Indoor round up, 800m world lead for Kofanova in Moscow | 13.02.2012
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| Briton Jessica Ennis clocked a personal best of 7.95 for 60m hurdles at the UK Indoor Championships in Sheffield on Sunday. |
Yelena Orlova, perhaps better known by her maiden name of Sidorchenkova, continued her comeback after almost two years out of the sport following the 2009 World Championships when she an all-time in world indoor best for the rarely run 2000m steeplechase with 6:06.11. Olga Golovkina won the 3000m in 9:07.13 and Yekaterina Vukolova took the 200m in 23.42.
There were also some good performances in both triple jumps with former European junior champion Lyukman Adams reaching 16.72m and the 2011 European Athletics Junior Championships gold medallist Yana Borodina jumping 14.10m.
At the UK Indoor Championships in Sheffield on Sunday, Nigel Levine won the 400m in 46.58.
The reigning world indoor pentathlon champion and 2010 European Athletics Championships heptathlon gold medallist Jessica Ennis clocked a personal best of 7.95 during her heats of 60m hurdles for the second fastest time by a European this year and then equalled that mark in the final.
Rising pole vault star and 011 European Athletics U23 Championships gold medallist Holly Bleasdale went over 4.70m and then unsuccessfully tried a British record of 4.89m while her training partner Katie Byres also delivered a memorable performance as she improved her UK indoor junior record to 4.37m.
Britain's 2009 European Athletics Indoor Championships 60m gold medallist Dwain Chambers, now 34, won his fifth UK indoor title over the distance in 6.58 and later confirmed he will defend his World Indoor Championships 60m title from Doha two years ago in Istanbul next month. The 2011 European Athletics U23 Championships 100m bronze medallist Andrew Robertson set a personal best of 6.64 in the semi-finals before improving to 6.61, when he finished second behind Chambers.
In the women’s 60m, Jeanette Kwakye won her first UK indoor title with an impressive 7.20, her fastest time since 2008. 2011 European Athletics Rising Star of the Year Jodie Williams took second place in 7.29, finishing just ahead of Laura Turner, who was third in 7.31.
The 2011 European Athletics Junior Championships 110m silver medallist Andrew Pozzi won his first UK senior title in the 60m hurdles with a fast 7.62 while 800m man Joe Thomas, despite suffering a cold, pushed the pace at the front from almost the gun and was rewarded for his courage by improving his best to 1:47.26.
Other good wins were notched up by 400m runner Shana Cox in 52.38 for sixth on the European 2012 indoor rankings, 2011 World Championships 1500m silver medallist Hannah England stepped up to the 3000m where she outsprinted Katrina Wootton, the pair recording 9:06.04 and 9:06.99 respectively. Long jumpers Shara Proctor and J.J. Jegede won their respective events with 6.68m and 7.96m, the latter moving up to number five in the European indoor rankings.
Decathlon world record holder Roman Sebrle is still going strong at the age of 37 and he finished his 30th indoor heptathlon with a score of 6105 point at the Czech Combined Events Championships in Prague on Sunday.
His second day scored were: 60m hurdles – 8.22, pole vault – 4.80m, 1000m – 2:46.82. He is currently third on the 2012 world rankings and so might get a wildcard invitation to the World Indoor Championships in Istanbul next month; among his many accolades, it's a title he has won twice before in 2001 and 2004.
“I was hoping for 6000 points so this is actually much better. My first day was great, I need to improve on the second. I hope I will go to my eighth World Indoor Championships in a row,“ said Sebrle. Second place went to Adam Sebastian Helcelet with a personal best of 5951 points.
As well as at the Karlsruhe IAAF Permit Meeting (see separate article), there was other action in Germany on Sunday with Nadja Kather and 666 and Alyn Camara producing good long jump performances with 6.66m and 7.89m in Bielefield.
