This year's leader Vita Pavlysh of Ukraine took a short while to get to into full action, as she tossed a tepid 19.08 in the first round, but after exiting the ring for the second time, she was firmly in the lead at 20.39, which she extended to 20.49 on her fourth throw.
This proved to be an insurmountable performance for the rest of the field, and the Ukrainian, a two-time European champion, was rewarded with her second World Indoor title, the first coming seven years ago in Paris. It represented a significant upward movement after her fourth place in Birmingham last year.
While Pavlysh was mustering her resources at the start of the competition, Russia's Svetlana Krivelyova took advantage of the moment and took a short-lived lead at 19.20. Even after being surpassed by Pavlysh in the next round, the former Olympic champion and current outdoor World Champion fought back with a 19.90 on her second effort, which ultimately held up for the silver medal, like Pavlysh an increase of three places over her Birmingham fifth.
Continuing the pattern of settling the placings early in the competition, Yumileidi Cumba of Cuba posted a lifetime-best 19.31 to secure the bronze medal, ahead of Germany's Nadine Kleinert (19.05) and Krystyna Zabawska of Poland (19.00), both of whom found their best in the opening round. And, of course, she too climbed three spots over her sixth in Birmingham.
Note:
At Maebashi 1999, Pavlysh had “won” before being stripped of her title and banned for two years because of a doping infraction. She got caught again in Budapest, so the Ukrainian not only lost a second world indoor title but also earned a life ban. Cumbá and Kleinert became rightful medallists.
