Translated material
Hot track
Tyson Guy became world champion in the 100m for the first time
The 11th World Athletics Championships kicked off in the Japanese city of Osaka on Saturday. As the head of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), Lamine Diack, said at a press conference preceding the opening of the world athletics championship, over 6.5 billion viewers from 190 countries will watch what is happening in the Osaka sports arenas on television. Fifty thousand fans can enjoy the spectacle directly in the stadium.From Osaka with records
This is the second time Japan has hosted the World Athletics Championships. The first time was in Tokyo 16 years ago, where Carl Lewis (9.86) became the author of the world record in the men's 100-meter dash. New world achievements are also expected in Osaka. It is not for nothing that the motto of the current championship reads: “From Osaka - with new records.” For all nine days, athletes will compete in the Nagai Stadium sports arena, located in the park of the same name. The stadium was built in 1964 in anticipation of the Summer Olympics and is one of the oldest in the country. Since then, numerous international competitions have been held here. In 1996, the sports facility was reconstructed. Five gates appeared along the entire radius of the building, a roof was added over the field, and the number of seats for spectators increased from 23 thousand to 50 thousand.
Every spring, this stadium hosts the IAAF Grand Prix, as well as the international women's marathon, whose history already dates back a quarter of a century. In 2001, Nagai Stadium hosted the Asian Games.
The tropical heat that has settled in Osaka, where the thermometer even in the shade exceeds 30 degrees, which, however, does not prevent local fashionistas from wearing boots that resemble Russian felt boots, has become a real problem for many European athletes. Over the past two days, seven sets of awards were played, and almost all athletes from the Old World complained about the unbearable conditions in which they had to compete.
Heatstroke
It is especially difficult in the first half of the day, when in the sweltering heat there is not even a hint of a slight breath of wind. Due to overheating on Saturday morning, Russian 800m runner Olga Kotlyarova, who came to the championship with the second best result of the season in the world, almost withdrew from the competition, as before the preliminary race her blood pressure jumped to 150 to 105. “If it weren’t for me the massage helped, then my performance in Osaka was over,” admitted the 2006 European champion.
Those athletes whose finals began early in the morning were put in difficult conditions: the marathon runners, who started on Saturday at seven in the morning, and the 20 km walkers an hour later the next day. Many athletes were forced to withdraw from the race due to heatstroke. But even those who reached the finish line literally fell off their feet, going into convulsions. For several minutes, doctors brought in the winner of the 20 km walk, Jefferson Perez from Ecuador, who suffered from a spasm of the posterior adductor muscle of his leg. An experienced athlete, Olympic champion in 1996, who won the world championship for the third time in a row, admitted that it was the most difficult start for him.
Of the three Russian walkers, only one - the 1999 world champion Ilya Markov - reached the finish line. According to the 35-year-old athlete, this time he had less chance of getting into the medals than at the previous World Championships in Helsinki, where he was disqualified. Nevertheless, Markov, who is advised by coach Robert Korzhanevsky, showed the eighth result. Sergei Erokhin was removed by the judges, and Valery Borchin did not reach the finish line.
At the 14th kilometer of the distance, Borchin lost consciousness due to heatstroke and fell on the sidewalk. Volunteers arrived and covered him with ice packs. Half an hour after the incident, the President of the All-Russian Athletics Federation (ARAF), Valentin Balakhnichev, whom we contacted by phone, told a Vremya Novostey correspondent that after consultation with the doctors of the Russian team, it was decided not to send Borchin to the hospital, but to take him to a hotel, where he was given an IV. Now Borchin has already come to his senses, and his health condition does not cause concern among doctors.
“The last two weeks have knocked me out of balance. First, our flight to Japan was delayed. Then the training camp in Vladivostok did not take place under the best conditions. And my years are taking their toll. All these little things together made themselves felt. Nevertheless, I am glad that I overcame myself, because at the tenth kilometer I began to fall behind, but I pulled myself together and finished in my own style. And my finish was always strong. Now, in order to prepare for the Olympic Games in Beijing, we need to find some new reserves - in training, technology, and in the help of the leadership of our federation. I haven't received a penny from her for two years. Why? Ask the leaders. I’m actually preparing myself, and many thanks to the Luch club in Yekaterinburg and its director Rafael Karmanov,” said the best of our walkers, Ilya Markov.
