Three-time world champion John Godina of the United States failed to make the final of the shot put at the World Athletics Championships on Saturday, and Justin Gatlin confidently started his quest to add the world title to his 100m Olympic gold.
Godina threw only 19,54m, well below his season-leading mark of 22,2m, and finished 17th. Only the top 12 advanced.
The Americans had been hoping for a sweep of medals later on Saturday. Christian Cantwell had the top throw with 21,11m, and Adam Nelson also qualified easily with a throw of 20,35m.
On a sunny opening morning at the Olympic Stadium, Gatlin breezed through his heat, slowing down at the end and clocking 10,16 seconds.
”It felt good to get those little jitters out of the way. Even if you are a champion, you always have those first-round jitters,” Gatlin said.
Even though his time was slow, Gatlin said he could turn it on whenever he wanted.
”If it takes a world record, I will go out and run a world record. Even if it is cool I will do what it takes,” he said.
Gatlin’s task in the 100m was made easier by the no-show of world-record-holder Asafa Powell, who is out with a groin injury after setting a mark of 9,77 seconds early in the season.
Defending champion Kim Collins also won his heat, in a slow 10,31 seconds.
”No need to run spectacularly in the first run,” Collins said. ”I’m just trying to make it to the finals, that’s the plan.”
Jason Gardner also got through by winning his heat in 10,19.
Olympic 200m champion Shawn Crawford also went through, even though he was beaten by Portugal’s Francis Obikwelu in his heat.
Later in the championships, Gatlin wants to add more golds in the 200m and 400m relay to emulate the 1999 feat of sprinting great Maurice Greene.
Olympic heptathlon champion Carolina Kluft, performing on a tender ankle, had a bad start to the defence of her world title.
”I was not confident about my foot and I was not able to push hard on it. If you are not confident, it is impossible to be at your best,” Kluft said.
After the Swede finished second to France’s Eunice Barber in the opening 100m hurdles, the margin widened further during the high jump. Kluft cleared 1,85m — 9cm below her season’s best. Barber, the 2001 champion, equalled her best this season with a jump of 1,91.
Barber led Kluft 2 252 to 2 099 after two events.
Their rivalry is one of the highlights of the opening weekend at the world championships.
”I don’t want to be in her shoes right now,” Barber said of Kluft’s injury. ”I really understand how she would feel. You have to be really fit to do well in the [heptathlon], and she’s got a long way to go.”
Even though Tatyana Lebedeva qualified for the final of the triple jump, the Russian forfeited two attempts after a mediocre opening jump of 14,15m and scraped through as the 10th of 12 qualifiers.
Lebedeva is still unbeaten in Golden League meets, but a tender Achilles at the Oslo meet last week has cast doubt on her fitness.
She is going for a third straight title.
”I have a slight problem in my foot, so I wanted to use as little energy as possible to be fit for the final,” Lebedeva said.
Godina was going for his fourth.
Despite his age of 33, Godina insisted he was far from finished after his early exit. He said four injuries and two illnesses had slowed him down this season.
”I had a major foot injury and that just finished things,” Godina said. ”I kind of wish the worlds had been closer to the injury because I would still have had some rhythm.
”You do what you can and, obviously, today that was not a heck of a lot,” he said.
Godina and his two teammates had combined for the nine best marks in the world heading into the competition.
After winning his first world title a decade ago, he will continue to compete and plans to train for ”two more Olympics”.
In the 400m hurdles, defending champion Felix Sanchez cruised into the next round despite a right-foot injury that has spoiled his season so far.
”It was a technically horrible race from start to finish,” said Sanchez, who was limping badly after the race.
Nineteen-year-old Kerron Clement, who has the top time this year, was fastest in 48,98 seconds.
In the 800m, defending champion Maria Mutola is seeking her fourth title to gloss over her worst season in years. She finished second in her heat to go through.
The first title of the championships is up for grabs in the men’s 20km walk, with Spain’s Francisco Fernandez the favourite. Olympic champion Ivano Brugnetti is convinced the first gold will go to Italy instead.
In the final event on the opening day, Paula Radcliffe will be looking for atonement after her failure to get a 10 000-marathon double in Athens, where she failed to finish either race. Now, she is downplaying Saturday’s 10 000 final and promises to centre on the marathon instead.
No woman has won both at a major event so far and Radcliffe will face tough opposition from four Ethiopians, led by teenage sensation Tirunesh Dibaba, who won a world cross country double this year, and added the indoor 5 000 world record.
Dibaba (19) is the defending 5 000 champion and earning two golds in Helsinki would also ensure the first 5 000-10 000 double. — Sapa-AP