Istanbul 2012 Logo (© IAAF)
With only 2 races on the programme for the women’s 60m Hurdles semi-finals, the qualification was set to be a straight affair with the top 4 from each heat advancing to tonight’s final.
Daegu World champion Sally Pearson was drawn in heat 1 and although she had a poor start out of the blocks, the Australian record holder still cruised to finish in first with 7.93, 8 hundredths of a second slower than the Oceania record she set yesterday.
The other qualifiers from heat one include European Indoor champion Eline Berings whose season’s best 8.03 was good enough for second today with Nikkita Holder and Seun Adigun both clocking 8.07 for third and fourth respectively.
The second race was a much closer one which went to Belarus’ Alina Talay in 7.99 from Great Britain’s Tiffany Porter (8.03). Sonata Tamosaityte improved her personal best to a national record 8.03 to advance to the final alongside Austria’s Beate Schrott at 8.11.
Of the nations represented in tonight’s final, only Canada has already won a 60m Hurdles World Indoor gold courtesy of Perdita Felicien in 2003; so there are 7 chances out of 8 that the title will go to a new country!
Laura Arcoleo for the IAAF
