Hurdlers Robles and Kallur light up Stuttgart meet
STUTTGART, Germany - Dayron Robles of Cuba and Swede Suzanna Kallur became the second-fastest of all time with victories in their respective 60 metre hurdles races to light up the Sparkassen Cup indoor meeting on Saturday.
The 21-year-old Robles blazed to victory in 7.36 seconds to equal Americans Greg Foster and Allen Johnson as the second fastest in history. Only Briton Colin Jackson, with a world record of 7.30 in 1994 in nearby Sindelfingen, has run faster.
Robles, who took the silver medal at the World Indoor Championships two years ago, left the field in tatters, winning by a comfortable 0.18 seconds. German Thomas Blaschek was second in 7.54, edging Johnson who reached the line in 7.55.
"As I get older, I'm getting stronger," Robles said.
Kallur dominated the field after an unsteady start, clocking 7.72 seconds. Only world record Ludmila Engquist, who produced her 7.69 record for the Soviet Union in 1990, has run faster.
"I haven't been injured this year," said Kallur, 26, the European champion indoors and outdoors. "So I've been able to work on the hurdles a lot more this year."
They chalked up two of eight world-leading performances set before a capacity crowd at the meet's 22nd edition.
DEFAR DISAPPOINTED
Olympic 5000 metres champion Meseret Defar won the 3,000 metres in 8:27.95, shy of her 8:23.72 world record at this meet a year ago but nonetheless the third fastest in history.
"I'm a little disappointed because I came her for the record," said Defar, last year's IAAF Athlete of the Year.
"I felt fine during the race, but maybe I'm a little tired after my race in Boston last week."
At the Boston Indoor Games a week ago, Defar produced the fastest-ever indoor performance for two miles, clocking 9:10.50.
Other world-leading performances on Saturday included Briton Chris Tomlinson's win in the long jump with 8.18 metres while Tariku Bekele of Ethiopia produced a fine performance to win the men's 3,000 metres, clocking 7:31.09.
Olympic 800 metres champion Yuriy Borzakovskiy of Russia won his event in 1:45.58, also the fastest time this season, and Deresse Mekkonen of Ethiopia won the 1,500 in 3:38.52.
Tahesia Harrigan of the British Virgin Islands clocked 7.16 seconds in the heats of the women's 60 metres, equalling the fastest performance of the year, and nearly matched her fine effort in the final, winning in 7.19.
Maurren Higa Maggi of Brazil won the women's long jump with a leap of 6.87 metres, while Briton Craig Pickering, silver medallist at last year's European indoor championships, won the men's 60 metres in 6.58.
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