully completed half of her weekend’s campaign, and Britain’s Jason Gardener finally garnered global gold during the evening session of the first day of competition at the 10th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics.
The other two finals concluded tonight were the women’s Pentathlon and Shot Put, with wins for Vita Pavlysh (UKR) and Naide Gomes (POR) respectively.
Throughout the three days of the 10th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics (5 – 7 March) “LIVE” event by event reports are as usual available - click here - as the action happens in the Hungarian capital but here we also give a snap-shot of what’s been happening ‘Around the Arena’ this evening -
Gardener adds World title to double European wins
The reigning double European Indoor 60m champion Jason Gardener proved himself the master of the world, turning bronze into gold after two third place finishes at previous championships (1999 and 2003).
His nearest challenger, both on form prior to these championships and since the first round heats this morning, was American champion Shawn Crawford, and the scenario remained the same this evening.
That’s not to say the ‘Bath Bullet’ was ever troubled by the American in this race. Gardener’s confidence must have blossomed as soon as he was away cleanly, his start banishing memories of his dismal start in Birmingham a fortnight ago. The end result was a fine win in 6.49, the same time he ran in the semi.
His American challenger was not so fortunate and while Crawford played a great game of catch-up, his eventual 6.52 finish still left him well behind the Briton. Behind him, Greece’s Yeoryios Theodorisdis established a season’s best of 6.54 for the bronze.
In the earlier semi-final stage, Crawford had dug himself out of an even worse start, clawing himself back to win the third and final heat in 6.54. His pick up was impressive especially as he had lost two or three metres on the leaders within moments of the gun.
His race was in stark contrast to Gardener in the first semi-final heat who took a 6.49 win, a time which in the world only he and Crawford have been able to better this season. Gardener’s start was fluent and confident, and he carried this positive attitude into the final just over an hour later.
“I came here as the number one and I am really pleased to win gold,” said Gardener, “everybody expected me to win here and this is a hard task to fulfil because my opponents were very good.”
Devers’ double on track
Well, it’s three races completed and one gold in the bag for USA’s Gail Devers, as the 1993 and 1997 champion, regained the World Indoor sprint title. She got away cleanly establishing a narrow lead on Belgium’s Kim Gevaert which while not increased much, was sustained through to the line. The winning time was 7.08, her fastest for the year and only just short of the winter’s world lead (7.06 held by Russia’s Yuliya Tabakova). Gevaert was inspired, bettering her own national record of 7.13, taking silver with 7.12, a photo-finish separating her from Belarussia’s Yuliya Nesterenko who grabbed bronze with the same time.
The semi-final stage clearly indicated the likely composition, if not the actual positions, of the final podium, with Gevaert equalling her Belgium record in 7.13 to win heat two of three, Devers winning the first dash of the semi-final stage in 7.15, and France’s Christine Arron following with a 7.14 for the victory in the final qualifier.
In the final though, Arron was left for dead by virtually the entire field, finishing seventh (7.21) after a very poor start.
Magic Mutola
Well, if Mozambique’s five-time champion wanted to clear any doubts about her fitness after the heavy fall she sustained in Birmingham on 20 February, then she did so in the most definitive manner possible tonight. Her world season’s best of 1:57.48 was threatened in what turned out to be a solo run in the fifth heat of the women’s 800m (1:57.72).
Cruising through 400m in 56.35, 40 metres ahead of her opponents, Mutola’s front running display was as much about sending a psychological warning to any potential challengers later on in the championships, as it served as a personal confidence boost.
Bearing in mind that the nearest mark to Mutola’s on the world season’s list is Jolanda Ceplak’s 1:59.17, and that tonight the Slovenian World record holder was also the next fastest (2:01.48) of the qualifiers for tomorrow’s semi-finals, there is no doubt that ‘Million Dollar Mutola’ is very serious about winning in Budapest.
“I felt very good today,” confirmed Mutola. “I was in excellent condition and I just ran as fast as I could. I love indoor championships…. My aim is not only to win but also to set an example for the future generation and motivate them….”
The plain truth is that this weekend at least, Mutola’s magic will only have demoralized the opposition, as her running at present is genius in motion, her time here tonight being the fourteenth fastest indoor time in history.
Dulecha shapes up for gold
Mutola’s training partner Kelly Holmes (GBR), last year’s World indoor 1500m and outdoor 800m silver medallist, was in confident form in the 1500m taking her heat in 4:11.15 from Alesya Turova (BLR) - 4:11.36 - who had beaten her earlier this winter in Stockholm.
Hungary’s national record holder Judit Varga by contrast seemed to find national expectations just a little too heavy to bear and failed to qualify for tomorrow’s final (finishing seventh in the first heat in 4:10.71), which was won by Ethiopia’s Kutre Dulecha (4:08.23) in exceptionally fine style.
Dulecha, the world season’s leader (4:01.90) who has had two previous eight place finishes at these championships (in 1997 and 1999) is making a dramatic comeback from maternity leave and now looks every step a champion in waiting.
Pentathlon goes Portuguese
Consistency was the key for Portugal’s Naide Gomes who brilliantly took the Pentathlon title in a world lead despite not winning any of the five disciplines outright. Her total of 4759 points was a world season’s lead. In silver was Nataliya Dobrynska of Ukraine (4727) whose total was a national record, a feat also achieved by the bronze and fourth place finishers, Lithuania’s Austra Skujyte (4679) and Holland’s Karin Ruckstuhl (4640).
Shot Exhibition
In the women’s Shot, the 1997 champion Vita Pavlysh (UKR) was a class above a field which included Paris outdoor gold medallist Svetlana Krivelyova (RUS). A 20.39m second round put killed off the morale of anyone with a thought of pursuing, and her fourth effort landed 10cm further to close the competition. In fact the final never caught alight, and tonight was more of a one woman exhibition. Krivelyova took silver (19.90, season’s best) and Yumileidi Cumba of Cuba the bronze (19.31 season’s best).
“I’m really satisfied with the gold medal, what I care about is not the actual result in metres but the medal,” said Pavlysh.
For FULL detailed event by event reports from all this evening’s action, click here.
