Jobodwana bolts home
Olympic champion Usain unfazed that his effort was the second-slowest winning time of the seven 100m heats
A JET-LAGGED Anaso Jobodwana produced a stunning late charge to steal second spot behind Usain Bolt in their heat and book his place in tonight’s 100m semifinals at the world championships.
US-based Jobodwana, who arrived in Russia only on Thursday morning, woke up at 3am yesterday and struggled to get back to sleep — perhaps that explains why he forgot he was running in an outside lane last night.
“I totally forgot that I was running in lane nine,” said Jobodwana, who made the 200m final at the 2012 London Olympics and who won the 100m and 200m World Student Games titles in Kazan, about 700km away, in June.
“I was focusing on the guy next to me and then when I got up [from the initial drive] I realised I was behind everyone else so then I picked it up. It was a good race.
“At least I made it through to the next round. It was a slow start but it was a better start than I have been doing.”
Jobodwana clocked 10.17sec behind Bolt in 10.07.
I wasn’t nervous at all. I knew I was not going to false-start. I don’t think I have ever falsestarted
The Jamaican was unfazed that his effort was the secondslowest winning time of the seven heats — he was the slowest heat-winner in London but still won comfortably when it mattered.
“I was just getting to the next round and took it easy,” explained Bolt, whose presence here was not enough to fill the Luzhniki stadium.
Maybe the crowds will flock tonight for the semifinals (at 5.05pm SA time) and the final (7.50pm).
The Bolt-Jobodwana heat was hit by a false start which resulted in the disqualification of Kemar Hyman of Cayman Islands. But Jobodwana, the flash from the Eastern Cape, said it did not affect him.
“I wasn’t nervous at all. I knew I was not going to falsestart. I don’t think I have ever false-started in a big meet ... it didn’t hold me back at all. I’m comfortable for the next round. All I can do is run my best and hope I can make the final.”
Mo Farah, the 10 000m and 5 000m Olympic champion, produced an excellent strategy to win the 10 000m title last night, having lined up alongside SA’s Stephen Mokoka at the start.
Early in the race Mokoka led Farah, who at one point was in last place. But the Somalia-born Englishman played the field like a yo-yo, taking the lead early on and then retreating to the middle before making his final move with four laps to go.
He outsprinted Ethiopia’s Ibrahim Jeilan and Kenyan Paul Tanui to win in a season’s best 27min 21.71sec.
Mokoka, who finished 20th in 28:11.61, said he had been comfortable lining up alongside Farah. “I raced him before several times. He was at my level, then he improved.”
But Mokoka was pleased with his time, adding that he wants to run a 27:30 or even 27:20 before focusing on the marathon.
Halfway through the de- cathlon Willem Coertzen is eighth on 4 257 points, 245 off the lead and 170 off third place.
Tanith Maxwell, SA’s sole representative in the women’s marathon, struggled in the 66% humidity and finished 42nd in 2hr 56min 37sec.
“We went out at a suicidal pace. I probably should have just slipped back from where I was to stone last and done my own thing, but it’s so difficult in a championship. The course was totally exposed. There was no shade anywhere.”
One-third of the field failed to finish, including two of the frontrunners — 46 crossed the line, 25 didn’t.
Kenya’s Edna Kiplagat won in 2:25.44, having stalked Italian Valeria Straneo for the better part of 40km before overtaking her on the final stretch.
Chris Harmse, the SA hammer throw champion 18 years in a row, crashed out in the qualifying round, as did Lynique Prinsloo in the women’s long jump. Andre Olivier withdrew from his 800m heat because of a foot injury.