FROM LEFT: Bronze medallist Kenya’s Paul Kipngetich Tanui, winner Great Britain’s Mo Farah and silver medallist Ethiopia’s Ibrahim Jeilan stand on the podium during the medal ceremony for the men’s 10,000 metres at the 2013 IAAF World Championships at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, yesterday. RIGHT: Jamaica’s Usain Bolt leaves after he finishes the men’s 100 metres qualifying heat.
MOSCOW: Briton Mo Farah continued his impressive track form by claiming a hard-fought victory in the world 10,000m yesterday, as Jamaican sprint star Usain Bolt cruised through his 100m heat.
Farah, who is attempting to replicate the double 5,000-10,000m gold he claimed at last year’s London Olympics, had a slow race pace, American training partner Galen Rupp and his own definitive race-end kick to thank for his victory.
There was an all-too-familiar finish to the 25-lap race when Ethiopia’s defending world champion Ibrahim Jeilan tried to edge past Farah on the final bend.
Two years ago in the Daegu worlds, Farah wilted into second behind the sprint-clever Ethiopian, but a season dedicated to honing his speed this time paid dividends.
“It was the perfect race for me,” the Somali-born Farah said. “It was quite slow, and the important thing was to stay out of trouble.”
With Jeilan and his three team-mates plus a strong Kenyan line-up, Farah said he and Rupp, who both train in Oregon, Portland, with Alberto Salazar, had tried “to work together and to cover every move”.
“Two years ago, almost exactly the same thing happened (around the final bend). It was important I had something left on the final lap.”
Jeilan took silver and Kenyan Paul Tanui bronze, Rupp just missing out on the podium in fourth.
Track icon Bolt, within touching distance of equalling American sprint legend Carl Lewis’ record of eight world gold medals, clocked an easy-going 10.07sec in his heat of the 100m, which featured neither American rival Tyson Gay nor Asafa Powell after both tested positive for banned substances.
The Jamaican saw team-mate Yohan Blake claim victory in Daegu after his shock false start in the final, the one blip on his impressive CV, that includes Olympic gold in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay events in Beijing and London, and five world titles, as well as the 100 and 200m world records.
Bolt will be joined in today’s semi-finals by American rivals Justin Gatlin, the 2004 Olympic champion, London bronze medallist and double world champion in 2005, and Mike Rodgers, who have both served doping bans.
The duo were the only sprinters to clock sub-10sec times to serve notice that Bolt will not have it all his own way.
“I am happy with my run,” said Bolt, who survived a false start in his heat. “I took it easy as it was the first round. I just wanted to get my reaction and start right.
“The false start in my heat didn’t affect me. I made that mistake in Daegu and now I’m staying focused.”
Qatar’s Samuel Francis also qualified for today’s semi-final after finishing third in heat 5 with a time of 10.21.
The Qatari finished behind winner Jimmy Vicaut of France (10.06) and Aaron Brown of Canada (10.15).
In the decathlon, Olympic champion Ashton Eaton of the United States started well, clocking a leading 10.35sec in the 100m, a third-best 7.73m in the the long jump, and 14.39m in the shot put.
But the world record holder and silver medallist in Daegu dropped to fourth after a best in the high jump of 1.93m. Teammate Gunnar Nixon’s 2.14m saw him soar into the lead, followed by German Michael Schrader.
Eaton duly retook the overnight lead with a 46.02sec in the 400m, leaving him on 4,502 points, just nine ahead of Nixon and Schrader a further 66 points adrift.
Reigning double world champion Trey Hardee, in fifth after three events, failed to register a height in the high jump for a disappointing end to his campaign.
Trinidad and Tobago sprinter Kelly-Ann Baptiste, who won a world 100 metres bronze medal in 2011 and was a real prospect for Moscow, has tested positive for a banned substance, yesterday.
Baptiste, 26, has returned home. She was due to run in the first round of the 100m heats today. AFP
