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| Christophe Lemaitre equalled his life time best clocking 6.55 in the men's 60m semifinals on Saturday. |
Christophe Lemaitre gave a further demonstration of his championship winning ability by bulleting to a European lead in the men’s 60m semi-finals at the Palais Omnisports de Paris Bercy this afternoon.
The triple European outdoor sprint gold medallist breasted the finish line in 6.55 to equal his lifetime best with a blistering run. The 20-year-old sprint sensation was once again slow out the blocks but his acceleration over the final 30m was hugely impressive.
Behind him Brian Mariano of the Netherlands set a national record of 6.60 for second with the 2009 European Indoor bronze medallist Emanuele Di Gregorio of Italy and Switzerland’s Cedric Nade 0.02 futher back in third and fourth, respectively. Nade set a new personal best and both athletes secured safe passage into the final as fastest losers.
Defending champion Dwain Chambers, who had struggled in the morning heats, improved in his second outing, snatching victory in the first semi-final in 6.61. It was close, but he edged the heat despite recording the same time as runner-up Martial Mbandjock. Mbandjock, the European outdoor 100m bronze medallist, trimmed 0.04 from his lifetime best to ease into the final.
Portugal’s Francis Obikwelu matched the time he set in the heats to take the third semi-final in 6.61. The tall former European 100m champion surged strongly in the second half of the race to grab an easy race win. Ryan Moseley of Austria (6.68) took the second qualifying spot by 0.01 from the quick-starting Briton Joel Fearon, who was eliminated from the competition in third.
In the women’s semis Ukraine’s Mariya Ryemyen repeated her powerful performance from the morning heats, winning 0.01 faster in 7.16 bu tit was her compatriot Olesya Povh who was the quickest qualifier for tomorrow’s final with her heat two win in 7.13.
Behind Ryemyen, to thunderous cheers, the French second-string Veronique Mang took second while Ukraine’s Hrystyna Stuy came through for third in a personal best 7.22. The fourth qualifier was Lithuania’s Lina Grincikaite also in a lifetime best 7.27.
The second semi was also coloured Ukrainian as season leader Povh proved her ranking is no fluke by equalling her pre-championship best in yet another powerhouse display.
In her wake personal bests tumbled as French hope Myriam Soumaré stopped the clock at 7.18 and Britain’s Jodie Williams took the final qualifying slot from lane eight with a new best of 7.21.
Looking like a medallist coming into these championships, Ezinne Ekparaebo took third, but the Norwegian seems increasingly exposed and failed to reproduce her best time.
Lithuania’s Egle Balcinaite produced an accomplished performance in the first women’s 800m semi-final to take victory in 2:02.44. Just 0.04 adrift in second was European leader Yuliya Rusanova of Russia who also comfortably qualified.
Bagging the third and final qualification spot was Marilyn Okoro who clocked a season’s best 2:02.65, the Briton just 0.02 ahead of the fast-finishing Liliya Lobanova of Ukraine.
In the second semi-final world indoor silver medallist Jenny Meadows controlled the race expertly to win from gun to tape. The Briton went through halfway in 59.04 and maintained her two-metre lead for the rest of the race to stop the clock in 2:00.66.
She was tracked throughout by Russia’s Yevgeniya Zinurova who secured second some 0.37 further back and she too must surely be a serious medal threat in the final.
The home crowd was rewarded by a fine last lap from Linda Marguet as the French champion overcome Tetyana Petlyuk of Ukraine to grab third in 2:01.32. Petlyuk, the 2007 European Indoor silver medallist, had to settle for fourth in 2:02.19.
The men’s semis included a physical last 200m in the first race, won by Britain’s Andrew Osagie who kept out of trouble best, winning in 1:49.02 from a typically fast-finishing Kevin López of Spain.
After displaying his finishing speed in the heats on the previous day, Poland’s Adam Ksczot needed all his wiles for a second time to claim the second qualifying spot.
With 150m to go it looked like a lost cause for the Spanish season leader in fifth and with it all to do. On the previous lap he had tangled with Ireland’s Darren McBrearty which appeared to have unsettled the Spaniard.
But with the length of the short straight to go he hauled himself back into contention and the safety of third place to the despair of Italy’s Mario Scapini who missed out on a final place by 0.04.
Spain is looking good for middle distance medals and in the second semi-final Luis Alberto Marco, silver in Torino, turned in an assured performance to take his place alongside his compatriot for tomorrow’s final in 1:50.60.
Taking his ease at the back of the field with a lap to go was Poland’s Marcin Lewandowski who, like Kszczot, relies on his superior acceleration to solve his problems and so it proved once again for the European outdoor champion as he sped down the straight to cross the line in second. The third qualifier was Robin Schembera of Germany who took no risks by tracking Marco all the way and was never in doubt for a final spot.
There was another Spanish armada in the men’s 1500m heats as Manuel Olmedo, Diego Ruiz and Juan Carlos Higuero dominated proceedings.
With only two sure to qualify, Olmedo and Ruiz showed their class by winning heats one and two, while the experienced Higuero battled Carsten Schlangen over the last lap before easing up to allow the German victory while he strolled home second.
Olmedo ran a sensible race to qualify first from heat one in the fastest time of the round. He overhauled Poland’s Bartosz Nowicki, who had taken off with three to go, and crossed the line in 3:43.51 ahead of Kernal Koyuncu. The Turk recorded a PB of 3:43.57.
Ruíz turned on the speed in the last lap of heat two, dragging Czech Jakub Holusa clear of the rest in 3:47.32, while Higuero, the 2007 champion, clocked 3:47.50, 0.44s behind Schlangen.
But there was disppointment for the big French hope Yohann Kowal. The quickest man in the field this year, Kowal was caught napping by Higuero’s flying finish and struggled to the line in sixth place.
Polish champion Mateusz Demczyszak was also eliminated as were the British medal hopes, Nick McCormick and Colin McCourt.
After the high jump, Roman Å ebrle is still on course for a fourth European indoor heptathlon title. Clearing 2.06 for 859 points, the Czech great is now 31 points clear of Belarus’ Andrei Krauchanka who cleared 2.09 for second in the discipline.
The hero, though, on an afternoon of French success, was Nadir El Fassi’s 2.12 PB which moved the 2002 world junior silver medallist into bronze position.