Olympic finalist Phillips Idowu leaps to 17.30m in Sheffield (© Getty Images)
Sheffield, EnglandOlympic finallist Phillips Idowu leapt into contention for the European Indoor Triple Jump title in Madrid next month when he posted the longest mark in the world this year to win on the second day of the Norwich Union European Trials and AAA championships (12-13 February).
Idowu’s effort was the pick of a quality championships that saw British, Welsh, Scottish and Irish records fall, and a rash of personal bests from mutli-eventer Kelly Sotherton. World Indoor champion Jason Gardener had less happy weekend, however, despite winning a record fifth AAA championship title. The 29 year-old not only lost his European 60m record to France’s Ronald Pognon but then needed a desperate lunge to win a title he’d been expected to take with ease.
Idowu blasts it out in round six
Jumping in his first competition since the Olympic final Athens, Idowu left it late before coming up with his world leading leap of 17.30m in round six, knocking Dmitriy Valyukevich’s 17.11 from the top of the world leaders’ board. With Olympic champion and world indoor record holder Christian Olsson injured, Idowu could now be favourite for the European title.
“It only takes one jump to win a competition,” said Idowu. “I had a feeling I had a good jump in me today. To get the best this year was a bonus.”
In fact, only two British triple jumpers in history have ever leapt further indoors – World outdoor record holder Jonathan Edwards and 1984 Olympic bronze medallist Keith Connor. Idowu’s mark also broke the championships record that had been set only minutes earlier when Nathan Douglas jumped 16.76m in the first round. Idowu came close in the fourth, with 16.74m, before finally finding his rhythm and putting the record out of sight.
“With someone like Phillips around it is never ‘in the bag’,” said Douglas.
Gardener’s bullet lacks usual impact
Gardener geared up for his battle with Maurice Greene, Kim Colllins and Mark Lewis-Francis at the Norwich Union Grand Prix in Birmngham next Friday by winning the men’s 60m. But victory didn’t come as easily as most observers expected. After Lewis-Francis pulled out last week to protect his vulnerable hamstring, the world champion appeared to be left with little serious opposition, and he duly posted the fastest times in the heats and the semi-finals – 6.66 and 6.61 respectively.
But in the final he was lacking his usual bullet-like start and had to fight hard to win in 6.60, only one hundredth ahead of Mark Findlay and two in front of Darren Chin.
“I had a bit of a stumble out of the blocks, which nearly proved very costly,” said Gardener. “But I’ve learned from experience and was able to come through.”
It wasn’t the marker he would like to have laid down ahead of Friday’s showdown. Having started the season with his eyes on the world record, Gardener now looks like he’ll have his hands full retaining his European Indoor crown – Pognon’s 6.45 in Karlsruhe has only ever been bettered by just four men, all of them World Indoor champions. Gardener had heard the news of Pognon’s performance while preparing for his semi-final.
“I just knew where it was going to be because that is the fastest track in the world,” he said. “If these championships had not been today then that’s where I’d be. I still feel there’s more life in me and at the right moment and time I feel I can run faster than my current personal best.”
British Hurdles record
Another Briton who’ll be in the hunt for Madrid medals is Sarah Claxton. The 25 year-old broke her own British record in the women’s 60m hurdles, dipping ahead of Diane Allahgreen to clock 7.96, two hundredths quicker than the mark she ran in Fana a week ago. She earned herself a place in the world’s top three and $5,000 in prize money to boot.
Busy weekend for Sotherton
Back in fourth place in that final was Olympic heptathlon bronze medallist Kelly Sotherton who completed a busy weekend with her fourth personal best and her second over the hurdles. Sotherton clocked 8.40 in the final after running 8.47 in the heats earlier in the day. Between the two rounds she took her indoor high jump pb to 1.80 and, having set a new long jump PB on Saturday, she looks in form to take on Carolina Kluft in Madrid next month.
“I didn’t expect to get the High Jump but it’s been a really good weekend,” she said. “I could not have asked for anymore. I am particularly pleased because the speed is getting better over the hurdles.”
The 28 year-old’s performances were even more impressive considering this was her first competition since losing her coach from last year, Charles van Commenee. Now partly self-directed, the Birmingham-based Sotherton also had to overcome what she described as a “slight muscle tear in my quad” but still improved her best indoor performances in every event she entered bar the shot put, and even there her 13.77m effort was just nine centimetres short of the pb she set a week ago.
