BERLIN, Sept 3: Jamaican sprinter Asafa Powell and American 400 metres runners Jeremy Wariner and Sanya Richards completed perfect Golden League seasons on Sunday to scoop $250,000 shares in the double jackpot.

Powell ran 9.86 seconds in cold, damp conditions in the 100 at the International Stadionfest (ISTAF) meeting, well ahead of American Tyson Gay in second and enough to give the world record holder a sixth win out of six in the series.

Wariner, the 400 world and Olympic champion, had little trouble matching that record in front of a 48,000 crowd at the Olympiastadion, scene of soccer's World Cup final in July.

The American ran his usual untroubled race on the blue track, coming home in 44.26 seconds to hold off a late surge from Gary Kikaya.

Richards became the third and final athlete with a faultless record when she won the women's 400 metres in 49.81 seconds, putting her just over a second ahead of fellow American Dee Dee Trotter.

“It may have looked easy but it was tough,” said Richards.

“I can now buy a present for my parents.”

That trio will share a $500,000 purse, working out at $166,666 apiece, for athletes winning all six of their races in the Golden League meetings provided they appear at the World Athletics Final in Stuttgart next weekend.

They will add that to one-sixth shares in a separate $500,000 jackpot ($83,333 each) for athletes winning their events in at least five of the six meetings.

Tirunesh Dibaba of Ethiopia, who was also in line for the double jackpot going into the Berlin meet, was edged out by world record holder and compatriot Meseret Defar in a thrilling finish to the women's 5,000m.

Dibaba held a slight lead going down the final straight but a devastating late kick form Defar saw her take the lead inside the final 10 metres. Dibaba therefore had to settle for the $83,333 on offer for five wins out of six.

Two other athletes clinched shares of that part of the pot when they recorded their fifth victories on Sunday.

Irving Saladino of Panama claimed his prize in the long jump with a first round leap of 8.35m.

Kenenisa Bekele of Ethiopia ran a solo race for his fifth win in the 5,000 metres. His time of 12:57.74 took him to victory by over seven seconds from his brother Tariku Bekele.

The only disappointment was the lack of a world record, with conditions proving particularly unhelpful to the sprinters.

“I'm sorry for the people in Berlin that I couldn't get the record,” said Powell, who had to be content with a meeting record, an 11th legal sub-10 run of the season and a 22nd successive win. “The crowd were great.”

Away from the jackpot excitement, Australia's Steve Hooker won the men's pole vault by clearing a personal best 5.96 metres but he was still unhappy.

“After I'd cleared 5.91 I asked them to put up 6.01 but there must have been a language barrier because they put up 5.96,” an upset Hooker said.“When I cleared it, for five minutes I thought I'd gone over six metres. At international competitions they should have people and judges who understand English.”

Leading results:

MEN’S:

100 metres: 1. Asafa Powell (Jamaica) 9.86 seconds; 2. Tyson Gay (US) 9.96; 3. Leonard Scott (US) 10.07.

400 metres: 1. Jeremy Wariner (US) 44.26 seconds; 2. Gary Kikaya (Democratic Republic of the Congo) 44.43; 3. LaShawn Merritt (US) 44.78.

800 metres: 1. Mbulaeni Mulaudzi (South Africa) one minute 44.37 seconds; 2. William Yiampoy (Kenya) 1:44.91; 3. Bram Som (Netherlands) 1:45.10.

1500 metres: 1. Augustine Choge (Kenya) three minutes 32.48 seconds; 2. Saif Saaeed Shaheen (Qatar) 3:33.51; 3. Elkanah Angwenyi (Kenya) 3:34.23.

3000 metres: 1. Jesus Espana (Spain) seven minutes 56.36 seconds; 2. Adrian Blincoe (New Zealand) 7:56.87; 3. Vyacheslav Shabunin (Russia) 7:57.35.

5000 metres: 1. Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia) 12 minutes 57.74 seconds; 2. Tariku Bekele (Ethiopia) 13:04.83; 3. Abreham Feleke (Ethiopia) 13:05.40.

110-metre hurdles: 1. David Oliver (US) 13.25 seconds; 2. Allen Johnson (US) 13.29; 3. Aries Merritt (US) 13.32.

Long jump: 1. Irving Saladino (Panama) 8.35 metres; 2. Louis Tsatoumas (Greece) 8.30; 3. Gable Garenamotse (Botswana) 8.17.

Pole vault: 1. Steven Hooker (Australia) 5.96 metres; 2. Paul Burgess (Australia) 5.91; 3. Danny Ecker (Germany) 5.81.

Shot put: 1. Reese Hoffa (US) 21.14 metres; 2. Rutger Smith (Netherlands) 20.63; 3. Ralf Bartels (Germany) 20.50.

Javelin throw: 1. Andreas Thorkildssen (Norway) 87.43 metres; 2. Tero Pitkaemaeki (Finland) 87.11; 3. Peter Esenwein (Germany) 81.74.

WOMEN’S:

100 metres: 1. Sherone Simpson (Jamaica) 10.92 seconds; 2. Me'Lisa Barber (US) 11.21; 3. Debbie Ferguson (Bahamas) 11.24.

400 metres: 1. Sanya Richards (US) 49.81 seconds; 2. DeeDee Trotter (US) 50.87; 3. Novlene Williams (Jamaica) 51.03.

5000 metres: 1. Meseret Defar (Ethiopia) 15 minutes 02.51 seconds; 2. Tirunesh Dibaba (Ethiopia) 15:02.87; 3. Meselech Melkamu (Ethiopia) 15:05.82.

100-metre hurdles: 1. Virginia Powell (US) 12.72 seconds; 2. Brigitte Foster-Hylton (Jamaica) 12.80; 3. Perdita Felicien (Canada) 12.81.

High jump: 1. Tia Hellebaut (Belgium) 2.00 metres; 2. Kajsa Bergqvist (Sweden) 2.00; 3. Ruth Beitia (Spain) 1.97.

Discus throw: 1. Franka Dietzsch (Germany) 64.47 metres; 2. Darya Pishchalnikova (Russia) 62.17; 3. Anna Soederberg (Sweden) 61.78.

Javelin throw: 1. Barbora Spotakova (Czech Republic) 64.30 metres; 2. Steffi Nerius (Germany) 64.22; 3. Christina Obergfoell (Germany) 62.77.—Reuters