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LIGHTNING STRIKES TWICE IN THE SAME PLACE

He said he would just race to win, because he was not as strong as he had been in Beijing when he ran an amazing 19.30 for 200 meters, breaking Michael Johnson’s world record. A record for the ages. He was tired, hadn’t been sleeping enough. A spring auto accident, too many public appearances, etc.

It didn’t matter.

In yet another awesome display of power and speed, Usain Bolt reentered the parallel universe that only he occupies, and 19.19 seconds later, he had established a fantastic (sorry, we have exhausted our supply of superlatives) world record that will likely not be approached by any other human for many, many years. Five men bettered 20 seconds for the first time in athletics history, but four of them, among the world’s best sprinters, are mortals (third-placer Wallace Spearmon noted, “I saw him for maybe three seconds”). Bolt, as was obvious some time ago, is something else.

The long-anticipated women’s high jump showdown between Germany’s Ariane Friedrich and Croatia’s Blanka Vlasic became a three-woman battle when Russia’s Anna Chicherova found herself in the lead after all three cleared 2.02. Chicherova could go no higher, and Vlasic moved into first when she cleared 2.04. With one jump remaining, Friedrich attempted 2.06, and in a stadium as quiet as a tomb, missed by the narrowest of margins (“by the breadth of a hair”), and settled for the bronze medal. “This medal means everything to me, and I will celebrate it,” said Friedrich.

How does it feel to wake up the morning after you have just completed five grueling decathlon events, and know that you still have five remaining? If you’ve had a bad first day, you will carry on and finish the job no matter how difficult or discouraging, because that is what decathletes do; it seems to be imprinted in their DNA. If you’re the USA’s Trey Hardee, you’re eager to start the second half of the journey, because you’re in an unfamiliar position as a strong medal contender. Indeed, Hardee ran like a man on a mission in today’s first event, the 110 hurdles, and posted the fastest time of 13.86. He then expanded his lead with a season-best 48.08 discus throw. The margin grew in the pole vault, where Hardee led all competitors with his 5.20 clearance. Then came a personal best 68.00 in the javelin, and the 1500 was a mere formality. Hardee, previously the USA’s number-two behind injured Olympic champion Bryan Clay, is the new World champion with the sixth-highest score in Championships history, 8790. Behind him was one of the deepest quality fields ever: nine men scored 8357 or better, and 20 exceeded 8000 points.

Form charts took a beating in the men’s 110 hurdles. The prohibitive favorite, Olympic champion and World record holder Dayron Robles (Cuba), failed to clear any of the first five barriers in his semi-final and came to rest on the track at the base of the sixth, injured. With Robles out, the final became anyone’s race: the only “big names” in the field were Americans Terrence Trammell, multiple Olympic and World Championship silver medalist, and David Payne, the Beijing 2008 runner-up. The two finished within mere thousandths of a second, but a few inches ahead of them was Ryan Brathwaite, Barbados’ first-ever medalist, winning with his second national record of the night, and humbled by his achievement: “My dream really has come true.”

In the women’s hammer throw qualifying, Germany’s Betty Heidler broke the championship record with her first and only attempt, launching the ball-and-chain 75.27 meters. Afterwards, she said, “I feel good, the weather is good, it’s very important to do my best to defend my title. I was born in Berlin, it’s my hometown; that’s great motivation.”

Defending 5000 champion Bernard Lagat (USA), displaying no ill effects from his bronze-medal run in last night’s 1500, expended just enough energy to qualify for Sunday’s final. He will be part of a strong field that includes 2003 champion Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya) and a man who needs no introduction, Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele, winner of his last 14 consecutive 5000s. If Bekele prevails, he will be the first man to achieve the 5000/10,000 double at the World Championships.

Jamaica’s Melaine Walker erased any doubts regarding the identity of the world’s top 400 meter hurdler with a storming victory in a new championship record and the second-fastest time in history. The 2008 Olympic winner trailed Lashinda Demus (USA) into the straight but blew past when Demus missed her steps at the ninth hurdle. Walker said, “I never think about the records. I always run the race the best I can. Everything went perfectly today.”

The last word tonight belongs to you-know-who: “If Queen Elizabeth knights me, would I get the title ‘Sir Usain Bolt’? That sounds very nice!”

TOM CASACKY – BOC News Team

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