Diamond League - Paris

:00:56. > :01:01.the ninth Diamond League of the season. Many French people were

:01:01. > :01:05.locked indoors today watching their girl, Marion Bartoli, win Wimbledon.

:01:05. > :01:11.They have come out tonight. It is a few hundred tickets short of a

:01:11. > :01:17.sellout. It is quite a majestic arena when it is setup for

:01:17. > :01:22.athletics. It promises be fantastic. There is a stellar line-up. Many

:01:22. > :01:32.global stars. Nobody bigger than a certain Jamaican who happens to be

:01:32. > :02:04.

:02:04. > :02:09.at ten minutes to nine. Plenty more to see before that. It is worth

:02:09. > :02:16.having a quick nod in the direction of that race. It is his compatriots

:02:16. > :02:21.from Jamaica will be the biggest competition? Absolutely. There is a

:02:21. > :02:28.little vicious rumour going around that he manipulated the lane draw,

:02:28. > :02:34.so he is outside his main rival, Weir. He may be a little bit

:02:34. > :02:40.worried. But he is the main man. guess you can pull rank when you are

:02:40. > :02:47.against your team-mates. When you are trying to be the fastest man in

:02:47. > :02:50.training as well, that can be tricky! He did not look too rusty

:02:50. > :02:56.lately but every race he is going to be getting quicker in the build-up

:02:56. > :03:05.to the World Championships? Absolutely. He looks very lean. He

:03:05. > :03:07.looks like he has toned up a little bit. We have got the 400 metres

:03:07. > :03:17.hurdles up first. Perri Shakes-Drayton won in Birmingham

:03:17. > :03:28.

:03:28. > :03:31.last week. Another person looking better and better. Yes. Perri

:03:31. > :03:35.Shakes-Drayton was a little clunky over the barriers earlier in the

:03:35. > :03:40.year. Now that she has made the decision to focus on her hurdling,

:03:40. > :03:45.now you see the difference. Birmingham, under 54 seconds.

:03:46. > :03:51.Hejnova will have seen the result and said, OK, she has arrived.

:03:51. > :03:57.Seeing your main rival quite regularly, is that a good thing?

:03:57. > :04:04.Absolutely. You need to raise them more and more and more. Get used to

:04:04. > :04:10.their patterns. What I love to see is that this absolutely suits Perri

:04:10. > :04:16.Shakes-Drayton. She is in lane three. She can watch Hejnova around.

:04:16. > :04:20.And kick when she feels she is strong enough. We have not seen the

:04:21. > :04:25.best of Spencer for a few seasons. Will she get back to her best form?

:04:25. > :04:32.I have been watching and hoping. She is probably the most talented

:04:32. > :04:38.athlete in this field. Injuries have cost her her progression. You have

:04:38. > :04:43.just got to watch out. She can be dangerous. They are now revealing

:04:44. > :04:52.the athletes to the stadium. It is a fantastic arena in the sunlight. How

:04:52. > :05:02.quick will they go? It is reasonably warm. There is Perri Shakes-Drayton,

:05:02. > :05:05.

:05:05. > :05:14.smiling away. Lets see how she gets smiling away. Lets see how she gets

:05:14. > :05:24.on and join our commentary team. Hejnova is having a superb year this

:05:24. > :05:27.

:05:27. > :05:32.year. Moilne was second in the European Championships. -- American

:05:32. > :05:37.Championships. Spencer did not run in this event in the Jamaican

:05:37. > :05:45.Championships because she has a wild card being the Diamond League

:05:45. > :05:52.champion from last year. And in lane seven, Tracey, who took advantage of

:05:53. > :05:57.Spencer's absence in those championship. -- Championships.

:05:57. > :06:07.Rosolova of the Czech Republic on the outside. The question is,

:06:07. > :06:07.

:06:07. > :06:12.Hejnova continues to improve all the time. She has won six races out of

:06:13. > :06:18.six this season. Looking to make it seven. Shakes-Drayton inside her in

:06:18. > :06:28.lane three. Hejnova is in four. Moilne, the very good American, is

:06:28. > :06:30.

:06:30. > :06:40.in five. Those three women take up three of the top four spots in the

:06:40. > :06:49.

:06:49. > :06:55.of the blocks pretty quickly. Moilne has started the fastest through the

:06:55. > :07:05.first flight. Not much to choose between them. Moilne with a slight

:07:05. > :07:10.advantage perhaps. Hejnova putting the pressure on. Shakes-Drayton is

:07:10. > :07:16.going with her. Hejnova just fractionally ahead of the British

:07:16. > :07:23.athlete. These two pulling away from the others. Perri Shakes-Drayton can

:07:23. > :07:28.be strong in the home straight but so is Hejnova. It looks like it is

:07:28. > :07:37.going to be seven out of seven for Hejnova. Shakes-Drayton will have to

:07:37. > :07:46.fight to hold on to second place. Hejnova wins it! A new personal

:07:46. > :07:51.best, just outside the world lead. This woman keeps getting faster and

:07:51. > :07:55.faster. It would be difficult for Shakes-Drayton. It is a new national

:07:55. > :08:05.record as well as personal best. How much better? How much quicker can

:08:05. > :08:05.

:08:05. > :08:13.she get? Perri Shakes-Drayton just inside 54 seconds in second place.

:08:14. > :08:17.The American held on for a third. Perri Shakes-Drayton tried to match

:08:17. > :08:27.your stride for stride but she lacks that fluency over the barriers that

:08:27. > :08:30.

