BEIJING – American sprint star Justin Gatlin won the men’s 100m dash at an IAAF World Challenge 2016 meeting in Beijing, on Wednesday, as he continues to prepare for the Olympic Games.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEcOrrYdsfU
Gatlin, the Olympic champion in 2004 and bronze medallist in the 100m at London 2012, clocked a time of 9.94 seconds to match his season’s best and take the title in the Olympic Stadium in China, four days after running away with the short sprint title at the Diamond League meeting in Shanghai.
Following the American home, was his fellow countryman Mike Rodgers, who also dipped under the 10-seconds barrier for the first time this season with a time of 9.97secs.
China’s Xie Zhenye was third in a new personal best of 10.12, while world-leader Femi Ogunode, who owns the quickest time of 9.91 this season, faded to seventh in 10.30.
The race was delayed by two false starts.
Meanwhile, after being disqualified in his last outing, world record holder and Olympic champion Aries Merritt returned on a winning note, after he posted a season’s best time of 13.24 to take the men’s 110m hurdles in Beijing.
There were also some quality performances as well in the field, as Majed El Dein Ghazal, Sam Kendricks and Dong Bin all produced world-leading marks.
Ghazal of Syria cleared a new world-leading height and personal best of 2.36m to thrill the crowd en route to winning the men’s high jump.
Home favourite Bin, the IAAF World Indoor Champion at Portland 2016, leaped 17.24m to win the men’s triple jump, while Kendricks went over 5.92m to win the men’s pole vault competition and improved the previous world-leading mark of 5.80m, set by Canada’s world champion Shawnacy Barber, who was only sixth with a mark of 5.60m.
Elsewhere at the meeting, Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica won the women’s 200m – matching her season’s best with a time of 22.29sec, with compatriot Simone Facey taking second in 22.63.
Jamaica’s world champion Danielle Williams won the women’s 100m hurdles in 12.80 and Murielle Ahoure of Ivory Coast took the women’s 100m in 11.06.
