10th June 2012 09:05
Pole vaulter Renaud Lavillenie lived up to his billing as the star of the Meeting Lille Metropole, a European Athletics Outdoor Premium Meeting, when he went over 5.82m on his second attempt in the northern French city on Saturday.
Lavillenie, the current European champion indoors and outdoors and the 2012 world-leader in his event, is unbeaten this summer and took his winning streak to seven competitions.
He unsuccessfully tried a world-leading 5.92m. 'But it's still a great rehearsal for the big events to come. With the Europeans and Olympics, this is a very interesting season,' commented the ebullient Lavillenie.
Poland's Lukasz Michalski, who was fourth at the World Championships in the South Korean city of Daegu last summer, was second with 5.62m.
Russia's 2007 European Athletics U23 Championships gold medallist Aleksandra Kiryashova won the women's event with 4.50m.
Lithuania's two-time Olympic discus champion Virgilijus Alekna continues to defy the calendar and threw a European veteran's best of 69.04m, his best since 2009.
Alekna's outstanding effort moved him up to second on the 2012 world and European rankings, behind only Germany's Robert Harting.
He dominated the competition and had four other throws over 68 metres. Estonia's 2008 Olympic Games champion Gerd Kanter was second with 66.05m while Türkiye's Ercüment Olgundeniz finished third with 65.81m.
The men´s 100m saw France's 2011 European Athletics Junior Championships gold medallist Jimmy Vicaut speed to victory in a season's best of 10.15m while Britain's 2010 European Athletics Championships 200m silver medallist Christian Malcolm won the longer sprint in 20.70, just coming home ahead of Belgium's Kevin Borlée, who won over 400m in Barcelona two years ago, who was second in 20.82.
Borlée's twin brother Jonathan was in action over 400m but the fastest European over one lap of the track this year had to settle for second place in 45.38 as France's Yannick Fonsat won in a personal best of 45.30.
In the 3000m steeplechase, Kenya's in-form Paul Kipsiele Koech, who nearly broke the world record in Rome nine days ago, won in 8:06.71 but immediately behind him France's 2010 European champion Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabad reduced his 2012 European-leading time to 8:10.90.
Great Britain's Andy Baddeley won the men's 1500m in 3:36.70.
French long jumper ‰loyse Lesueur, continued her series of good recent performances with a win in 6.64m while Poland's 2009 world champion and former world record holder Anita Wlodarczyk won the women's hammer with a distance of 73.69m, producing a consistent series which saw four of her throws go over 73 metres.
The prodigious Ethiopian teenager Mohamed Aman took the 800m in 1:44.32 but behind him France's 2011 European Athletics Junior Championships gold medallist Pierre Ambroise Bosse made a big improvement when he finished second in 1:44.97.
'I'm really happy, it will take me some time to digest. Going below 1:45 is unbelievable, my joy at the time is even greater than that of having the minimum (for this summer's big championships). It's huge what has happened,' said the delighted 20-year-old.
Details of all European Athletics Outdoor Permit Meetings can be found here.