30 August 2007

Michael Rimmer and Mo Farah made progress in the men’s 800m and 5000m, whilst Andy Turner just missed out on the 110m hurdles final on day 6 of the IAAF World Championships in Osaka, Japan. Here’s a run-down of the evening’s action…

Men’s pole vault qualifying

Steve Lewis (Newham & Essex) was eliminated from the competition after failing to register a height, three times he was unsuccessful at 5.40m.

Men’s 800m

Michael Rimmer (Liverpool Pembroke & Sefton) ran a tactically astute race to progress through the first round in impressive style. Always in contention, he moved to the front around the final turn and maintained a brisk pace to finish 2nd in 1:45.66.

After the race he said: “I maybe peaking at the right time as I felt strong down the home straight. I thought I was good tactically and I have learned a lot this year. I bided my time and I knew that if I was on the shoulder of the leader at 200m to go I was going to be okay.”

Women’s 400m hurdles final

Tasha Danvers-Smith (Shaftesbury Barnet) finished 8th in 54.94. Running from lane 2, the 29-year-old went out strong, came out of the final turn in contention, but paid for it in the final straight as she drifted back.

Afterwards, she said: “Obviously I did want to be up there in the medals, but it just wasn’t my day today.  I knew if I was going to be in with them, I had to go out with them. You can’t really hold back in the final. You have to go for it, because they’re going to be running 53 pace. I knew this before the gun went off.”

Men’s 5000m semi final

Mo Farah (Newham & Essex) secured his place in a World Championship final for the first time ever by finishing 6th in the second semi final. It was just one place short of automatic qualification, but his time of 13:39.13 was enough to clinch a place in Sunday’s final as the quickest of the fastest losers. Indeed his time was quicker than that of the first semi, which was won in 13:46.42.

Men’s 110m Hurdles

Andy Turner (Sale Harriers Manchester) just missed out on qualification to the final after finishing 3rd in the semi final 3 in 13.38 (-1.0 m/s).

Afterwards, he said :“I spent too much time in the air for the first few hurdles and that’s when they got in front of me. I just had to try and relax and keep going. The second half was good, but in the first half it let me down.

“I’m disappointed to have not made the final, but I’ve come here and I have equalled my personal best from last year with that race and that was into a wind and I ran a PB yesterday. I’ve got to take the positives out of it. I have run a PB and hopefully I can work on that for Beijing next year.”

For more news and photographs from the 11th IAAF World Championship’s click here