TT relay men fastest qualifiers

Today the impressive record-breaking TT quartet take on the Athens Olympics gold medal winners Great Britain whom they beat into second place in the second semi-final under difficult conditions on the wet Mondo-track of the Olympic Stadium.

Great Britain’s team of Jason Gardener, Marlon Devonish, Christian Malcolm and Mark Francis-Lewis raced in lane three and posted 38.32 seconds while TT blazed away in lane four for the fastest time of all the qualifiers.

Japan with Nobuharu Asahara, Shinji Takahira, Tatsuro Yoshino and Shingo Suetsugu placed third with a season best of 38.46 seconds, while Netherland Antilles’ Geronimo Goeloe, Charlton Rafaela, Jairo Duzart and Churandy Martina combined for their country’s new national record of 38.60.

The Dutch-speaking Caribbean island grabbed the seventh spot for today’s final as their time was slightly better than Australia who were fourth in the first semi-final round with 38.65 seconds.

France’s combination of Oudere Kankarafou, Ronald Pognon, Eddy DeLepine and Dovy Lueyi ran an extremely smooth race in lane four to win the first semi-final in a then new world leading time of 38.34 seconds.

They were ahead of the fast-finishing Jamaican anchorman Michael Frater who was silver medallist in the 100 metres dash. Frater’s other partners were Lerone Clarke, Dwight Thomas and Ainsley Waugh. They timed a season’s best of 38.37.

Germany’s quartet of Alexander Kosenkow, Marc Blume, Tobias Unger and Marius Broenig, in lane six, grabbed third spot with their season best of 38.58.

In today’s final, US-born Aaron Armstrong, once fit, will strengthen the TT team which will race in lane three. France is in four, Great Britain line up in five and Jamaica in seven.

Danger team USA did not make it through to the final, dropping the baton at the first exchange between Mardi Scales and Leonard Scott, and left ex-champion Maurice Greene and newly-crowned double sprint king Justin Gatlin disappointed.

TT’s two-time "Sportswoman of the Year" Candace Scott went one better than the 2003 World Championships, but finished only eighth in the hammer throw with a heave of 66.55 metres, at her first attempt. Her other throws were 63.16, 63.79, no throw, no throw, 63.32.

However, the real competition was among the "big three", Russia’s Olga Kuzenkova (75.10m, her season’s best), Cuba’s Yepsi Moreno (73.08m) and Russia’s world record holder Tatyana Lysenko (72.46m) who ended up with the gold, silver and bronze respectively. new pole vault World Russia also won gold in the pole vault when championships and world record-holder Yelena Isinbayeva propelled herself to 5.01 metres, her 18th world record and the second time she had crossed the five-metre height.

Isinbayeva will collect US$60,000 for her gold medal performance plus US$100,000 for establishing a new world record.

TT’s shot put champion Cleopatra Borel-Brown failed to make the final after finishing ninth among the Group "B" competitors which were headed by New Zealander Valerie Vili with a throw of 19.87 metres.

Borel-Brown opened with 17.31, fouled on the second and managed just 16.96 in the third.