Anna Pyatykh of Russia in the Triple Jump final (© Getty Images)
Nine gold medals were at stake on the second day of the Russian Indoor Championships in the Vladimir Kuts Sports Hall yesterday.
World Indoor 3000m record
As well as a phenomenal 8:27.86 World Indoor record in the women’s 3000m set by 28-year-old Liliya Shobukhova - click here for full story - there was plenty of other world class action as the hosts of the forthcoming 11th IAAF World Indoor Championships select their squad for the global meet which takes place from 10 – 12 March on the new track at the Sport Complex Olympiysky in the Russian capital.
Women’s Indoor 3000m Steeplechase was beyond all expectations
Although the women’s 3000m Steeplechase is an event which is very rarely held indoors and is not included in the programme of any major international indoor tournaments, yesterday’s result was still really remarkable. The 22-year-old Tatyana Petrova from the Republic of Chvashiya, which is well known for its long distance runners, clocked 9:07.00. The time is more then 14 seconds better that the previous World best for the event indoors, and second placed Natalya Cherepanova also ran fast – 9:27.82. The World junior mountain running champion Yuliya Mochalova took third – 9.28.63, the fastest ever junior performance.
Andrey Kozhevnikov, a relative unknown, who was at first denied a starting spot by the organisers because he had filled in his application form incorrectly (!!!!), took the men’s 3000m Steeplechase title in 8:22.39. Andrey Fornosov was the second (8:23.16), and the national outdoor record holder Pavel Potapovich finished third (8:28.94).
Tereshin leaps 2.36m to beat Rybakov
The men’s High Jump was won by 23-year-old Andrey Tereshin who in the process improved his indoor personal best by five centimetres to 2.36m. The competition was of the highest level, as for the first time in the history of the Russian indoor champions four athletes cleared 2.32m or better. European outdoor champion and World bronze medallist Yaroslav Rybakov, the favourite, jumped well but could not progress past 2.34m which was good enough for silver. That result was three centimetres below Rybakov’s world season lead which he established on 4 February in Arnstadt. The man he shares that leading mark with, compatriot Ivan Ukhov (second on count-back to Rybakov in Arnstadt) finished in joint third place yesterday with Andrei Silnov on 2.32m.
Borzakovskiy, always a national winner
There was no surprise in the men’s 1500m which was dominated by the Olympic 800m champion Yuriy Borzakovskiy who improved his indoor personal best by 2 seconds, clocking 3:41.53. Aleksandr Krivchonkov was the runner-up (3:43.04) and Roman Koval got the bronze (3:43.52). Borzakovskiy’s choice of distance for the World Indoors remains unclear.
However, the results of the two 60m Hurdles final certainly were surprising -
The women’s final was won by 24-year-old Olga Korsunova whose 8.09 second run was a personal best. She had showed her good form in the semi-final winning her second heat in 8.18. The final though was a close call as Tatyana Pavliy, 27, the former European junior 100mH champion who had narrowly won the first semi in 8.12, lost the gold to Korsunova by just one hundredth of the second. Aleksandra Antonova, who had clocked the same time as Pavliy when just being out-dipped by her in the semi, was third in 8.20.
In the men's 60m Hurdles, the two pre-event favourites Igor Peremota (semi-final 1 winner – 7.68) and Yevgeniy Pechonkin (semi-final winner - 7.63) had a disastrous final finishing dead last in 7th 7.86 and 8th 7.93 respectively. They were comprehensively beaten by the youngest participant in the final Yevgeniy Borisov, 21, whose 7.65 run equalled his personal best. Yakov Petrov, 22, was second: 7.79. Sergey Manakov, who is 12 years older then the champion, finished third: 7.80.
Lebedeva beaten by Pyatykh
The 2004 Olympic Long Jump gold medallist Tatyana Lebedeva was only second in women’s Triple Jump. The Golden League Jackpot winner of 2005, who is the reigning World Indoor champion at Long Jump and Triple Jump, matched her season's best of 14.61m. However, the 29-year-old’s performance was not enough to hold off Anna Pyatykh, the World Championship bronze medallist, who beat her by nine centimetres (14.69 - PB). This distance is the second furthest performance of the year this season behind Jamaica's World champion Trecia Smith’s 14.75m (4 Feb). The bronze was taken by Oksana Rogova – 14.38m.
The men’s Long Jump was dominated by a representative of the famous sport’s family, Gataullin. Ruslan won with a leap of 8.11m. Vladimir Malyavin and Dmitriy Sapinskiy both landed at 7.90m but Malyavin won the silver due to his better second effort.
Nickolai Dolgopolov and Rostislav Orlov for the IAAF
