THIS INFORMATIVE REPORT COMES COURTESY OF THE IAAF WEBSITE WHERE IT APPEARED FIRST WITH NEATMEET PIX.
Gregório leaps to 17.22 at Rio Grand Prix II
Sunday 16 May 2004
Rio de Janeiro - Brazil’s Jadel Gregório, Triple Jump silver medalist at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Budapest, produced the best performance of the Rio Grand Prix II, which took place this morning, at the “Estádio Adhemar Ferreira da Silva”, located at the “Complexo Miécimo da Silva” in Campo Grande, Rio de Janeiro.
The giant 23 year-old (2.01m of height and 92Kg) set a personal best of 17.22 metres, in his first outdoor competition of the year, still far from his own South American Indoor record of 17.46, obtained in Karlsruhe, on 15 February 2004.
His previous outdoor best was 17.13 from 2001. “Now I want to fight for a medal in Athens,” said Jadel, who also this year has long jumped a personal best of 8.10m, in São Paulo, on 16 April.
Gregório opened with 16.57, and followed with 17.22 (1.2 wind), foul, 16.92, foul and 17.18 (0.0 wind). American Tim Rusan was a distant second with 16.49m.
Vicente de Lima surprises Demeritte
In one of the biggest upsets of the event, Brazilian Vicente Lenílson de Lima beat the 200 meters 2004 World Indoor Champion, Dominic Demeritte of the Bahamas, and one of the best Brazilian and South American sprinters: André Domingos da Silva.
Lenílson, who is only 1.69m tall, and this year has also ran 10.17 for 100 metres, clocked 20.45 (0.4 wind; a personal best by 13/100), to easily beat both Demeritte (20.71) and André (20.74), while Jamaican Ricardo Williams was fourth with 20.92.
The 26 year-old, a member of the 4x100 Brazilian team that won silver both in Sydney 2000 and Paris 2003, has now secured his place in the Greek capital in both the 100m and 200m.
Later on in the day, Vicente ran the third leg of Brazil’s “A” team in the 4x100m relay (also composed by Édson Ribeiro, Cláudio Sousa and André Domingos), that won in 39.00.
Brazil’s Vicente Lenílson de Lima in the 4x100m in Rio
(Marco Antonio Rezende/COB)
Brazil had already recorded a 38.80 time in Walnut, California, on 16 April, and is now practically sure their sprint relay will be qualified for Athens Olympic Games.
In this event, a second team from Brazil was second (39.68), and Venezuela came in third (40.22).
In the 4x400m, the other relay of the day, Brazil’s “A” team (Diego Venâncio, Valdinei da Silva, Luis Eduardo Ambrósio and Anderson Jorge dos Santos) took the victory in 3:05.07. Venezuela was second in 3:06.54, same time as the Brazil “B” team, while Poland, who came to Brazil with high expectations, was only fourth in 3:06.99.
In the 110 metres hurdles, South American record holder (13.34 from 2003) Redelen Melo dos Santos won with a good time of 13.49 (-0.5 wind), ahead of Mateus Inocêncio (BRA) 13.54, Paris finalist Márcio Simão de Souza (BRA) 13.74, and Colombia’s Paulo Villar (13.75).
Redelen was coming from a season’s best of 13.48, time recorded the previous weekend at the “Orlando Guaita” meet in Santiago de Chile.
Other event winners were American Derrick Brew in 400 metres (45.96), Moroccan Khalid Tighazuoine in 800 metres (1:46.91), Brazilians Fabiano Peçanha in 1500 metres (3:38.45, a personal best) and Fernando Alex Fernandes in 3000 metres Steeplechase (8:38.96), Cuban Lisvany Pérez in the High Jump (2.25m) and Germany’s Peter Esenwein in the Javelin (78.32).
In this event, 18 year-old Brazilian Júlio César de Oliveira, the 2003 World Youth Champion was third with 74.42m, a new national junior record.
Good victory for Ostapchuk in the Shot
Beforehand, it was expected that the Women’s Shot Put would be a high class competition, and at the end, it certainly was.
Belarus’ Nadezhda Ostapchuk established the second best performance of this year’s early world lists with a 19.19m effort. Cuba’s Yumileidi Cumbá was second with 19.06m, and Trinidad & Tobago’s Cleopatra Borel (18.33m) and Netherland’s Lieja Tunks (18.25) were also above the 18 metres-barrier.
Ostapchuk’s series was: Foul, 18.41, 3 fouls and 19.19 in her final attempt.
Good marks were also recorded in other track events. Cayman Island’s Cydonie Mothersill won the 200 metres in 22.93 (a season’s best; -0.7 wind) ahead of Jamaican Beverly McDonald, who clocked 23.21.
Guyana’s Aliann Pompey, the 2002 Commonwealth Games champion, took the 400 metres in a season’s best of 51.58, ahead of USA’s Monique Hennagan (51.67).
The 800 metres was a close race between Jamaica’s Michelle Ballentine and Mozambique’s Tina Paulino. Ballentine was victorious in 2:00.88, a personal best, while Paulino - Maria Mutola’s cousin - clocked 2:00.96, a season’s best.
Brazilians Luciana Mendes and Juliana Paula de Azevedo followed with 2:01.58 and 2:02.60 (a personal best for the 20 year-older).
The 100m Hurdles went to Jamaica’s Lacena Golding-Clarke (12.97) while the 400m Hurdles was won by South Africa’s Surita Febbraio (55.83). Ukrainian Yelena Antonova won the Discus in a season’s best of 61.43m, ahead of Poland’s Joanna Wisniewska (60.41).
Both women’s relays, which had the added importance of offering qualification for the Olympic Games, went to Brazilian teams.
The 4x100m was taken in 44.24 by the “A” squad (Luciana dos Santos, Lucimar de Moura, Kátia Santos, Rosemar Coelho Neto), ahead of the “B” team with 44.68, and Colombia (44.89).
The 4x400m team winning time was 3:32.27 (Lucimar Teodoro, Maria Laura Almirão, Lorena de Oliveira, Geisa Coutinho). Venezuela was second with 3:37.80, and the “B” team from Brazil was third in 3:38.60.
Most of today’s star will compete in next Sunday’s meeting in Belém, State of Pará, at the 20th edition of the “GP do Brasil”.
Eduardo Biscayart for the IAAF