Olga Kotlyarova taking the 2006 European title (© Getty Images)
In spite of heavy rains, at times virtually unbearable for the athletes as well as for the fans, European champion Tatyana Kotlyarova clocked a world leading 1:58.14 to highlight the fourth day (3) of the Russian national championships.
Five under two minutes
It was the fist victory of the season for Kotlyarova, whose performance eclipsed the 1:58.21 by Maria Mutola last weekend in Zaragoza. Four other runners clocked excellent results on this rainy day. Svetlana Cherkasova was the runner-up in 1:58.37, with Svetlana Klyuka third (1:58.63), season's bests for both. Worthy of mention are the next two finishers: 1500m specialist Yelena Soboleva who decided to contest the shorter distance, was fourth (1:59.63) and Tatyana Palienko fifth in 1:59.81. The Council of Coaches will certainly experience some difficulties selecting the participants for the World championships team in this particular distance which is the black caviar for Russian female runners.
Second title Volkova
By any measure, It was a most successful championship for Yekaterina Volkova. After winning the women’s 3000m Steeplechase she took a second and very well deserved gold at 5000m. Taking the lead from the start, she built a commanding lead by the three kilometre point en route to her 15:00.02 win.
Marya Konovalova finished well to take second in 15:02.96, capping a comeback after illness and injury sidelined her for two seasons. Finishing third was Yelena Sidorchenkova (15:12.48), matching her third place finish from the steeplechase.
Brother/sister duo take Discus Throw titles
Bogdan Pischalnikov was the favourite in the men’s Discus Throw and won the event easily with a 64.95 effort, well ahead of Dmitry Shevchenko (60.98). The 39-year-old veteran gave up athletics two years ago but has made a comeback. Stanislav Alekseev was third (60.01).
Darya Pischalnikova was also the favourite, and proved that her gold medal from last year's European Championships was hardly a fluke. She reached 63.90, well ahead of Oksana Esipchuk (60.11) and Olga Olshevskaya (54.40).
Chicherova beats the rain, clears 2.01
In the absence of Olympic champion Yelena Slesarenko, Anna Chicherova won the women’s High Jump with a 2.01 leap, a season's best for the 25-year-old. Despite the rain, she had one solid attempt at a would-be career best of 2.05. Chicherova said she was welling good and confident in her build-up to Osaka, and that she is ready for higher heights.
Yekaterina Savchenko was second (1.98) and one of the Kuntzevitch sisters, Yekaterina, took third (1.89).
Elsewhere...
After a pedestrian 58.5 opening lap 38-year-old Vyacheslav Shabunin won the 1500m in 3:40.89, ahead of Aleksandr Krivoruchenkov was the runner-up (3:42.01) and Vladimir Ezhov (3:43.95). Following the award ceremony athletics statisticians couldn't agree if this was Shabunin's 19th or 20th national title.
Anna Pyatykh won the women's Triple Jump with a 14.60 leap, while training partners Danilo Burkenya and Aleksandr Petrenko, both coached by Evgeniy Ter-Ovanesov battled it out in the men's event. Burkenya took the title with a 17.06 best to Petrenko's 19.63.
In the 4x100m Relays, the team from Krasnodar won the men's race in 40.14 while a national team clocked 39.53, and a quartet from Vologodskiy took the women's race in 45.29. In the 4x400, St. Petersburg (3:06.56) took the men's crown and a team representing Moscow (3:28.00) won the women's.
Nickolai Dolgopolov and Rostislav Orlov for the IAAF
