Wins by Jamal, Sinclair the highlights in chilly Lausanne
Posted July 11th, 2007 at 7:55 AM by Martin Kennedy
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
Running in chilly conditions that dipped below 50 degrees F (9 C.), Maryam Yusuf Jamal and Jamaican Kenia Sinclair produced the chief highlights at the Athletissima Super Grand Prix in Lausanne tonight.
After a dismal 13th place finish in Paris last Friday, Jamal was clearly trying to illustrate a point 1500. Running before a supportive hometown crowd –the 22-year-old Ethiopian-born Bahraini has been based in Lausanne since fleeing Ethiopia in 2002– Jamal cruised to a front-running victory in 4:03.61. Never seriously challenged –she had a near four second lead at the bell– Jamal easily held off the late race charge of Ukraine’s Iryna Lishchynska (4:04.27) and Russians Olga Yegorova (4:04.64) and two-time world champion Tatyana Tomashova (4:05.48).
U.S. champion Treniere Clement briefly followed Jamal and pacesetter Olga Komyagina’s solid tempo, but paid for it dearly 800 meters into the race. Fading badly over the final lap and a half, she finished 22nd in the 23 woman field.
The women’s 800 featured Maria Mutola in her first outing since her world-leading 1:58.33 at the Prefontaine Classic in early June, and from the outset, she seemed intent on picking up where she left off. The multiple world champion, now 34, led Kenyan Janeth Jepkosgei and Jamaican Kenia Sinclair at the bell, but Sinclair made a strong move off the final bend to overtake Mutola to claim a convincing victory in 1:59.33.
Hazel Clark, the U.S. Championships runner-up, strode by as well in the final 15 meters to take second in 1:59.43 with Mutola (1:59.66) third.
Yuriy Borzakovskiy never digs too deeply into his race plan book. Predictably, the reigning Olympic champion was the ninth of the 10-man field to reach the bell, and with 200 to go, he was still led by all but one. Running wide to the outside of lane three heading off the final turn, Borzakovskiy began his mad dash for home, but this time he couldn’t match the closing power of 18-year-old Kenyan David Rudisha. Striding confidently down the homestretch, the world junior champion reached the line in 1:45.82, well ahead of Borzakovskiy (1:46.01) and Youssef Saad Kamel (1:46:05), the former Gregory Konchellah and son of former world champion Willy Konchellah.
“It’s very good for me,” said Rudisha, who now heads back to Kenya to prepare the the world championship trials.”I wanted to obtain my personal best, but it was not possible in this weather.” Rudisha ran his 1:45.10 personal best in Malmo, Sweden last week, where he beat Alan Webb.
After his 800 victory in Ostrava and 1500 win in Athens, Bilal Mansour Ali, still just 18, collected another big meet win with a commanding 3:35.41 performance in the 1500 here. Strong over the final lap, he easily fended off the challenge of Frenchman Bob Tahri (3:36.13) and Moroccans Yassine Bensghir (3:36.24) and Abdelaati Iguider (3:36.80).
The men’s 5000 was primarily a three-man contest, between Kenyans Edwin Soi, Micah Kogo and Menjo Kiprono. The trio took turns with the lead over the final four laps, until Menjo was the first to drop off the pace, leaving Soi and Kogo, last year’s fastest over 10,000m, to battle it out down the homestretch. It was a dramatic stride-for-stride scuffle until Soi pulled away to win in 13:10.21 to Kogo’s 13:10.68.
“I didn’t aim to win here,” said Soi, who has a 12:52.40 career best to his credit from Paris last year. “It was just preparation for the world championships trials.”
In his first European race of the season, American Dathan Ritzenhein finished fifth in 13:27.71, three seconds clear of Matt Tegenkamp whose 13:27.06 was a season’s best.
Siham Hilala broke from Irene Jelagat with 200 meters remaining to win the women’s B race of the 1500 in 4:08.64 to the Kenyan’s 4:10.27. Alice Schmidt, who’s on the American Osaka squad in the 800, moved up a couple spots over the final 100 meters to finish fourth (4:13.15).
In the B race of the men’s 800, Briton Michael Rimmer ran by Dmitriy Bogdanov on the inside over the final 25 meters to steal the win in 1:47.17.
Next year’s edition of the Athletissima will be staged nearly two months later, on September 8, making it one of the first post-Olympic stops on the European circuit.
(c) 2007 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved. Used with permission.
PHOTO: Courtesy of IAAF
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Tags: Abdelaati Iguider, Alan Webb, alice schmidt, Athletissima, Athletissima Super Grand Prix, Bilal Mansour, Bob Tahri, chilly, Chris Solinsky, cold, Dathan Ritzenhein, David Rudisha, Dmitriy Bogdanov, Edwin Soi, Europe, European Circuit, Gregory Konchellah, Hazel Clark, Irene Jelagat, Iryna Lishchynska, Isaka, jacket, Janeth Jepkosgei, kenia sinclair, lausanne, Maria Mutola, Maryam Yusuf Jamal, Menjo Kiprono, Micah Kogo, Michael Rimmer, Olga Komyagina, Olga Yegorova, Siham Hilala, switzerland, Tassine Bensghir, Tatyana Tomashova, treniere clement, Youssef Saad Kamel, Yuriy Borzakovskiy
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The Final Sprint