First it was the pole vault, then the long jump earlier today, and now the high jump with a one-two Russian finish.
The win by Yelena Slesarenko at 2.04 confirmed her February conquest of world-leader Anna Chicherova in the Russian championships, as Chicherova today was stuck at "only" 2.00 for the silver medal.
It was a belated birthday celebration for Slesarenko, who became 22 earlier in the week.
The Volgograd resident started conservatively at 1.82, and maintained a perfect jumping slate until 2.00, which needed a second attempt. Back on track, she then dispatched 2.02 and 2.04 on on opening attempts, resulting in the best winning height since the 1987 championships in Indianapolis. She then took two excellent but unsuccessful jumps at 2.08 before retiring to enjoy her victory.
Chicherova meanwhile did not have a smooth afternoon, barely avoiding elimination with a third-attempt clearance at 1.97. A second effort at 2.00 kept her in contention, but she had to resort to a passing game. Two misses at 2.02 and a single failure at 2.04 left her with the silver, one place higher than her Birmingham finish last year.
Last year's European under-23 champion, Blanca Vlasic of Croatia, won the bronze medal at 1.97 on a countback ahead of Ukraine's Vita Palamar and Daniela Rath of Germany, who finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
