Date:23/08/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/23/stories/2008082361482200.htm

Sport

Jamaican men make up for women’s goof up

Kamesh Srinivasan

Dibaba becomes the first Ethiopian woman to bag a double at the Olympics; Brazil’s Maggi leaps to gold

— Photo: AFP

JAM, JAM, JAMAICA! Usain Bolt celebrates in his now familiar style as Asafa Powell looks on after Jamaica took the honours in the men’s 4x100m relay.

BEIJING: Tirunesh Dibaba was slow by her standards, but quick enough to add the 5,000 metres gold to the 10,000 metres won on the opening day of the athletics events, while Elvan Abeylegesse of Turkey gave her company on the podium with a silver for the second time, in the Olympics at the Bird’s Nest here on Friday.

It was another memorable evening, as Asafa Powell ran a brilliant anchor to get the gold with a world record 37.10 seconds in the 4x100 metres relay. It was the third gold with a world record for Usain Bolt who ran the third leg to put Powell in the lead.

It was a consolation for Jamaica, as the women had messed up the baton transfer, at the half-way mark as Russia took the gold.

Tactical race

In a tactical race, the four-time world champion over the two distances, the 23-year-old Dibaba was happy to let the rest of the pack lead initially.

In fact, it was Gulnara Galkina-Samitova of Russia who led the race for the better part before Abeylegesse pulled hard with about two laps to go.

Dibaba was content to be behind before taking the lead on the ‘bell’ and staying put in front despite a spirited challenge from Abeylegesse and compatriot Meseret Defar, eventually kicking hard from 200 metres out and sprinting home.

Defar, the world and defending champion, could not even challenge for the silver as the Turkish runner proved too good on the straight.

She became the first Ethiopian woman to do an Olympic double and the first woman ever over the two distance events, and the 12th overall to do an Olympic double. Kelly Holmes had won the 800 and 1500 in Athens.

New-found supremacy

The relay gold confirmed Jamaica’s new-found supremacy, as the top sprinting nation of the world. The Jamaicans cut three tenths of a second from the previous record held by the U.S. for 15 years. The 100-metre silver medallist Richard Thompson anchored Trinidad and Tobago to the silver in 38.06 while Japan was fractionally behind for a surprise bronze at 38.15.

There were more records in the day. Steve Hooker of Australia won the pole vault gold with an Olympic record 5.96 metres. He cleared 5.90 on the third attempt to ensure the gold and got the third jump right for the Olympic record. Evgeny Lukyanenko of Russia took the silver with a 5.85, while Denys Yurchenko of Ukraine got the bronze with a 5.70, which he cleared on the first attempt and did not attempt anything thereafter.

Bryan bags gold

Former world champion Bryan Clay (U.S.) stayed on course in the lead from the first to the last event to clinch the decathlon gold. He had won the 100 metres and long jump and consolidated his position by winning the discus throw. He finished 23rd in the 1,500 metres, but had enough lead to ensure the gold comfortably.

In the women’s long jump, a final leap of 7.03 metres by defending champion Tatyana Lebedeva of Russia proved one centimetre short as Maurren Higa Maggi of Brazil clinched the gold with her first jump of 7.04 metres.

Maggi tried to get better after putting pressure on the field with the season’s best jump, but fouled the next three times and came up with a 6.73 on the fifth. She did not get her last jump right.

In contrast, the three-time world champion Lebedeva started with a 6.97, good enough to get her the silver, and fouled the next four, before coming up with that last hurrah. It was time for Maggi to celebrate and she ran the victory lap with a small Chinese flag along with the big Brazilian national flag.

Blessing Okagbare of Nigeria came up with a personal best of 6.91 on the first jump which was good enough for the bronze. The Russian women, Evgeniya Polyakova, Aleksandra Fedoriva, Yulia Gushchina and Yuliya Chermoshanskaya ran a season’s best of 42.31 seconds to win the 4x100 metres gold while the favourite Jamaica messed up its second exchange.

The 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser gave a bright start but Kerron Stewart put out the wrong hand while trying to receive the baton from Sherone Simpson and the exchange did not take place. The 200m champion Veronica Campbell-Brown, running the anchor, was thus left jobless.