Women's show director
A day earlier, Tirunesh Dibaba from Ethiopia competed in the final of the women's 10 km race. All the others were just extras in her performance, which, in addition, was also directed by her. The runner could afford to lag behind the peloton, and he “slowed down” after her. She could have picked up the pace, but no one was “getting into the dust” of the 22-year-old black athlete. Two years ago, at the World Championships in Helsinki, Dibaba became the first runner to win two distances at once - 5 and 10 km. This time in Osaka she confirmed that she is the strongest in the “ten” and will try to win the championship title for the third time at a distance half as long.
The 2006 European champion, Russian Inga Abitova, could hardly object to such reasoning. As a result, she finished 12th, and after the run she showed reporters her bruises and abrasions that her rivals generously bestowed on her. “The running was very uneven and nervous. Everyone was constantly pushing. And all that was left was to dodge to the side so as not to get caught,” explained Abitova.
Kluft is lucky for VIPs
Following the results of two days of the World Championships in Osaka, the Russians are still without medals. But this is to be expected. The schedule of all world championships is designed in such a way that in the first days of competition Russians do not perform or perform poorly. The men's marathon, won by Kenyan Luke Kibet, took place without our participation. The male cannonball flew past. Pavel Sofin made it to the finals, but that turned out to be all he was capable of. The Russian losers were accompanied by several other athletes, including Svetlana Cherkasova (800 m run), bronze medalist Danil Burkenya (triple jump), as well as championship debutants Anna Omarova (core) and Tatyana Chernova (hemathlon), who withdrew from the championship - for injuries. “During the hurdles, Tatyana suffered a leg injury, so it was decided to interrupt the competition,” explained her coach Vladimir Kudryavtsev. Meanwhile, Chernova had every reason to qualify for a medal. In June, at a competition in Arles, she scored 6,768 points, becoming the owner of the unofficial season record and ahead of the then titled Swede Caroline Klüft and Ukrainian Lyudmila Blonska. True, in three of the seven events Chernova was “helped” by the wind, it exceeded the permissible norm, nevertheless it was a great success in the career of the 19-year-old Russian.
Objectively speaking, Chernova in Osaka would hardly have been able to surpass Caroline Klüft - 7032 points, who became a three-time world champion. This is the third result in the history of athletics. By the way, Kluft is lucky for important people. Last year, the Princess of Sweden congratulated her on her victory in Stockholm. This time she won in the presence of the Empress of Japan, who arrived at the stadium accompanied by the Emperor.
As for shot putter Anna Omarova, the newly crowned Russian champion in Osaka finished ninth (18 m 20 cm) - she made it to the main part of the competition, but did not make it to the final. A sensational victory here was won by Valerie Wiley from New Zealand with the best result of the season - 20 m 54 cm. She overtook the current world champion Nadezhda Ostapchuk from Belarus in the last attempt.
Coming out to reporters, the Belarusian did not mince words. She said that after the morning competition she was lying flat. “Sorry, I was constantly vomiting, dizzy, everything hurt. I was terrified that in a few hours I would have to compete again. Who came up with the idea of holding the championship in such heat? Have you thought about athletes? - Ostapchuk reasoned out loud.
Family contract
The arrival of the imperial couple at the stadium was by no means accidental. The central event of Sunday's World Championships was the men's sprint final. The 100-meter dash is perhaps the most spectacular event in the program. And in Osaka everyone was in anticipation of the duel between Asafa Powell from Jamaica and the American Tyson Guy. This season, each of them has already won five victories in the 100m, but they have never run together in any tournament. This season, Powell had a personal best of 9.90 seconds, but Guy beat that achievement with 9.84 seconds.
Powell's cousin, Derrick Atkins of the Bahamas, also approached the couple this year. The 23-year-old athlete joined the club of athletes who ran the 100-meter dash in less than 10 seconds. -- 9.95, and in Osaka he proved that this was not an accident. Atkins became the silver medalist of the championship with a result of 9.91 seconds, ahead of his relative by 0.05 seconds. Powell was third, losing the championship title to Tyson Guy - 9.85 seconds.
By the way, even before the World Championships, Guy said that he was one hundred percent ready for the competition and that he would not mind setting a new world record, since the track at the stadium in Osaka is considered fast. “Of course, it’s great to break the record, but my goal is to win three medals in Japan - in the 100, 200 m and relay,” he dreamed. Guy has already taken the first step to realize his dream. Will it come true?