European javelin champion Ruuskanen prevails in Stockholm
By John Mehaffey
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Finland’s new European champion Antti Ruuskanen defeated a classy men’s javelin field including the other two Zurich medallists and the 2014 world leader at the Stockholm Diamond League meeting on Thursday.
On a difficult evening for the athletes with frigid conditions and shifting winds followed by light rain towards the end of the meeting, at the Stockholm 1912 Olympic stadium, Ruuskanen won with his second throw of 87.24 metres.
Egypt’s Ihab Abdelrahman, who holds this year’s world best of 89.21, was fifth while Czech Vitezslav, the European silver medallist who had prevented a Finnish clean sweep, finished in last place. German Thomas Roehler was second and Finn Tero Pitkamaki, the bronze medallist in Zurich, was again third.
“I had problems with my shoulder so I took only three throws,” Ruuskanen told reporters. “I’m happy again today and I’ve got a lot of power now.”
There was a shock in the men’s pole vault when French Olympic champion and world record holder Renaud Lavillenie, unbeaten in his previous 22 competitions, failed to clear a height.
“I didn’t hurt myself, it was just really hard tonight,” he told reporters.
“I was really close to the bar and the pole slipped in my hand so I was scared. This was the most difficult competition of the year for me.”
Greek Konstadinos Filippidis finished first with a vault of 5.60, the height Lavillenie was unable to clear in three attempts.
American Olympic champion Allyson Felix won the women’s 200 metres ahead of compatriot Tori Bowie in 22.85 seconds.
“I’m coming into form again after injury and slowly progressing,” said Felix, who failed to finish last year’s world championships final after injuring her right hamstring.
Another American, Queen Harrison, won the 100 metres hurdles in 12.66 after Olympic champion Sally Pearson was disqualified for false starting.
Michael Rodgers, the Diamond League leader in the men’s 100 metres, was also disqualified before the start of Thursday’s race, won by Jamaican world bronze medallist Nesta Carter in his season’s best of 9.96.
Ethiopian Muktar Edris outsprinted Thomas Longosiwa of Kenya to win the men’s 5,000 metres in 12 minutes 54.83 seconds, the fastest time in the world this year. Cheered on by a small but vociferous Ethiopian contingent, Edris bettered his own previous best by nearly nine seconds.
American Tianna Bartoletta stole the women’s long jump with her final leap of 6.98 metres, aided by a following wind of 2.3 metres. Frenchwoman Eloyse Lesueur, who had led since the second round with a wind-assisted 6.94 metres, was second.
“The windy conditions made it a challenge but was it was a challenge for all of us so that it made it an equaliser,” said Bartoletta. “We were jumping up and down in our tracksuits to keep warm but I kept my focus.”
(Editing by Pritha Sarkar)
