Finland's Tero Pitkamaki scores a convincing win in Oslo Golden League (© Getty Images)
A Javelin Throw competition of the highest standard involving Norwegian hero Andreas Thorkildsen kept the home crowd enthralled as the ExxonMobil Bislett Games – TDK Golden League meeting - in Oslo’s new Bislett stadium was opened this evening in front of a sell-out crowd of 15,400.
In a quality night of athletics, there were also world season leading marks and Area records aplenty in the women’s 3000m and the men’s Mile.
In the hunt for the $1 million TDK Golden League Jackpot, two of the three contenders won through to fight on again in the last three meetings of the series in Zurich (19 Aug), Brussels (26 Aug) and Berlin (4 Sep).
A Royal occasion
Mr. Per Ditlev-Simonsen, the Mayor of Oslo opened the stadium and the ExxonMobil Bislett Games in the presence of amongst others, His Majesty King Harald of Norway, Her Majesty, Queen Sonja and IAAF President Lamine Diack –
“The opening of the new Bislett stadium is an important event for Oslo…and I am convinced that Bislett will create new enthusiasm for the athletics for generations to come….”, confirmed the Mayor.
Two continue in race for $1 million
An all-female Jackpot trio of Christine Arron (FRA - 100m), Lashinda Demus (USA - 400m H) and Tatyana Lebedeva (RUS - TJ) continued on the Jackpot trail this evening but unluckily “over excitement” led to the demise of Demus’ hopes.
Demus stumbles to defeat in final metres
The very first event of the main international programme brought disaster for one Jackpot hope in the last few strides of the women’s 400m Hurdles, as tiredness began to hit, Lashinda Demus’ legs buckled and she all but fell, allowing 2003 World silver medallist Sandra Glover, 14 years her senior at 36 years of age, to pass her for the win (53.93 seconds), and Poland’s Anna Jesien (54.43) also to nip her for second. Demus closed in 54.59, and later stated she had become “overexcited and just tripped over myself.”
Andrea Blackett (BAR) won the women’s ‘B’ 400m Hurdles in 55.71, the 7th overall fastest when the two races were combined.
Arron fights on
France’s Christine Arron made good her Jackpot chance. Though getting away slower than Olympic silver medallist Lauryn Williams, who was in the lane outside her (5), by the midway point of the women’s 100m Arron had levelled with the American. With 30m to go to the finish she had passed her completely to cross in 11.06, Williams was second (11.16) and former USA champion Latasha Colander, third (11.17).
“In the middle I stumbled a little bit, so I needed to fight to come back in the race…. With Helsinki coming, the time to think about the Jackpot will come after the World Championships, not now,” commented Arron.
Lebedeva, injured but motivated by the money
For the first time this summer double World Triple Jump champion Tatyana Lebedeva failed to break 15 metres. However, there was a slight injury concern at the heart of it, and her win here was still considerable with a fourth round leap of 14.89m. It would have been nice to have thought the rest of the field could have taken the opportunity to attack the vulnerable Russian but it was not to be. 2004 Olympic fourth placer Trecia Smith of Jamaica (Lebedeva came third in Athens but won the Long Jump title) who was her chief opponent could not go further than her last round 14.63. Sudan’s Yamile Aldama’s first effort of 14.27 was good enough for third.
“It is not my style to say this but I’m proud after today’s competition,” confirmed Lebedeva. “Mainly for my fighting spirit because in the warm-up I started to feel a spasm in my left Achilles…fortunately even with pain I was able to jump and win.”
“My only aim was to win and continue to race for the Jackpot, I was seeing the American girl lose her race (400mH Demus), so I knew there remained only two of us….My Helsinki participation will not be in question.”
One Nordic national hero versus another
Before tonight, Norway’s Olympic champion Andreas Thorkildsen had been beaten on four consecutive occasions this summer by Finn Tero Pitkämäki. A new generation has taken a firm hold on the men’s Javelin Throw. The Finn is only 22 years of age, and the Norwegian is 23.
With a third round release of 87.66m, a national record, it looked like Thorkildsen had the beating of the Finn who could only manage a best of 82.50m at that stage. But it was the lull before the storm for the Finn, the sixth longest thrower of all-time with his 91.53 earlier this summer, who again threw over, what in spear throwing terms, is the magical 90m line. 90.54m was Pitkämäki’s result.
The applause from the shocked audience was polite but Norway’s hero showed his own mark of respect by bowing to his opponent when the prizes were awarded later on, a gesture to which the Finn responded in kind. The technical events tend to provoke those kind of intense but friendly rivalries. The scene is now set for an epic encounter on the Finn’s home field in Helsinki next month at the 10th IAAF World Championships in Athletics, (6 – 14 August).
However, Russia’s World champion Sergey Makarov, who has also crossed over 90m this summer, had the last laugh of the competition nipping Thorkildsen for second with 87.76m with the final throw of the event. At 32 he will represent the ‘old guard’ in Helsinki. Tomorrow a press conference will see the announcement of whether the legendary thrower Jan Zelezny (CZE), 39, who was fifth here (82.70) will compete in Finland.
"A very hard competition," commented Pitkämäki. "All the throwers were here. I won and I am very happy. Over 90m is very good, with a wind. In better conditions it could have been real good."
