Successes for local stars Teddy Tamgho and Renaud Lavillenie at the Pas du Calais Meeting of Liévin on Tuesday night have given a further boost to optimism that there could be plenty to cheer for French athletics fans at the 2011 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Paris next month.
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| French triple jumper Teddy Tamgho improved his own world season leading mark with a leap of 17.64m in Levin on Tuesday. |
Tamgho improved his own 2011 world lead in triple jump with a magnificent leap of 17.64m with his first attempt to win comfortably from Cuba’s Alexis Copello, who was second with 17.14m. Romania’s 2010 European Athletics Championships silver medallist Marian Oprea was third on this occasion with17.07m.
'17.64m, it’s not very satisfactory even though it's still a very good performance. It shows me that I must continue to work hard,” said Tamgho, slightly dispassionately.
“However, I am starting to believe I can jump 18 metres, it’s starting to get there a lot. What stopped me getting closer here was the fact I thought my opponents would respond after my first attempt and they were not able to. It's hard to jump well alone,” added the 2010 European Athletics Rising Star of the Year.
Tamgho also holds the world indoor record at 17.90m, which he set when winning at the 2010 World Indoor Championships in Doha last March.
Last week, Tamgho told French media that his target for the forthcoming European Athletics Indoor Championships was not only a gold medal in front of his family and friend but also to be the first man to break the 18-metre barrier indoors.
The 2011 European Athletics Indoor Championships will be held in the French capital Paris at the Palais Omnisport Paris-Bercy from 4-6 March.
After suffering his first defeat in five outing this winter in Stuttgart on Saturday, pole vaulter Lavillenie returned to his winning ways with a 5.90m clearance before failing at a new French indoor record of 6.01m.
Only Lavillenie himself has gone higher this winter, with a 5.92m mark in the French town of Aubière last month.
'5.80 m was the minimum. The important thing was to find my jumping after Stuttgart (where he had been beaten by Germany’s Malte Mohr and only cleared 5.60m), I managed to put everything in place,” said a relieved Lavillenie Mohr was second on this occasion with 5.75m while France’s 2009 World Championships silver medallist Romain Mesnil was third with 5.70m.
Leslie Dhjone scored another French win over the occasionally contested 300m, winning in a 2011 world-leading time of 32.68.
Russia’s Roman Smirnov was second in 32.75 while Belgium’s Jonathan Borleé finished third in 32.79, both men setting national records.
There were two wins for Ukraine women as well. Olesya Povh remains unbeaten this season over 60m and clocked 7.17 for her fifth successive victory, just shy of her European-leading 7.14 from last month, while the 2010 European Athletics Championships triple jump gold medallist Olha Saladuha - who was named Ukraine’s 2011 Athlete of The Year last week along with 2010 SPAR European Cross Country Championships winner Sergey Lebid – went out to 14.37m.
Great Britain’s Jenny Meadows won the women’s 800m in solid 2:00.29.
Kenya’s Nixon Chepseba won the 1500m in 3:34.98 but in fourth place France’s Mehdi Baala achieved a 2011 European-leading time of 3:37.50.
Cuba’s 2008 Olympic Games 110m hurdles champion Dayron Robles won the 60m hurdles in 7.57 but, in third place, Dimitri Bascou confirmed that he could be another Frenchman in contention for a medal at the European Indoor Athletics Championships after running 7.60, following on from his 7.58 in heats.
The 23-year-old Bascou ran a personal best of 7.57 in Eaubonne on Saturday for the second fastest European time of the year.
The only real local disappointment in Liévin came from 2010 European Athlete of the Year Christophe Lemaitre, who was only sixth in the 60m, running 6.69 in the final after 6.68 in his heat, and clocking 21.18 for second place in the 200m 21.18, being beaten by Germany’s Sebastian Ernst who ran 20.93.