Hurdler Pearson begins bid for gold

6 Aug 2012, 11:30 am   -   Source: Reuters
Sally Pearson of Australia competes in the women's 100m hurdles heats during the Diamond League London Grand Prix athletics meet at Crystal Palace in London July 14, 2012. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett

Sally Pearson of Australia competes in the women's 100m hurdles heats during the Diamond League London Grand Prix athletics meet at Crystal Palace in London July 14, 2012. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett

LONDON (Reuters) - After watching arch sporting rivals Britain enjoy a gold rush at the athletics, Australia will be hoping to have something to crow about when Sally Pearson starts her bid to add the Olympic 100 hurdles title to her world one on Monday.

LONDON (Reuters) - After watching arch sporting rivals Britain enjoy a gold rush at the athletics, Australia will be hoping to have something to crow about when Sally Pearson starts her bid to add the Olympic 100 hurdles title to her world one on Monday.

World record holder and overwhelming favourite David Rudisha of Kenya lines up in the men's 800 heats and in the evening session Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva goes for her third successive Olympic title (1800) as five gold medals will be decided.

Pearson comes into the heats favourite for the hurdles having run five of the 10 fastest times this year but she suffered a rare defeat in her final race before the Games, losing to American Kellie Wells at a rain-drenched Crystal Palace last month.

Wells is also competing in London as is her compatriot Lolo Jones who will have a shot at redemption after falling in the final in Beijing four years ago when she was heading for a medal.

The race was eventually won by Dawn Harper who returns to defend her title.

There have only been three women's Olympic pole vault finals and Isinbayeva has won two but since taking gold in Beijing the only major title she has won was the world indoors in March.

However, the world record holder topped her qualifying pool and said: "After today I am really confident for the final. I feel in top form."

Qualifying for the women's shot put takes place in the morning with the final at 1815 GMT and it will be a huge shock if the title does not go to either world and Olympic champion Valerie Adams of New Zealand or Belarusian Nadezhda Ostapchuk who has the three furthest throws this year.

All the main candidates made it through to the men's 400 hurdles final (1945), which takes place on the 20th anniversary of Kevin Young's 46.78 world record, although home favourite and world champion Dai Greene will need to improve after only qualifying as a fastest loser.

"I just really don't know what went wrong," Greene told reporters after finishing fourth in his heat with only the top two guaranteed to go through.

"I should be able to do better than that - I know I'm better than that. I shouldn't be making the final that way."

He will be up against Olympic champion Angelo Taylor of the U.S, 2004 Athens winner Felix Sanchez of the Dominican Republic, who ran a world leading time of 47.76 in the semis, and Puerto Rico's world silver medallist Javier Culson.

Teenage world 400 metres champion Kirani James will be aiming to give Grenada their first Olympic medal (2030) and the women's steeplechase final also takes place (2005).

(Editing By Ed Osmond)

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