Defeat for Bailey (100m) and Rodal (800m) in IAAF Moscow Grand Prix:

40^th Znamensky Memorial continues despite the deluge.

Giorgio Reineri reports from Moscow

Arriving at the fifth stage in the IAAF Grand Prix Circuit, the athletes recall certain cyclists who have had to battle against nature in the Tour de France or Giro d’Italia. In Moscow’s Lokomotiv Stadium they had to face a real tempest: waves of driving rain pushed by the wind and drenching everything. But athletics is not for the faint of heart and this was evident: nobody withdrew - man or woman - and Olabisi Afolabi, a 21 year old Nigerian woman, even ran a season’s best in the 400m of 50.55, beating Atlanta Olympic bronze medallist Falilat Ongukoya in the process.

The Muscovite storm, which made the Golden Gala downpours look like an April shower, was a great shame. A great shame because without it, there could have been some excellent results. Who knows, for example, whether Donovan Bailey would have run if he had been running on tartan instead of a carpet of water. Because the defeat of the Olympic 100m champion by Davidson Ezinwa was resounding, and surprising in the way it occurred. Bailey lost where normally he would have clinched victory: in the last 30 metres. We saw him with his shoulders back rather than his chest forward and it looked as though the 99% humidity had made his legs swell until they were holding him back like a couple of boulders. Without his usual agility, the Canadian was unable to defend himself and the Nigerian Ezinwa shot past to win in 10.20, against Bailey’s 10.28.

This result can be considered as exceptional as the way in which the athletes stood up against the wind and rain. The women in the 5000m, for example, had to run against a hurricane, with thunder and lightning pushing them to run faster: the Ethiopian Merina Denboba was the most heroic, winning in 15:41.6. The scene was repeated for Daniel Komen and his Kenyan brothers in the 3000m, which Komen dominated in 7:37.64.

It was not a happy day for the Olympic champions - with the exception of Jean Galfione, who won an interminable and difficult pole vault competition - even Vebjörn Rodal in the 800m met the same end as Bailey. On the heels of Peter Biwott (400 in 50.6), David Kiptoo and Vincent Malakwen, the champion in Atlanta waited for the final straight to kick out and failed dismally. Three overtook him and, hot on the heels of the winner, Kiptoo, came a surprise: the virtually unknown South African Hendrick Moganyetsi, whose 1:44.62 makes him look set to join the elite of the event. Moganyetsi has an amazingly light style, with two long and elastic legs. He is issue of the 400m and this is clear: when he kicks he is able to produce an astounding change of speed.

William Tanui is still fast despite the passing years: he withstood Englishman John Mayock in the 1500m, whilst Fermin Cacho struggled with the water up to his neck, before he finally withdrew.

A final confirmation: Kirili Sosunov has become one of the world’s top long jumpers. He beat James Beckford and did so with a magnificent style and extraordinary regularity. A fitting homage to Russian athletics and the two Znamensky brothers who were such extraordinary exponents of the sport on the 40^th anniversary of the Znamensky Memorial. Another tribute also to one of the grandest specialists of this athletic discipline, Igor Ter Ovanesian, who was attending his 40^th Znamensky Memorial meeting, which he first honoured as an athlete, then as a coach, President of the USSR Athletics Federation and now as a member of the IAAF Council and deputy minister for sport of Russia.