(Gurdian) Mo Farah insisted he had recovered well from the 10,000 metres final as he got his bid for 5,000m gold off to a successful start in Daegu on Thursday morning. The 28-year-old finished second, 0.07 seconds behind Imane Merga in 13 minutes 38.03 seconds, easing down and sharing a joke with the Ethiopian as they crossed the line. Farah hit the front with a lap to go, but was made to work hard down the home straight.
Defending 800m bronze medallist Jenny Meadows also made serene progress, but there was disappointment for Greg Rutherford in the long jump after a hamstring injury ended his hopes of securing a place in the final.
Farah had to settle for silver behind Ibrahim Jeilan in the 10,000m final as the unfancied Ethiopian overhauled him in the last 20 metres. The double European champion only confirmed on Wednesday that he would race the 5,000m after giving his body time to recover from Sunday's gruelling race. "It was good," he said. "I just had to come out here and do the heat and now I'm looking forward to the final. My legs are all right. I've had great medical support and great team spirit and I'm quite looking forward to the final. I've got to go and rest now, get an ice bath and do every little bit I can to recover." American Bernard Lagat won the first heat with Kenenisa Bekele, who dropped out of the 10,000m, not starting.
Meadows cruised into the semi-finals of the 800m by winning her heat in 2mins 01.11secs. "It felt really easy and economical," she said. "Tomorrow night is going to be really difficult to qualify for the final. There are more than eight great girls in the world this year so the semi will be more nerve-wracking than the final."
Team-mates Marilyn Okoro and Emma Jackson also progressed, along with Caster Semenya, the defending champion whose dominant victory two years ago was overshadowed by a gender row. The South African, who finished second behind world No1 Mariya Savinova, is not in the sort of form this season which earned her gold in Berlin.
Jackson, who finished fifth behind Semenya, said: "If anything she [Semenya] was just in my way, but she is so big I could not get around her. I did not think she looked in great shape."
Rutherford suffered a hamstring injury on his second round in the long jump. He stayed in the pit for several moments after jumping before getting up clutching his right hamstring. The 24-year-old did not jump again and his first-round effort of 8.00m was not effort. Chris Tomlinson needed a third-round effort of 8.02m to squeeze into the final on countback.
"I didn't perform great, my knee was hurting, but I made it into the final," Tomlinson said. "I've jumped over eight metres into a head wind and we all start on zero tomorrow. It's pretty painful but I will be jumping tomorrow."
Goldie Sayers qualified for the javelin final with a throw of 62.19m. Asked about her medal prospects, Sayers, who finished fourth at the 2008 Olympics, said: "If I am at 100 per cent and one of the top three are at 90 per cent I have a chance."
Oscar Pistorius ran an excellent first leg to help South Africa to a national record in the 4x400m relay. The double amputee athlete was told by the IAAF he had to run the first leg so his carbon fibre blades were not a danger to other athletes.
The British team needed to rely on a fastest-loser spot to progress to the final after coming fourth in their heat, one place behind the South Africans. Martyn Rooney, who ran the anchor leg, said: "It was a very, very fast heat and we finished fourth against three of the best teams in the world."
Anyika Onuora ran a personal best 22.93secs to qualify for the semi-finals of the 200m
No comments:
Post a Comment