Boulami breaks own record to steal show
Timothy Collings, Reuters, Zurich, Switzerland
Moroccan Brahim Boulami stole the glory from America's sprinters when he smashed his own 3,000 meters steeplechase world record on an evening of top performances at the Zurich Golden League meeting here on Friday.
American Tim Montgomery upset pre-race predictions of a high- speed showdown between Olympic and world champion compatriot Maurice Greene and newly-crowned European champion Dwain Chambers of Britain to win the men's 100 meters.
Another American Marion Jones maintained her personal chase for gold when she won the women's 100 meters for the fifth time in the five Golden League meetings of the season so far.
But it was the stunning performances of Boulami, 30, who broke his own record and left the steeplechase field trailing behind him, that captured the hearts of a capacity crowd at the Letzigrund Stadium.
Boulami's winning run in seven minutes and 53.17 seconds shattered his own year-old world record set in Brussels and confirmed his status as the first non-Kenyan since 1976 to be the unrivalled record-holder for the event.
"I knew it was possible for me to run a world record race. The first kilometer was not so quick, so I pushed hard in the second half of the race.
"When I saw the split time of 5:17 I started to think that it was really possible and it was great to do it. For the moment, it seems it is the end of the Kenyan dominance - but I am sure they will try to come back and win this record again."
Boulami's previous record was set in Brussels on Aug. 24 last year when he clocked 7:55.28.
Maria Mutola of Mozambique was another who endeared herself to the knowledgeable crowd after winning the women's 800 meters in the Swiss city for the 10th consecutive year.
"Zurich is always special," said 29-year-old Mutola. "To win here for a tenth time is just unbelievable."
Mexican runner Ana Guevara maintained her hopes of a share of the promised 50 kilos of gold to be split among those athletes who win all of their Golden League events this summer, with her triumph in the women's 400 metres.
The 25-year-old delivered her fifth successive Golden League win of the year after triumphs in Oslo, Paris, Rome and Monte Carlo to stay on course for a share of the jackpot.
She beat second-placed Russian Olesjha Zykina by more than a second as she clocked her year's best time of 49.16 seconds.
Romanian Gabriela Szabo also shone with a spirited and fast last-gasp victory in the women's 1,500 meters. Her time of three minutes and 58.78 seconds was her best of the year and faster than that set by Turkey's Sureyya Ayhan, who beat her in a major upset to win the European Championship gold in Munich last week.
Szabo came home just ahead of American Suzy Favor Hamilton to confirm her return to top form following a dip after winning the world championship last year.
In the men's triple jump Briton Jonathan Edwards, the Olympic and world champion, resumed winning ways by finishing ahead of Cuban Alexander Martinez and Sweden's Christian Olsson, gaining some satisfaction after his defeat by the Swede at last week's European Championships where he was third.