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More news articles Farah strikes gold in Turin
British record-holder storms to 3000m victory in a championship record of 7:40.17
MO FARAH won Britain’s first gold medal of the European Indoor Championships with a hard fought victory in a nail biting race against the Frenchman Bouabdellah Tahri. Farah does owe team-mate Mark Draper some recognition, as the third-ranked Brit in the final split the field at an early stage with a sub-30 opening 200m and a 60-second opening 400m. After Draper began to fade, Farah forged through 1km in 2:33.54 and kept the pressure on with consistent laps of 30 or 31-seconds and only Tahri, Turkey’s Selim Bayrak, the British no.2 Nick McCormick and the European 5000m champion Jesus Espana from Spain could stay with Farah through halfway, but the latter two soon found themselves adrift off the pace.
Through 2km in 5:06.63 (2:33.09), Tahri, who took the silver in Birmingham, looked like the only athlete who could pose a threat to the pre-race favourite and British record-holder and Farah knew that he had to keep the pressure on to drop the 3:52-miler.
With 400m remaining, Farah began to forge ahead for the first time and the 25-year-old managed to draw out a 6m lead over the Frenchman but that lead did not extend until the final 150m, when the steeplechaser had nothing in his legs to pose a threat to the gutsy Brit, who had led for more than two-thirds of the race.
Farah claimed the gold medal and in doing so, the former European cross-country champion set a championship record of 7:40.17, which was his second fastest time on the boards, behind his British record in Birmingham last month.
Tahri got the silver (7:42.14) and Espana came through for his second consecutive bronze (7:43.29.)
McCormick ran as well as could have been expected, finishing sixth (7:52.07) and after setting the early pace, Draper finished 11th in 8:10.19.
Dwain Chambers stormed to a European and Commonwealth record in the second semi-final of 60m, which makes him the absolute favourite to take the gold medal tomorrow. Chambers scorched to a 6.42 clocking, to move to third on the all-time lists and only Maurice Greene at 6.39 and Andre Cason at 6.41 have run faster. Chambers smashed Jason Gardener’s national record of 6.46, as well as improving Colin Jackson’s championship record of 6.49. This was also the fastest time in the world since 2001.
Simeon Williamson and Craig Pickering will ensure that there will be three British athletes in the final. Williamson was the second fastest at 6.57 and Pickering, after a poor start, qualified as the equal fourth fastest at 6.63.
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