BIRMINGHAM, Feb 19: Former Olympic champion and world 100m record holder Maurice Greene suffered a disappointing start to his 2005 indoor season when he was beaten into third place in the 60 metres at the Birmingham indoor meeting on Friday.
Greene finished behind American compatriot Leonard Scott who won in 6.49secs and world 100 champion Kim Collins of St Kitts and Nevis despite being awarded the same time of 6.54 as the second placed man.
The eagerly anticipated race was ruined as a spectacle however with the dis-qualifications of Portugal's Francis Obikwelu, the Olympic 100m silver medallist, as well as Trinidad's Mark Findlay and Britain's Mark Lewis-Francis.
Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele, the Olympic 10,000m champion, could only finish second in the 2 miles behind compatriot Markos Geneti who won in 8min 14.28sec. Bekele, still recovering from the death of his fiancee Alem Techale on a training run last month, was passed in the last few metres by Geneti.
Russia's Olympic women's pole vault gold medallist Yelena Isinbayeva leapt to a season's best height with 4.88m to win her event. Isinbayeva set the world record of 4.92m in Brussels last year.
Kelly Holmes was another Olympic winner on top form Friday when the 800m and 1500 gold medallist in Athens took the 1000 metres in a time of 2:35.39. Sweden's Carolina Kluft, the Athens gold medallist in the heptathlon, won the long jump with a leap of 6.66m but was only eighth in the 60m hurdles. Jamaica's Veronica Campbell clocked a season's best in the 200m in a time of 22.38.
RESULTS
MEN
60 METRES: 1. Leonard Scott (U.S) 6.49 seconds 2. Kim Collins (St Kitts and Nevis) 6.54 3. Maurice Greene (U.S.) 6.54.
200 METRES: 1. Chris Lambert (Britain) 20.88 2. Tim Abeyie (Britain) 20.98 3. Mark Brown (Britain) 21.17.
400 METRES: 1. Davian Clarke (Jamaica) 45.90 2. Jerry Harris (U.S.) 46.11 3. James Davis (U.S.) 46.56.
1500 METRES: 1. Bernard Lagat (Kenya) 3:35.27 2. Ivan Heshko (Ukraine) 3:38.11 3. Abdelati Iguider (Morocco) 3:38.66.
TWO MILES: 1. Markos Geneti (Ethiopia) 8:14.28 2. Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia) 8:15.49 3. Paul Bitok (Kenya) 8:24.22.
LONG JUMP: 1. Christopher Tomlinson (Britain) 7.95 metres 2. Savante String fellow (U.S.) 7.83 3. Jadel Gregorio (Brazil) 7.82.
WOMEN
60 METRES: 1. Tayna Lawrence (Jamaica) 7.13 seconds 2. Kim Gevaert (Belgium) 7.17 3. Muna Lee (U.S.) 7.17.
60 METRES HURDLES: 1. Sarah Claxton (Britain) 7.98 2. Melissa Morrison (U.S.) 7.99 3. Lolo JONES (U.S.) 8.00.
200 METRES: 1. Veronica Campbell (Jamaica) 22.38 2. Natalya Antyukh (Russia) 23.85 3. Alenka Bikar (Slovenia) 23.98.
1000 METRES: 1. Kelly Holmes (Britain) 2:35.39 2. Agnes Samaria (Namibia) 2:36.99 3. Mina Ait Hammou (Morocco) 2:39.61.
3000 METRES: 1. Meseret Defar (Ethiopia) 8:33.05 2. Joanne Pavey (Britain) 8:41.43 3. Susanne Pumper (Austria) 8:52.65.
POLE VAULT: 1. Yelena Isinbayeva (Russia) 4.88 metres (world record) 2. Svetlana Feofanova (Russia) 4.70 3. Anna Rogowska (Poland) 4.45.
LONG JUMP: 1. Carolina Kluft (Sweden) 6.66 metres 2. Jade Johnson (Britain) 6.52 3. Tunde Vaszi (Hungary) 6.43. -Reuters
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