Gatlin grabs second gold in US sweep

After easing through the semi-finals yesterday, 100m champion Justin Gatlin told reporters that “The Helsinki Gods are on my side right now.” He must have prayed extra hard to them last night for the Olympic bronze medallist turned in a performance of utter dominance to win the 200m final tonight, becoming only the second man in world championships history to take the sprint double.

It was billed as a battle between four Americans but few were prepared to predict which one would take the gold. It was meant to be close, for goodness sake. But Gatlin was having none of it as he strode away from his compatriots Tyson Gay, John Capel and Wallace Spearmon over the last 50 metres to win by two metres in 20.04 – and he had time to slow down over the last few strides.

Gatlin joins Maurice Greene as a double world sprint champion – Greene did it in Seville in 1999 – while his margin of victory equals the biggest ever in a 200m final. Gatlin now has his sights set on a 4x100m gold. “Now its two golds down, one more to go,” he said.

Spearmon, the fastest man in the world this year, took the silver in 20.20, while defending champion Capel clinched the bronze with his best time of the year, 20.31. Gay missed a medal by three hundredths of a second.

This was the first ever medal sweep at a world championships in this event, never mind the first 1, 2, 3, 4. The previous best was when four Kenyans competed in the steeplechase final in Seville in 1999, finishing 1, 2, 5 and 7. There were also four Americans in the 110m hurdles final in Paris two years ago.

“We are big Americans,” beamed Capel. “I am just happy to be part of something great.”

The four Americans filled the middle four lanes, with Spearmon in three, Capel, wearing heavy dark shades in four, Gay, looking nervous, in five, and Gatlin on the outside.

But at the gun it was Germany’s Tobias Unger in lane two who got the best start, flying out of the blocks and making up ground on Spearmon within the first 50 metres. He and the Americans entered the straight almost in a line, with Gatlin just beginning to edge ahead.

Jamaica’s Usain Bolt was doing remarkably well in lane one, just half a stride behind. But Bolt’s bolt was shot 60 metres from home when he pulled up injured. Unger began to feel the pace and faded. While in lane six, Gatlin simply lengthened his stride and opened a major gap. He was clearly the winner with 20 metres to go and could afford to stick his chest out in triumph two strides from home.

Surely that gesture cost him a sub-20 second time, not that he’ll care about that. Gatlin threw his arms wide before falling to the track on bended knee.

Spearmon edged ahead of Capel to win a silver despite only finishing fourth at the US championships – he only made the team when Shawn Crawford dropped out. And Capel held off Gay for the bronze – he was only in the team because of his status as a reigning champion.

Gay had been the fastest man in the all the preliminary rounds but missed out on a medal. Stephan Buckland, who finished fifth, equalled the best ever place for an athlete from Mauritius.

The four adopted their customary post-race huddle before grabbing the stars and stripes for a victory lap. Gatlin, whose win was wildly cheered by the home fans, also waved a Finnish flag.

“Justin is a great athlete,” said Gay. “When he is in the zone he is really hard to catch.”

Americans wind up the pace

After two lacklustre rounds it was time to turn up the heat in the men’s 200m. Goodness knows we needed the warmth. The trackside winds had dropped a touch since the morning session, but it was the Americans who dominated once again.

We shouldn’t be surprised, of course, US athletes have won six of the nine gold medals at this event, and won 11 medals in all. It would be a brave punter to bet that total won’t be 14 after tomorrow’s final

Reigning champion John Capel and the world number one this year Wallace Spearmon dominated the first race. They established a slight lead off the bend and ran stride for stride down the straight, comfortably clear of the rest.

Capel was marginally ahead at the line, clocking 20.45 (wind –0.1), with Spearmon four hundredths slower. Germany’s Tobias Unger was third in 20.63 and Jamaica’s world junior record holder Usain Bolt took the fourth place in the final, running 20.68.

The start had been delayed three times because Capel was unhappy with his blocks. When they did get away, Capel, in lane six, had the best start despite the empty lane outside him, vacated by Trinidad’s Aaron Armstrong who did not start.

That made life difficult for Christian Malcolm in lane eight, and the Briton was never in the race. He finished eighth.

There were no problems at the start of the second race, least of all for USA’s Tyson Gay who flew out of the blocks and ran a tremendous bend to lead by a metre and a half from Justin Gatlin down the straight.

Gatlin began to fight back but Gay had time enough to take his foot off the throttle 15 metres before the line and still record the fastest time of the round, 20.27. He’s been the quickest in every round so far and must be a marginal favourite for the title.

Gatlin also pulled back in the last few strides to clock 20.47. Perhaps the 100m champion is saving it all for the final.

Stephane Buckland of Mauritius and Australia’s Patrick Johnson took the other places in the final.

Americans make light work of the weather

Delayed by more than 18 hours due to last night’s storms, the men’s 200m quarter finals eventually got underway early this afternoon just as the rain once more began to blow down the length of the Helsinki Olympic stadium playing havoc with the sprinters’ times.

USA’s Wallace Spearmon, world ranked number one, made light work of the weather, though, qualifying easily from the first heat in 20.91.

