Isinbayeva meets disaster; Fraser and Bekele shine

BERLIN - Shelly-Ann Fraser and Kenenisa Bekele lived up to their top status while Yelena Isinbeyeva flopped on a surprise Monday at the World Athletics Championships here.

The Russian pole vault queen Isinbayeva, who has won every major title since 2004 and redefined the event, failed to clear an opening height as Poland’s Anna Rogowska leaped to gold.

“I have no proper explanation for what happened today,” said Isinbayeva. “When I was laying on the ground and concentrating I imagined my victory and not defeat.”

Fraser added the 100m world title to Olympic gold ahead of Kerron Stewart as Jamiaca ruled the sprints again, with Usain Bolt taking the men’s race Sunday in a stunning world record of 9.58 seconds.

Fraser is now the third-fastest woman over the distance, tied with Christine Arron of France. Only Florence Griffith-Joyner (10.49) and Marion Jones (10.65) have run faster.

Bekele emulated his mentor Haile Gebrselassie with a fourth straight 10,000m crown and Yargeris Savigne led a Cuban one-two to defend her women’s triple jump title.

Rogowska was not the only surprise winner on the night as Slovenian hammer thrower Primoz Kozmus and Spanish steeplechaser Marta Dominguez were also not the outright favourites.

Rogowska won her first big title with 4.75m, with compatriot Monika Pyrek and American Chelsea Johnson sharing silver with 4.65m.

The two-time world and Olympic champion Isinbayeva, 27, failed on the first attempt on her opening height of 4.75 metres, moved on to 4.80m but also failed to make that height on her final two attempts as she covered her face in her hands on the landing mat in shock.

Isinbayeva thus shared the fate of men’s legend Sergey Bubka who famously no-heighted at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.

Isinbayeva last failed to win a major event when she came third at the 2003 worlds in Paris. She has 26 world records with 5.05m the outdoor mark, but was not as dominant as in the past and recently lost to Rogowska on countback.

“I think it happened because it had to happen,” said Isinbayeva. “I hope I will recover from this.”

Rogowska had just one foul on 4.65m and cleared 4.75 on her first attempt which turned out to be the winning jump. Johnson and Pyrek got 4.65m on their first attempt but got no higher as they shared silver.

“I still don’t believe that I won. Everyone was so surprised when Isinbayeva hit the bar. I hoped for silver, gold is a surprise for me,” said Rogowska.

Fraser got the her second big title, 12 months on the day after her Olympic gold in Beijing, in a world leading 10.73 seconds which makes her the third fastest women in 100m history.

The previous season leader Stewart had to settle for silver like at the Olympics with 10.75 seconds. Carmelita Jeter denied a Jamaican sweep when she got bronze for the United States with 10.95 seconds ahead of Jamaican defending champion Veronica Campbell-Brown (10.95).

Victory came a week after she was dropped from the team for not attending a training camp along with five others, but was readmitted after an intervention from the ruling body IAAF.

“The victory is no surprise for me and the time of 10.73 neither. I wanted to win and made a perfect start and then executed well,” said Fraser.

Bekele, 27, kicked at the bell to win the 10,000 in a championship record 26:45.31 minutes and maintained his unbeaten career record over the distance for now four world titles plus two Olympic ones.

Zersenay Tadese won the first ever medal for Eritria, a silver in 26:50.12 and Moses Masai took bronze for Kenya in 26:57.39, two days after his sister Linet Masai won the women’s 10,000m.

Gebrselassie, who is now the marathon world record holder, won four 10,000m world titles 1993-1999 and Olympic gold 1996 and 2000.

“It’s great to win a fourth time. I planned to stay behind until the last lap and then kick,” said Bekele.

Kozmus claimed the hammer gold after silver in 2007 with 80.87m. The 2001 world and 2000 Olympic champion Szymon Ziolkowski of Poland took silver with 79.30m to complete his set of medals at the worlds which also include a bronze from 2005. Aleksey Zagornyi of Russia stole bronze with 78.09m from fancied Hungarian Kriztian Pars.