Justin Gatlin laid down a staggering marker for the rest of the athletics season by running a personal best of 9.74sec – at the age of 33 – to win the 100m at the opening Diamond League meeting of the year in Doha. The controversial American, who has been banned twice for doping offences, led from the gun to smash a high-class field to smithereens. “I wanted to come here and make a statement to the world,” said Gatlin. He did that, all right. And a whole lot more.
On this evidence he represents a clear and present danger to Usain Bolt, the world’s best sprinter when fit since 2008 – especially given that the Jamaican has not run quicker than 9.74 since winning gold at London 2012.
Gatlin, though, is getting faster. Only his compatriot Michael Rodgers, who was second in 9.96, mustered anything resembling a challenge. Britain’s James Dasaolu had talked the talk beforehand but trailed off last in 10.14.
Dasaolu was not the only Briton who left Doha licking his wounds. In the men’s 3,000m Mo Farah suffered a surprise defeat at the hands of the Ethiopian Hagos Gebrhiwet after being unable to recover from being boxed in at the bell.
Normally with 400m to go Farah is in front, winding it up. This time, however, he found himself in fourth. It took him a while to respond when the tall 17-year-old Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha burst clear, with Gebrhiwet and the Kenyan Thomas Pkemei Longosiwa in close pursuit, and, while Farah closed the gap, Gebrhiwet had just enough of a lead to win in 7:38.08, with Farah second in 7:38.22.
Not that Gebrhiwet is getting too carried away, though it will certainly boos his morale ahead of August’s World Championships in Beijing. “I didn’t expect to beat a fantastic athlete like Mo, who was reportedly in fantastic shape,” he said. “I hope I can repeat the feat and beat him again in Beijing, where it matters most.”
Perhaps the best performance of the night came in the men’s triple jump where Cuba’s Pedro Pablo Pichardo leapt 18.06m – making him the third longest jumper in history – to beat Christian Taylor, who also set a personal best with 18.04m. Only Britain’s Jonathan Edwards and the American Kenny Harrison have jumped further.
Elsewhere the new US hurdling sensation Jasmin Stowers proved too strong for Britain’s Tiffany Porter as she ran the seventh-fastest 100m hurdles in history. The 23-year-old Stowers, who has never competed in an Olympics or world championships, ran 12.35sec, while Porter was third in 12.65. The Australian Olympic champion, Sally Pearson, looked far from happy as she trailed in fourth in 12.69.
In the men’s 400m hurdles Britain’s Jack Green produced an impressive burst to finish fourth in 49.31sec. However Green, who suffered from depression throughout 2012 and took two years away from athletics to recover, was a long way behind the winner, the 32-year-old American Bershawn Jackson, who ran 48.09 sec.
In the women’s long jump Shara Proctor equalled her British record of 6.95m to finish third, with her compatriot Lorraine Ugen fourth after recording a personal best of 6.92m. Isobel Pooley was also happy after clearing 1.91m to finish third in the women’s high jump but Bianca Williams was only sixth in the women’s 200m in 23.05 behind Allyson Felix, who produced a stunning time of 21.98.
Meanwhile Lord Coe, who is running to be president of the International Association of Athletic Federations against Sergey Bubka, has warned that the sport’s calendar needs to be restructured and the presentation improved to boost popularity.
Speaking at the Doha meeting, Coe said he would establish a group that would produce fresh recommendations to an IAAF special congress within the first six months of his presidency. “I believe that the creation of a truly harmonised calendar is key to the global promotion of athletics,” he said. “We must look at how to make the overall season more compelling.”
