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| July 19, 2006 | Wednesday | Jumadi-ul-Sani 22, 1427 |
Bungei shines in Madrid with high-class win
MADRID, July 18: World indoor champion Wilfred Bungei got the better of his outdoor counterpart Rashid Ramzi and world leader Amine Laalou to win a high-class 800 metres at the IAAF Grand Prix on Monday.
The Kenyan beat his own meeting record and set a season's best mark of 1 minute 43.69 to hold off a strong challenge in the final metres from Ramzi of Bahrain who celebrated his 26th birthday with a personal best of 1:44.05.
World leader Laalou of Morocco, who clocked 1:43.25 in the Golden League event in Rome on Friday, had to be content with third spot.
Another Kenyan, Shadrack Korir, followed up his win in Lausanne on Tuesday with victory in the 1500, powering across the line in 3 minutes 33.91 ahead of Adil Kaouch of Morocco.
Daniel Kipchirchir Komen looked to be suffering the after-effects of his impressive 3:29.02 Rome time and only managed fourth spot behind fellow Kenyan Elkanah Angwenyi.
Another notable performance came from Tatyana Lebedeva in the women's Triple Jump.
The Russian who scooped last year's $1 million Golden League jackpot, claimed first place with a leap of 15.02 metres, while world champion Trecia Smith of Jamaica clinched second with her final jump of 14.84, her best mark of the season.
Lebedeva, the world leader with a mark of 15.23 this season, said she was hoping to break Inessa Kravets's world record of 15.50 at the European championships in Gothenburg next month.
“It is a historic place for triple jumping and I'm going to be giving it everything on each jump to try and break the record,” she said.
There were some quality performances from a trio of Cuban athletes.
Dayron Robles cruised to victory in the men's 110 hurdles in 13.08 seconds, marginally slower than his time in finishing fourth to Xiang Liu in Tuesday's world record race in Lausanne.
“I think Liu's record (12.88) is beatable,” said Robles.
“I'm young, getting better and think I can beat it next year.”
World champion Zulia Calatayud of Cuba beat three-time American champion Hazel Clark to win the women's 800 in 2 minutes 01.03 and world and Olympic silver medallist Yipsi Moreno won the women's hammer with a throw of 73.77 metres.
In the men's shot put, the 2004 world indoor gold medallist Christian Cantwell overhauled reigning world indoor champion Reese Hoffa with a final round effort of 21.79 metres.
Allyson Felix of the United States, the youngest gold medallist at last year's world championships in Helsinki aged just 19, got her season back on track with victory in the women's 200 metres in 22.73.
Leading results:
MEN’S:
400 metres: 1. Michael Blackwood (Jamaica) 44.84 seconds; 2. Brandon Simpson (Bahrain) 45.01; 3. Gary Kikaya (Democratic Republic of the Congo) 45.10.
800 metres: 1. Wilfred Bungei (Kenya) one minute 43.69 seconds; 2. Rashid Ramzi (Bahrain) 1:44.05; 3. Amine Laalou (Morocco) 1:44.25.
1500 metres: 1. Shadrack Korir (Kenya) three minutes 33.91 seconds; 2. Adil Kaouch (Morocco) 3:34.13; 3. Elkanah Angwenyi (Kenya) 3:34.40.
110-metre hurdles: 1. Dayron Robles (Cuba) 13.08 seconds; 2. Aries Merritt (US) 13.19; 3. Jackson Quinonez (Spain) 13.46.
400-metre hurdles: 1. Bayano Kamani (Panama) 49.38 seconds; 2. LaBronze Garrett (US) 49.50; 3. Jose Maria Romera (Spain) 49.80.
Long jump: 1. James Beckford (Jamaica) 8.15 metres; 2. Issam Nima (Algeria) 8.09; 3. Ivan Pedroso (Cuba) 8.07.
Shot put: 1. Christian Cantwell (US) 21.79 metres; 2. Reese Hoffa (US) 21.45; 3. Daniel Taylor (US) 21.26.
Discus throw: 1. Virgilijus Alekna (Lithuania) 68.05 metres; 2. Gerd Kanter (Estonia) 66.34; 3. Mario Pestano (Spain) 65.84.
WOMEN’S:
200 metres: 1. Allyson Felix (US) 22.73 seconds; 2. Cydonie Mothersill (Cayman Islands) 22.81; 3. Muna Lee (US) 23.16.
800 metres: 1. Zulia Calatayud (Cuba) two minutes 01.03 seconds; 2. Hazel Clark (US) 2:01.78; 3. Hasna Benhassi (Morocco) 2:02.02.
1500 metres: 1. Sarah Jamieson (Australia) four minutes 05.23 seconds; 2. Irina Lishchynska (Ukraine) 4:05.98; 3. Nouria Merah-Benida (Algeria) 4:06.15.
400-metre hurdles: 1. Sandra Glover (US) 54.20; 2. Tiffany Ross-Williams (US) 54.39; 3. Sheena Johnson (US) 54.52.
High jump: 1. Ruth Beitia (Spain) 1.95 metres; 2. Tatyana Efimenko (Kyrgyzstan) 1.93; 3. Marta Mendia (Spain) 1.89.
Pole vault: 1. Kym Howe (Australia) 4.51 metres; 2. Tatiana Grigorieva (Australia) 4.51; 3. Pavla Hamackova (Czech Republic) 4.41, 3. Joanna Piwowarska (Poland) 4.41.
Triple jump: 1. Tatyana Lebedeva (Russia) 15.02 metres; 2. Trecia Smith (Jamaica) 14.84; 3. Yamile Aldama (Sudan) 14.70.
Hammer throw: 1. Yipsi Moreno (Cuba) 73.77 metres; 2. Kamila Skolimowska (Poland) 73.44; 3. Wenxiu Zhang (China) 71.89.—Reuters
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