BRUSSELS, Sept 4: Controversial Qatari 3,000 metres steeplechaser Saif Saaeed Shaheen made up for missing out on the Olympics by smashing the world record here on Friday at an action packed Golden League meeting (partly reported in Saturday's edition).

The 21-year-old's was one of two world records to be set as Russia's Olympic pole vault champion Yelena Isinbayeva broke her mark set only last week at the Olympics and in the process pocketed another 50,000 dollars.

It was the fifth time she had broken the record in the past two months.

However, there were no celebrations for two other Olympic champions as Hicham El Guerrouj pulled out of the 3,000m before the off after falling ill on the training track, while Felix Sanchez' 43-race winning streak came to an end when he pulled up 200m from the finish of the 400m hurdles with a hamstring injury.

For them the season is over and it might as well be for South Africa's high jump world champion Hestrie Cloete.

Like Sanchez, she saw her chances of a share of the 1million dollars Golden League jackpot go up in smoke, as for the second time in a week the chainsmoking Olympic silver medallist had to concede first place to Russia's Yelena Slesarenko.

Only two athletes remain in contention for the jackpot to be decided in Berlin on Sunday week - Sweden's triple jump Olympic champion Christian Olsson and the Bahamas vastly improved women's 400m Olympic champion Tonique Williams-Darling.

Shaheen, though, was the star of the night.

Aided perfectly by two pacemakers, he ran solo for the last three laps and left former world record holder Brahim Boulami for dead.

The Moroccan was competing in his first race since serving a drugs ban but still managed third.

Shaheen timed 7minutes 53.63seconds to smash the old mark also set here of 7:55.28 by Boulami in August 2001.

Shaheen beat home his nearest rival Paul Koech by nearly 10 seconds to suggest that the 21-year-old former Kenyan would have been a certainty for Olympic gold in Athens had the Kenyan Federation not prevented him from taking part.

Shaheen gained Qatari citizenship under controversial circumstances just over a year ago with reports suggesting he was offered a million dollars to switch allegiances.

Shawn Crawford may also have promised a world record but it was Asafa Powell who almost delivered.

The Jamaican made up for his disappointing fifth place in the Olympic 100m final by destroying the rest of the field and coming home in a personal best of 9.87sec which was also a meet record breaking Frankie Fredericks' seven year mark.

Crawford was a thoroughly well beaten second while Aziz Zakari of Ghana was third and world champion Kim Collins, fourth.

Fredericks may have lost his record in the 100m but he shrugged that aside to show the youngsters that he might be ageing, and two races away from retirement, but the class remains.

The 36-year-old beat home world champion John Capel in the 200m with Olympic silver medallist Bernard Williams in third.

Jamaica's Aleen Bailey's habit of shadowboxing before the start paid off as she landed a knockout blow on 100m Olympic silver medallist Lauryn Williams, the diminutive American failing as she did in Athens to build on her electric start.

The 23-year-old Bailey powered away to win with young Bulgarian Ivet Lalova second and Williams a disappointing third.

Kenya's veteran distance runner Edith Masai made up for her disappointing performance in the Olympics where she failed to finish the 5,000m by winning the event here.

The 37-year-old beat the meeting record by three seconds in a race that was marked by the enforced absence of Ethiopia's Berhane Adere, who had been suspended by her federation because of some ill chosen words she had used when she was dropped from the Olympic team.

Leading results:

MEN'S:

100 metres: 1. Asafa Powell (Jamaica) 9.87 seconds; 2. Shawn Crawford (US) 9.99; 3. Aziz Zakari (Ghana) 10.04.

200 metres: 1. Frank Fredericks (Namibia) 20.20 seconds; 2. John Capel (US) 20.24; 3. Bernard Williams (US) 20.24.

400 metres: 1. Otis Harris (US) 44.79 seconds; 2. Jerry Harris (US) 44.94; 3. Michael Blackwood (Jamaica) 45.09.

800 metres: 1. Wilfred Bungei (Kenya) one minute 43.48 seconds; 2. William Yiampoy (Kenya) 1:43.50; 3. Joseph Mutua (Kenya) 1:44.09

1,500 metres: 1. Timothy Kiptanui (Kenya) three minutes 30.24 seconds; 2. Ivan Heshko (Ukraine) 3:30.33; 3. Alex Kipchirchir (Kenya) 3:30.46.

3,000 metres: 1. Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya) seven minutes 27.72 seconds; 2. James Kwalia (Kenya) 7:28.28; 3. Boniface Kiprotich Songok (Kenya) 7:30.62.

3,000 metres steeplechase: 1. Saif Saeed Shaheen (Qatar) seven minutes 53.63 seconds (world record); 2. Paul Kipsiele Koech (Kenya) 8:02.07; 3. Brahim Boulami (Morocco) 8:02.66.

400 metres hurdles: 1. Bayano Kamani (Panama) 48.30 seconds; 2. Kemel Thompson (Jamaica) 48.49; 3. Naman Keita (France) 48.56.

Triple jump: 1. Christian Olsson (Sweden) 17.44 metres; 2. Danila Burkenya (Russia) 17.26; 3. Marian Oprea (Romania) 17.24.

Shot put: 1. Manuel Martinez (Spain) 21.15 metres: 2. Reese Hoffa (US) 21.07; 3. Joachim Olsen (Denmark) 21.05.

Discus: 1. Virgilijus Alekna (Lithuania) 69.03 metres; 2. Mario Pestano (Spain) 67.06; 3. Aleksander Tammert (Estonia) 65.84.

WOMEN'S:

100 metres: 1. Aleen Bailey (Jamaica) 11.08 seconds; 2. Ivet Lalova (Bulgaria) 11.11; 3. Lauryn Williams (US) 11.16.

200 metres: 1. Kim Gevaert (Belgium) 22.58 seconds; 2. Abiodun Oyepitan (Britain) 22.74; 3. Cydonie Mothersill (Cayman Islands) 22.87.

400 metres: 1. Tonique Williams-Darling (Bahamas) 49.59 seconds; 2. Ana Guevara (Mexico) 49.95; 3. Monique Hennagan (US) 50.06.

1,500 metres: 1. Tatyana Tomashova (Russia) four minutes 02.27 seconds; 2. Natalya Yevdokimova (Russia) 4:02.37; 3. Olga Yegorova (Russia) 4:02.94.

5,000 metres: 1. Edith Masai (Kenya) 14 minutes 42.64 seconds; 2. Margaret Maury (France) 14:43.90; 3. Joanne Pavey (Britain) 14:49.11.

100 metres hurdles: 1. Mariya Koroteyeva (Russia) 12.78 seconds; 2. Glory Alozie (Spain) 12.79; 3. Jenny Adams (US) 12.79.

High jump: 1. Yelena Slesarenko (Russia) 2.00 metres; 2. Hestrie Cloete (South Africa) 1.96;3. Venelina Veneva (Bulgaria) 1.94.

Pole vault: 1. Yelena Isinbayeva (Russia) 4.92 metres (world record); 2 equal. Tatyana Polnova (Russia) 4.72, 2 equal. Monika Pyrek (Poland) 4.72; 4. Svetlana Feofanova (Russia) 4.62.-Reuters