Report 3 - Day 3
March 9 - 18:00
Nick Davies
reports from Paris
 When Yekaterina Podkopayeva dipped
ahead of Mary Slaney to gain a stunning victory
in the women’s 1500m the 44 year-old was not
only defying father-time but gaining revenge for
a World Championships loss to the American she
sustained in … 1983. Slaney, now 38, ran a
brave race from the front to record 4.05.22 but
just lost out to the superb kick of the Russian.
Podkopayeva’s 4:05.19 was a new personal
best while in third place, Patricia
Djate-Taillard, confirmed the wisdom of moving up
from the 800m last year by setting a French
record 4:06.16.
The women’s
60m hurdles final ended in one of the tightest
finishes of these championships. Local heroine
Patricia Girard, who had one false start, had the
brightest getaway but Jamaica’s Michelle
Freeman powered through strongly. The leaders
crossed the line in a blur. Only two hundredths
of a second separated first from fourth, with the
winner confirmed as Freeman in 7.82, another
Jamaican Gillian Russell second and Patricia
Girard sharing the bronze with Cheryl Dickey.
With five athletes under 7.90 it was the quickest
60m hurdles race in history.
 Cuba’s impressive showing at
these Championships continued after Anier Garcia
narrowly beat Colin Jackson and Tony Dees in a
hard fought 60m hurdles final. Garcia overcame
the early advantage of Jackson, who was slightly
off balance coming off the first barrier. The
tall Cuban was so delighted to realise that he
had finished 1 hundredth of a second ahead of the
110m world record holder that he tore off his
vest and flung it into the crowd. Garcia’s
time of 7.48 equalled his Cuban record while Tony
Dees ran a season’s best 7.50 to clinch the
bronze.
As if to confirm
that world records cannot be made to order,
Ethiopia’s Haile Gebrselassie easily won the
men’s 3000m but fell short of a new global
mark despite being on schedule for most of the
race. Passing the first kilometre in 2:33.94,
Gebrselassie’s problems came after he ran a
blistering second kilometre of 2:25.96. Unable to
sustain that incredible pace he slowed in the
last 600 metres, repeatedly looking back at his
rivals, who were around 100 metres behind. In the
end Gebrselassie seemed content to win another
title in 7:34.71 and leave his own record of
7:30.72 for another time.
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