Pognon defeats Lewis-Francis: Ht2 men's 60m semi-final - Madrid (© Getty Images)
Madrid, Spain There were no medals at stake for the men in the evening session of the first of three days of competition at the 28th European Indoor Championships, but that did stop us witnessing some intense sprinting and middle distance running performances.
Tonight's semi-final stage of the 60m dash has set-up a ‘head to head’ duel for tomorrow's final between the current and the former European 60m record holders, Ronald Pognon of France and Britain’s Jason Gardener, the World and European (double) champion.
Both men had qualified well from this morning's first round - Click here for AM session report - and now in the semi-final stage they matched each other for time clocking 6.58. The perfect two-way script was only 'spoilt' by an inspired run from Russia’s three-time national champion Andrey Yepishin who also registered 6.58 to edge Gardener in the first heat and establish a new personal best. He had equalled his previous PB of 6.63 in the first round.
Following the Russian and the Briton home in semi-final heat one and into the final were Poland’s Lukasz Chyla (6.62) and Italy’s Simone Collio (6.63).
Despite his defeat Gardener looked much more fluent in this his second race of the day, and this visual verdict was confirmed verbally by the athlete himself.
“I’m feeling good, and now I am ready for the final. I pulled back at the finish,” confirmed Gardener with a renewed confidence.
Despite a false start holding up proceedings at first, when the race did get away properly, fluency was also at the centre of Pognon’s game. The Frenchman looked every step a champion in waiting. Confident, assured and in every respect the master of Britain’s Mark Lewis-Francis, who was the silver medallist behind Gardener in 2002. The British second-string clocked 6.60, with Ukraine’s Kostyantyn Vasyukov the next best (6.68) of the second heat, and Germany’s Tim Goebel occupying the last qualification spot for the final (6.69m).
Yet Pognon was not content. "Due to the false start I wasn’t fast enough in the first thirty metres. I will have to start much better than today’s heat and semi if I want to achieve a great result.”
800m - Two Spaniards and Bogdanov through by right
Nothing more emphasises the pitiful state of 800m running this winter than the decision to cancel the semi-final stage of this discipline, and let the small group of 18 entrants fight it out for a direct route to the final. Only the winner of each heat was guaranteed (with the next three fastest making up a six man final). These three 'as by right' spots were taken with some aplomb by race victors, Spain’s Antonio Reina (Ht1 – 1:47.70) and Juan De Dios Jurado (Ht2 – 1:48.29) and Russia’s Dmitriy Bogdanov (Ht3 – 1:48.02).
Reina’s win was a very close fought contest with Britain’s James McIlroy, who would not let the Spaniard get in front until Reina’s challenge became unstoppable coming off the final bend. The Briton and France’s Antoine Martiak, 1:47.97 and 1:48.32 respectively, qualified as well from this race.
The Netherlands’ Arnoud Okken took the pace up in the second 800m heat, and he was only seconded as the bell sounded by Jurado and Sweden’s Mattias Claesson. Yet while the Spaniard took the win, Okken took revenge on the Swede and grasped second (1:48.54) on the line. Claesson’s time of 1:48.62 was too slow for the final.
In his heat, Bogdanov played the perfect waiting game in the style of his absent training partner Yuriy Borzakovskiy, though he did not race right at the back. Rather Bogdanov chose to follow Spaniard Eugenio Barrios’s initial pace and then attacked at the bell, 200m from home, powering away to a confident win.
Heshko on song as Estevez completes successful day
The outstanding favourite for the 1500m is Ukraine’s Ivan Hesko whose 3:33.99 national record in Karlsruhe this winter sets him in another league to his continental opposition. But this is a major championship, so could the World outdoor bronze and indoor silver medallist manage to transform that form into gold?
Heat one of two (first three in each heat plus three best performers to the final) confirmed Heshko’s presently peerless status. Belgium’s Joeri Jansen took the pace out from the gun with Heshko neatly tucked in behind. It was only with 800m to go that Spain’s Juan Carlos Higuero mounted a challenge but three laps later the Spaniard was found wanting when Heshko kicked at the bell. Suddenly the race was a foregone conclusion.
A 3:42.70 win for the Ukrainian was followed home by Higuero’s 3:42.90, with Germany’s Wolfram Müller (3:43.16) taking third, and ultimately Jansen occupying one of the next best performers spots in fourth (3:43.92).
While the second 1500m heat was won by Spain’s Arturo Casado in 3:43.37, with Britain’s James Thie, second (3:43.67), the race was essentially all about Spain’s Reyes Estevez’s bid to qualify for a second final in one day (earlier he had taken a place in the 3000m final which will be run tomorrow - click here for today's AM competition session report for details)
Estevez sensibly conserved his energy throughout the race remaining at the back of the 14 man field until just before the bell, when he powered wide around the outside of his opponents to secure third place and a berth in Sunday’s 1500m final (3:43.67). Behind Estevez came France’s Sebastian Cosson (3:43.86) and Italy’s Christian Obrist (3:44.21), who qualified as well.
Canal upstaged
There was more Spanish joy in the 400m as the world leader David Canal duly won his heat (ht.2 – 46.72) in dominant manner. Yolodymyr Demchenko of Ukraine was second (46.87 PB).
Yet Ireland’s David Gillick, the second fastest European of 2005 competing at these championships (Leslie Djhone 46.33 is injured), had already thrown down the gauntlet for tomorrow evening’s final with a 46.17 personal best to win the previous heat. Only Canal has run faster this winter in Europe (45.93). Britain’s Dale Garland also with a PB was second (46.89).
Russia’s Dmitriy Forshev was the third and final heat winner (46.60) but it was a victory only secured after a hard fought battle through the bell with Germany’s Sebastian Gatzka (46.74), who nearly caught the Russian by the line.
Three Germans and two Russians through to the vault final
None of the 26 entrants for today’s Pole Vault qualification managed the automatic mark of 5.75m and so eight men progressed to tomorrow’s final on 5.70. Russia’s Artem Kuptsov was the joint overall leader thanks to his first time clearance at that height, which was a PB. His cleaner jumping card gave him the edge on everyone except World Indoor champion and compatriot Igor Pavlov with whom he tied for top spot. Eighth and final qualifier was Fabian Schulze whose height was also a PB. Schulze completed a full compliment of Germans in the final headed by reigning champion Tim Lobinger.
Chris Turner for the IAAF
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