DUSSELDORF, Germany, Feb 11, 2011 (AFP) - China’s former Olympic champion and world record holder Liu Xiang finished third in the 60m hurdles on Friday at the Dusseldorf indoor meet, his first European appearance in three years.
Liu finished behind Petr Svoboda of the Czech Republic and America’s Kevin Craddock who were both clocked at 7.57sec.
The 27-year-old Chinese superstar timed 7.60sec, 0.18 off his personal best of 7.42sec set in February 2007.
Earlier in the evening, Liu was second in his heat in a time of 7.66sec.
Liu, who will also run at the Karlsruhe event on Sunday, last appeared in Europe in March 2008 when he clinched the world indoor title in Valencia.
But since that victory, his career has been marred by injuries, notably pulling out of the Beijing Olympics in 2008 just a year after being crowned world champion.
He raced sparingly in the waning months of 2009, returned to action indoors in 2010 to reach the final at the World Indoor Championships in Doha, but raced just once outdoors that spring before taking another extended break.
However, he returned to form in November when he timed 13.09sec to take his third successive Asian Games title to end the season as the third fastest high hurdler outdoors.
Meanwhile, Saint Kitts and Nevis sprinter Kim Collins equalled the best time of the year in the men’s 60 metres in a time of 6.52sec.
The 34-year-old Collins, the world 100m champion in 2003, equalled the time set by Jamaican Nesta Carter, set in New York on January 28.Kenyan teenager Isiah Kiplangat Koech became just the fourth man to run the 5000m under 13 minutes when he clinched victory in 12min 53.29sec.
The 17-year-old follows Ethiopians Kenenisa Bekele, who set the world record in 2004 (12min 49.60sec) and Haile Gebrselassie (12min 50.38sec) as well as fellow Kenyan Daniel Komen (12min 51.48sec).
Another Kenyan, Nixon Chepseba, set a season best of 3min 34.65sec in the 1500m.
COLLINS BROKE AN 11-YEAR-OLD PB!
ALSO, A 17-YEAR-OLD SMASHES 13MINS INDOORS ON DEBUT! HOW GOOD IS THIS GUY GOING TO BE?!
The highlights of the PSD Bank Meeting in Düsseldorf came from the opposite ends of the age – and distance – scale. Former world 100m champion Kim Collins broke his 60m PB which dated back to 2000, while Kenya’s Isaiah Koech smashed the world junior indoor best for 5000m, breaking the 13-minute barrier in the process.
Collins, 34, is a two-time 60m silver medallist at the World Indoor Championships, but he set his previous PB aged 23 at the NCAA Championships. After recent appearances in Moscow and Liévin, the St Kitts & Nevis athlete appeared to be in good form, but no one could have predicted that Collins would break his PB from 11 years ago with a national record and world-leading 6.52.
But that is what happened in Düsseldorf. After winning his heat in 6.60, Collins defeated Michael Rodgers in the final, with the American clocking 6.53. Marc Burns (6.57) and Joshua Norman (6.59) also dipped under 6.60.
Koech, who is still only 17 years old, was competing in his first ever indoor race and only his second 5000m race to date. But that did not stop him from obliterating the world junior indoor best, chopping almost 40 seconds from the previous mark (Ismael Kirui’s 13:32.90) and defeating former world champion and two-time Olympic medallist Eliud Kipchoge.
Vincent Rono led the field through 3000m in a swift 7:43.52 before Kipchoge took charge. But in the end it was Koech – the 2009 world youth 3000m champion – who had the strength to pull away, winning in 12:53.29 – more than two seconds ahead of his older and more experienced team-mate (12:55.72).
Koech’s time is the second fastest junior 5000m performance under any conditions, behind Kipchoge’s outdoor world junior record of 12:52.61. Koech and Kipchoge became the fourth and fifth men in history to break 13 minutes for 5000m indoors, behind Kenenisa Bekele, Haile Gebrselassie and Daniel Komen – pretty esteemed company for the young Kenyan to be in!
USA’s Kellie Wells improved on her 60m hurdles world lead, clocking 7.84 in the heats. Although she did not better that in the final, her 7.89 was enough to see off Danielle Carruthers.
Nixon Chepseba also bettered his own world lead in the 1500m, dipping under 3:35 for the second time within a week. The Kenyan ran 3:34.63 to beat compatriot Augustine Choge.
The much-hyped clash between world outdoor record-holder Dayron Robles and Liu Xiang, his predecessor as Olympic champion, did not materialise after the Cuban withdrew due to a thigh injury. Xiang went on to finish third in the final in 7.60, as Petr Svoboda narrowly held off USA’s Kevin Craddock to win, both clocking 7.57.
Olesya Povh, the Ukrainian find of the indoor season, extended her unbeaten streak of sub-7.2 victories and recorded a PB of 7.13 to win the women’s 60m. There were PBs also for USA’s Gloria Asumnu in second (7.14) and Ukraine’s Mariya Ryemyen in third (7.17).
The home crowd were treated to a German national record and world-lead from Katja Demut in the triple jump (14.47m), as well as meeting records from Ralf Bartels in the shot (20.91m) and Malte Mohr in the pole vault (5.85m).
Elsewhere, Funmi Jimoh won the women’s long jump with 6.60m, Lithuania’s Egle Balciunaite won the women’s 800m in 2:01.23, Boaz Lalang of Kenya took the men’s 800m in 1:46.00, and Ethiopia’s Abeba Arigawi won the women’s 1500m in 4:06.10.
Just goes to show, if you stay dedicated & committed, you can run fast ‘late’ on.
I bet he could run similar times at 40 years.
Look at Willie Gault, very inspirational. 
Hold on to your hats. Kim ran 6.50 in the prelims at Karlshrue, which is now the fastest time in the world.
So who needs weights, anyway?
Clarke runs away with PR and win
Lerone ClarkeLerone Clarke, fresh off a victory in Lievin at the Meeting Pas de Calais in France on February 8th, won again today (Feb 13) a the IAAF Permit Meeting in Karlshrue, Germany.
Clarke ran an impressive 6.54 in the rounds to qualify second to a reborn Kim Collins who ran away with a 6.50. The final, however, was a different story with one of the pre race favorites Michael Rodgers being disqualified for a false start violation. That left a key match up between Collins, Clarke and Trinidad sprinter Marc Burns.
Clarke emerged as the class of the field today leading from the gun and crossed the line in a new personal best of 6.52s and has now run the 2nd fastest time in the World for 2011.
"Clarke exploded out of the blocks and took early control of the race. We couldn’t be any happier for him "his agent Kris Mychasiw told trackalerts.com in a post race interview.
“I am very happy with my results today, I think I showed how strong I am right now running back to back 6.5’s and I am excited for the next race, I have a few days off to recover and to continue training before heading to the UK” Clarke said, “each race I am treating as preparation for my outdoor season where I look to continue to improve on last years results.”
Lerone, has now strung back to back victories as he heads into his last meet of the season at the UK Aviva Grand Prix where he will face another tough field where much anticipation has been put for potentially the first sub 6.50 performance of the year.
Holy smoke.
What’s his new training secret?.
Maybe it’s the same as his old training secret, which was almost the reverse of what everyone else did:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/breakfast_with_frost/3107632.stm
I believe there’s a lot of plyos involved in his training instead of weights, and it might have just worn him down to the point that he had to take some time off to rest.