World lead for impressive Jamal
Britain’s Jo Pavey was the one pushing the pace in the women’s 3000m with two laps to go, leading a trio of Africans – Maryam Yusuf Jamal, now of Bahrain but formerly an Ethiopian, Gete Wami (ETH) and Isabella Ochichi (KEN). The Briton had taken over from the Russian pace maker Olga Komyagina who led through the earlier rounds (1000m 2:48; 2000m 5:38), and Pavey’s decision to keep the race lively was eventually to be rewarded with third place and a European season’s lead of 8:33.79.
Just after the bell it was Jamal, one of only three women this year to have gone under 4mins for the 1500m, who used her speed to break from her three opponents. Ochichi, the Olympic 5000m silver medallist tried to respond, and also easily slipped past Pavey but she never made any impact on the Bahraini.
Jamal crossed the line for an emphatic victory, a world season’s lead of 8:28.87, which was also a Bahraini national record. Ochichi was second in her summer’s best (8:31.42), and after Pavey came home, Gete Wami crossed in 8:36.22. Notable in fifth was a personal best by Norway’s Susanne Wigene (8:41.34).
Fast men’s Mile
It was to be the Arabian Gulf’s night in the middle distances, as the final event of the evening, the ExxonMobil Dream Mile, also went to an Arab state, this time Qatar, with Najem Dahame Bashir, the former Kenyan David Nyaga, winning in a world leading time of 3:47.97, which was also an Area record.
In a fast race there was a season’s best for Bernard Lagat (second 3:48.38), PB’s for Daniel Kipchirchir Komen (third 3:48.49) and USA’s Alan Webb (fourth 3:48.92). Area records also fell to Craig Mottram of Australia with 3:48.98 (fifth) and Hudson de Souza of Brazil (eighth 3:51.05). Sixth place, and the last man under 3:50 this evening, went to Tarek Boukensa (3:49.95 PB). Britain’s Nick McCormick with 3:52.05 established a European 2005 lead.
Earlier in the evening both Norway’s Marius Bakken and USA’s Tim Broe had tried similar tactics in the men’s 5000m, to those which Pavey later employed in the women's 3000m, by doing their best to resist the inevitable African onslaught. They led with two laps to go but were eventually swallowed up, with John Kibowen the winner in 13:07.74, squeezing out Moses Mosop on the line (13:07.81). Commonwealth champion Sammy Kipketer was third (13:09.16).
Doucouré in control
Ladji Doucouré, who so recently broke through 13 seconds at the French championships (12.97) in the High Hurdles was near again with a stadium record of 13.00. It was a ‘gun to tape’ 110m Hurdles win in which the Frenchman looked totally in control. USA took up the next three positions, Joel Brown, second (13.22 PB), Terrence Trammell, third (13.27), and Allen Johnson, the joint-holder of the old stadium record of 13.14, in fourth (13.34).
Andrianova continues in role as World title favourite
Tatyana Andrianova proved again that she is currently the strongest and most intelligent racer in the women’s 800m. Already the world season leader (1:56.07) she came close to that mark with a well timed win in 1:56.91, after staying distant from the opening pace (55.43 – 400m). In a similar manner to her win on Tuesday in Stockholm, when she unleashed her final kick there was no one with the pick-up to answer.
Also impressive was Olga Kotlyarova who until this summer had been better known as a 400m runner, as an Olympic and World finalist, but who can now consider herself fully established as a racer at 800m thanks to her second place, 1:57.55 PB, which improved on her 1:57.98 from last season. In third was Svetlana Cherkasova (1:57.86), with USA’s Hazel Clark also under 1:58 with a PB of 1:57.99. Another Russian Svetlana Klyuka was also under 2 minutes (1:58.44). What a race!
Mulaudzi reverses Athens fortunes
The men’s 800m was not the speed display of the women’s two laps. As throughout the rest of this summer, the men are just not flying. In the end it came down to a fine sprint duel between the Olympic gold and silver medallists from last summer, respectively Yuriy Borzakovskiy and Mbulaena Mulaudzi. This time the victory was reversed, as the Russian was caught on the line by a lower dipping South African, but it was a very close to call – 1:44.15 to 1:44.18.
Emphasising the low state of the event this year, Borzakovskiy’s time in second was a European lead. Alfred Kirwa Yego was third in a personal best of 1:44.45. Canada’s Gary Reed in fourth improved the national record with 1:44.54.
Mulaudzi had also won in Helsinki last Monday (25) with what remains the current world’s fastest of 2005 – 1:44.08.
Alex Kipchirchir (KEN) was the victor in the men’s ‘B’ 800m (1:45.54).
The men’s 100m was won by Aziz Zakari of Ghana (10.02) with Marc Burns of Trinidad and Tobago in second (10.07), without any real opposition from the rest of the field. Both have been under 10 seconds earlier this summer. Tyson Gay (USA) with a season’s best was third – 10.16. Lost for speed was another recent sub-10 man, France’s Ronald Pognon (10.17).
Congo’s Gary Kikaya took the men’s 400m in 44.81 from Jamaican Brandon Simpson (44.86), with former World indoor champion Tyree Washington, third (45.30).
Holm on high but the event catches cold
Stefan Holm won a relatively low key men’s High Jump with 2.29m on count-back from Czech Jaroslav Baba. World champion Jacques Freitag (RSA) was tied for third with 2002 European gold medallist Yaroslav Rybakov (RUS) on 2.25m, another two men also made that height. This event which had warmed up the indoor season last winter with its excellence seems to have caught a summer cold. Hopefully, the 10th IAAF World Championships in Athletics, Helsinki, Finland (6 – 14 August) will provide the required tonic so all the top men can recapture their best form.
Chris Turner for the IAAF
