Next Diamond League meeting
Venue: Rome Date: Thursday, 10 June
Coverage: Live on BBC Red Button and BBC Sport website (UK users only, full coverage may not be available on Freeview); coverage on BBC Radio 5 live
Powell powers to 100m win in Oslo Asafa Powell dazzled the Oslo crowd to clock a stunning wind-assisted 9.72 seconds and cruise home in the 100m at Friday's Diamond League meeting. Having run 9.75 and 9.81 in Doha three weeks ago, the Jamaican, 27, continued his fine form, beating Richard Thompson and Churandy Martina. Injured triple Olympic champion Usain Bolt and Tyson Gay were not running. Britain's Christine Ohuruogu was fourth in the 400m, while David Greene secured a fine third in the 400m hurdles. In the third leg of the 14 scheduled Diamond League meetings, Ohuruogu, the400m Olympic champion, was hoping for a boost in the one-lap race in the absence of injured American Sanya Richards-Ross.  | 606: DEBATE |
The Londoner, though, was unable to make the top three as Botswana's Amantle Montsho came home in 50.34secs, ahead of Novlene Williams-Mills and American world indoor champion Debbie Dunn. Ohuruogu is refusing to panic despite what has been a less than impressive start to her summer campaign. "It's going to take a while for things to settle down with me and get my rhythm going again, said Ohuruogu. "In Doha I went off too fast and here I tried not to but I then went off far too slowly. It will be OK - I'm just doing a lot of things in training differently." World 400m hurdles finalist Greene from Wales impressed with a time of 49.05 to finish behind Bershawn Jackson and world champion Kerron Clement, winner in 48.12. The evening belonged to Powell, with the former world record holder matching his personal best, albeit with the help of a stiff Norwegian breeze. The 2.1m/s wind was only 10cm over the legal limit as Powell sent out a strong message to his sprinting rivals. Highlights - Oslo Diamond League With Bolt, who is also unavailable for the New York meet on 12 June because of an inflamed Achilles tendon, and world silver medallist Gay not running, it was left for Powell to blitz past the field. Trinidad & Tobago's Thompson trailed way behind in second, clocking 9.90secs with Martina, from the Netherlands Antilles, running 9.92secs. Although the Jamaican insisted it was victories he was aiming for and not records, his winning time helped him smash the stadium's record set by Ato Boldon nine years ago in 9.88secs. Bolt, the Olympic and world champion and current world record holder in 9.58, was originally scheduled to make seven appearances in the Diamond League series, and could go head-to-head with Gay at least three times during the series. | DIAMOND LEAGUE 2010 10 June: Rome, Italy 12 June: New York, USA 3 July: Eugene, USA 8 July: Lausanne, Switzerland 10 July: Gateshead, UK 16 July: Paris, France 22 July: Monaco 6 August: Stockholm, Sweden 13/14 August: London, UK 19 August: Zürich, Switzerland 27 August: Brussels, Belgium |
At least one from Bolt, Gay or Powell is scheduled to run at every meeting. "I like the feeling to see 9.72 on the scoreboard," said Powell after his victory. "I had a pretty comfortable race tonight. It was good start, a good finish and I'm ready to meet anybody now." Britain's Mark Lewis-Francis, on the comeback trail after two injury-hit seasons, had been eager to overcome his false starts recently committed in Ostrava and Hengelo, but his 10.24 was not enough to progress from the 100m heats. Other Brits in action were Marilyn Okoro, sixth in the 800m, while Steve Lewis did not make a height in the pole vault. Michael Rimmer was fourth in the 400m and Andy Baddeley could only make 12th in the 'Dream Mile', won by Kenyan Asbel Kiprop in a time of three minutes 49.56 seconds. A British star in the making is Jack Meredith, who set a new national junior record in Oslo, winning the Under-20 110m hurdles in a time of 13.32.
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