“I have the right people around me now and a good bunch of training partners,” said a satisfied Sotherton. “My confidence is good going into the Europeans, all I’ve got to do now is get a good 800m.”
Perhaps her best performance came in the long jump where she just lost out to British number one Jade Johnson in the closing stages of a tight duel. Both athletes achieved personal bests and European championship qualifying marks, but it was Sotherton who looked the more settled jumper.
While Johnson fouled her first two attempts and could register only two legal jumps in all, Sotherton hit the board perfectly on her first, cutting the sand at 6.43m, three centimetres beyond the UK Athletics standard for Madrid. The heptathlete had two other efforts beyond six metres – 6.24 in the fourth round and 6.32 in the sixth– but Johnson got it right at the end, leaping 6.50 in the last round.
“I’m just having a bit of a nightmare,” said Johnson afterwards, admitting that the back injury she sustained in Glasgow two weeks ago may keep her out of the European indoors. “My timing is out but my training is going well,” she said. “I’m going to see how I do next week and then see if I’m going to do the Europeans. If I’m not in shape I’m not going to go. I don’t want to be there and just jump rubbish.”
Both athletes will face a considerable challenge from Kluft in Birmingham on Friday; Sotherton will race her in the hurdles too.
Pavey runs 8:50 3000m
Saturday (12 Feb) also saw another Olympic finallist Jo Pavey in winning form. After last week becoming the fastest European this year over 3,000m, the 31 year-old ran solo to a championship record 8:50.28. Helen Clitheroe chased her home but just missed out on the Madrid qualifying time with 9:05.73.
Last year Pavey broke the British record in Birmingham (8:34.55) and will have that mark in range again when she faces world record holder Berhane Adere there on Friday. “I never felt as good today as I did in Stuttgart,” said Pavey. “As I have to race again on Friday I could not ease down for today. My main aim is to run at the Europeans, but first I have Friday’s race in Birmingham in front of a great crowd.”
Scottish Indoor Hurdles record of 7.59
A new name emerged in the men’s 60m Hurdles as 22 year-old Allan Scott twice lowered the Scottish indoor record, clocking 7.59 in the semi-final before slicing another hundredth from that time in winning the final 90 minutes later. The only man to have run faster at these championships was world record holder Colin Jackson, whose championship record 7.43 was set back in 1990.
“To have run under 7.60 twice in one day is a bit special,” said Scott. “But the most important thing about the weekend was qualifying for Madrid. I’ve got to look at making the final and if I get there, who knows?”
Irish record in the Triple
Other notable performances included an Irish record in the women’s Triple Jump for Taniesha Scanlon whose 13.28 was good enough to win the title, and an encouraging return for former Olympic 400m finallist Donna Fraser, who ran 23.68 in the 200m semi-finals before being pipped on the line by Scotland’s Susan Deacon (23.67 to 23.72) in the final.
The men’s 200m went to Ireland’s Paul Hession who edged out Chris Lambert by two hundredths, setting a personal best 21.01. Lambert had qualified for the Europeans in the heats, setting his personal best 20.94.
McIlroy took the men’s 800m title in 1:47.94 while the new Welsh hope Jimmy Watkins lowered his pb for the second time in recent weeks, finishing second in 1:48.32, a Welsh record.
Two men qualified for Madrid from the men’s Long Jump. Nathan Morgan leapt to a personal best 7.96m in the first round before retiring with a bruised heel, then national record holder Chris Tomlinson twice jumped 7.91m.
Janine Whitlock returned from a recent spell in hospital with food poisoning to win the women’s Pole Vault and smash her own championship record. Whitlock, who’s already vaulted 4.31 this year, cleared 4.25, five centimetres above the height she set in 2000. She’ll face multi-World record breaker Yelena Isinbayeva in Birmingham.
In the absence of Kelly Holmes, former 400m runner Jenny Meadows front ran to victory in the women’s 800m. And the long time hope of British men’s distance running Mo Farah won the men’s 3000m in a Madrid qualifying time of 7:58.85. It was the first time the 21 year-old has dipped under eight minutes and Farah now has to decide whether to test his track form at the European championships.
Matthew Brown for the IAAF