Spearmon got away poorly but made up ground around the bend on Germany’s Tobia Unger and these two crossed the line together in the same time. Unger’s dip gave him first place while Spearmon seemed more interested in heading for the warmth as quickly as he could.

Australia’s Patrick Johnson got the third automatic qualifying spot just a hundredth behind. Strangely, a +2.0m/s wind was recorded although curtains of rain appeared to be rippling down the length of the stadium towards the athletes.

Speamon’s team mate Tyson Gay, the fastest qualifier from round one, again showed he’ll take some beating. He was the fastest this time too and looks like he has a lot still in reserve.

Gay blasted out of the blocks, eased off on the bend, then turned on the burners again to cruise home in first place in 20.64, two-hundredths ahead of Stephane Buckland from Mauritius.

World junior champion Andrew Howe of Italy failed to qualify, finishing fifth in this heat in 21.19, and Nigeria’s Uchenna Emedolu, a relay bronze medallist at the Olympics, pulled up injured half way down the home straight.

Americans seemed to cope best with the conditions. The third heat was won by reigning champion John Capel in 20.78, ahead of Jamaica’s teenage star Usain Bolt, the world junior record holder. Bolt is nicknamed ‘Lightening’ due to his speed and he’ll be hoping there’s not more of the real kind when the semi-finals start at 18:40 this evening.

The surprise in this race was the poor form of Britain’s Christian Malcolm, one of the fastest in the world this year. He looked tight the whole way, and struggled in the -3.7 wind to get past Japan’s Shingo Suetsugu only for Aaron Armstrong of Trinidad and Tobago to come by on the outside for the third automatic qualifying place.

Malcolm clocked 21.02 and was lucky to make the semi-finals as a fastest loser. Suetsugu also went through, the slowest of the qualifiers in 21.11.

In the final heat, 100m champion Justin Gatlin was beaten by Jamaica’s Christopher Williams, but only by a hundredth, 20.93 to 20.94. Gatlin, the US sprint double champion, appears to be easing his way through the rounds expending as little energy as possible.

Britain’s Marlon Devonish dipped on the line to take third place from Australian champion Daniel Batman, but France’s Ronald Pognon was eliminated. He finished fifth in 21.26, some way off the pace.

Gatlin whistles through the windy twos

Olympic 100m champion Justin Gatlin’s bid to add the 200m title to the 100m crown he took on Sunday began in Helsinki this morning as he comfortably qualified for this evening’s second round of the 200m without extending himself in the blustery and hugely variable winds.

In June Gatlin became the first man since Kirk Baptiste 20 years ago to win the 100m/200m double at the US championships. This morning the new world 100m champion began his quest to become only the second man in World Championships history to win the sprint double after Maurice Greene achieved the feat in 1999.

Running in the penultimate heat of eight, he performed well within himself to finish third in 20.90. Preserving energy was the name of the game here, as Gatlin had to contend with a head wind of -2.1m/s. The race was won by Australian champion Daniel Batman in 20.68, with the Dutchman Guus Hoogmoed second in 20.80.

At the Olympics in Athens last year Gatlin was beaten in the 200m final by countrymen Shawn Crawford and Bernard Williams. It appears his closest challengers here will also be Americans, in this case Wallace Spearmon, who ran the fastest time in the world at the London Grand Prix, and Tyson Gay.

Gay was the quickest of the round – although with such changeable winds it’s difficult to tell anything from the times. He was blown down the straight by a +4.3m/s wind to record 19.99, running in a style reminiscent of Michael Johnson. Gay, who shares the same coach as Jamaica’s Olympic champion Veronica Campbell, came home ahead of Poland’s Marcin Jedrusinski and Gambia’s Jaysuma Saidy Ndure who both clocked 20.14.

If anything, Spearmon was possibly more impressive, clocking 20.51 into a -2.7 wind despite a poor start and a very relaxed finish.

This morning also saw the first appearance at a World Championships of Jamaican teenage sensation Usain Bolt. The world junior champion in 2002 when only 15, Bolt missed the championships in Paris two years ago, instead winning the World Youth Championships, and was injured during last season’s Olympics.

Still only 18, ‘Lightening Bolt’ engineered his tall, gangly body round the tight inside lane to win heat five in 20.80. That may not sound quick, but it was into a headwind and Bolt started looking round 60 metres before the line.

Britain’s Christian Malcolm made use of a near perfect wind (+1.8) to cruise through heat three in 20.36 looking to his left for the last five metres at reigning champion John Capel, the fourth American in this event. Capel finished second in his best time of the year, 20.40, but Jamaica’s Omar Brown, who had led into the straight, pulled up 50 metres from home with what appeared to be a hamstring injury.

Other impressive European performances came from France’s Ronald Pognon, winner of heat two in 20.37 with the aid of a 3m/s wind, and German record holder Tobia Unger who was a comfortable winner of heat four in 20.45 ahead of 2001 silver medallist Chris Williams of Jamaica.

The current world junior champion, Andrew Howe of Italy, also qualified, running 21.08 for second in heat one behind Stephane Buckland of Mauritius a finallist at the last two championships.

Two significant non-starters were Obedele Thompson, the Barbados sprinter who has been a sprint finalist at three successive Olympic Games; and Portugal’s Francis Obikwelu, the Olympic 100m silver medallist.