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News16 Mar 2003


Women High Jump Final

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Kajsa Bergqvist took Sweden's third gold medal of these 9th IAAF World Indoor Championships here this afternoon as she successfully defended her title with a faultless performance.

The 26-year-old Monte Carlo-based Swede cleared every height at her first attempt up to 2.01 metres.

The previous height, 1.99, was where Tisha Waller (USA), Irina Mykhalchenko (UKR), and Ruth Beitia (ESP) were all eliminated, while Croatia's Blanka Vlasic's bold ploy of passing her third attempt at 1.99 and trying 2.01 failed to deliver her a medal when the World Junior Champion narrowly failed to clear what would have been the 19-year-old's lifetime best.

That left the Russians, Anna Chicherova and Yelena Yelesina, the former World Youth Champion and Olympic gold medallist respectively, as Bergqvist's last opposition thanks to second-attempt clearances.

Both were under intense pressure after Bergqvist's first-time 2.01 clearance, and neither managed to rise to the challenge set by the defending champion, Yelesina's better overall jump record giving her the silver over her 20-year-old team mate.

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