:08:30. > :08:34.Hejnova does. Hejnova is so powerful than the home straight. She is just

:08:34. > :08:40.about on catchable in this discipline. A national record. There

:08:40. > :08:44.is no shame in losing fur Perri Shakes-Drayton. Another solid run

:08:44. > :08:51.after her win in Birmingham last week. At the moment this lady is

:08:51. > :08:55.winning by many metres. Very impressive. Looks pretty comfortable

:08:55. > :09:05.as well. Good technique and a well-balanced, well judged race.

:09:05. > :09:13.

:09:13. > :09:18.53.23. Maximum points. Hejnova, a personal best and national record,

:09:18. > :09:25.she is the athlete in form. Perri Shakes-Drayton, we will give you a

:09:25. > :09:35.couple of seconds. Hejnova was the lady to beat. How was your race?

:09:35. > :09:36.

:09:36. > :09:43.was OK. It is a good thing this is not the World Championships. I need

:09:43. > :09:53.more races. I'm curious to know what more races. I'm curious to know what

:09:53. > :09:55.

:09:55. > :10:00.time I ran. 53.OK. I thought you were going to say 54. You could have

:10:00. > :10:05.been more fluent, perhaps. But the reality is that if you're still

:10:05. > :10:12.going under 54 seconds and not happy, that is a good sign?

:10:12. > :10:17.Definitely. It is about pacing it in the next five weeks, isn't it? How

:10:17. > :10:22.much racing do you need to do? think I have got two more races. I

:10:22. > :10:29.have got my trial next weekend. That will be important for me. Then I

:10:29. > :10:35.have London. The anniversary games. Look forward to seeing you at both.

:10:35. > :10:44.Well done. She felt she had run slower. That is actually a positive,

:10:44. > :10:47.isn't it? She's just outside of her season's best. I am really happy

:10:47. > :10:52.with that performance. Deep down I know she would have wanted to run

:10:52. > :10:58.better. It is a solid performance. Going under 54 seconds, not at your

:10:58. > :11:02.best, feeling there is work to do, that is good. Let's show you what

:11:02. > :11:07.else is coming up this evening. Greg Rutherford is going in the long

:11:07. > :11:13.jump. Nobody really stamping their feet into the sand so far this

:11:13. > :11:21.feet into the sand so far this evening. The men's 400 metres coming

:11:21. > :11:27.up in a moment. Tirunesh Dibaba looking to post a world leading time

:11:27. > :11:33.in the women's 5000 metres. Will Marilyn Okoro go under two minutes

:11:33. > :11:40.in the women's 800 metres? The 110 metres hurdles is world class as

:11:40. > :11:44.well. A good 1500 metres field in the men's event. And then Usain

:11:44. > :11:54.Bolt, amongst others, in the 200 metres. The men are out for the

:11:54. > :12:11.

:12:12. > :12:21.men's 400 metres. LaShawn Merritt is catching the world champion. He

:12:22. > :12:23.

:12:23. > :12:28.is storming away! James is going to is storming away! James is going to

:12:28. > :12:32.take Olympic gold! 43.94! It is hard to look past these two.

:12:32. > :12:39.The only time either have been beaten this season is by the other

:12:39. > :12:45.one. It is a head to head? It is an interesting head to head. Former

:12:46. > :12:50.Olympic champion Merritt, James, we would describe him as the pretender.

:12:50. > :12:57.He is still very youthful. He enjoys running. That is the most important

:12:57. > :13:07.thing. He enjoys the competition. Even though they have got titles

:13:07. > :13:09.

:13:09. > :13:15.under their belt... The important thing is for him to go out and enjoy

:13:15. > :13:19.himself. And why not, when you are so young and so good? He is an

:13:19. > :13:27.absolute hero back home as well. The main road in grenade named after

:13:27. > :13:31.him. He is a champion of the island. People hero worship him. Yes. And

:13:31. > :13:41.they enjoy his success. He is like their ambassador. He announces to

:13:41. > :13:46.

:13:46. > :13:51.the world where they are. It is good to see this. Quite a few American

:13:51. > :13:55.athletes in the field. They are done with their trials. It is a very

:13:55. > :13:58.simple straightforward system. Maybe we will get onto the other systems

:13:58. > :14:04.later. They know who is going to the World Championships. Does that

:14:04. > :14:10.release you in a way because you can race in the build-up to a

:14:10. > :14:16.championship, not chasing a place? It is cut and dried. Swings and

:14:16. > :14:20.roundabouts. If you've made the team, yes, you can sit back and

:14:20. > :14:24.relax. If you have not made the team, you can go out there and make

:14:24. > :14:28.money. Also, you are slightly depressed because you really want to

:14:28. > :14:35.be at the championships. Ultimately that is where you want to be. It is

:14:35. > :14:39.great to run fast, yes. But you need to be at the championships. This

:14:39. > :14:49.track is not known for the quickest times. It is below the level of the

:14:49. > :14:53.same. -- of the River Seine. It affects the spongy nurse of the

:14:53. > :15:01.track? They say that. Some athletes track? They say that. Some athletes

:15:01. > :15:07.will do really well This track is not so good because you had a slow

:15:07. > :15:17.time on it? ! We will see this evening if we get some world leading

:15:17. > :15:26.

:15:26. > :15:32.times. Christopher Brown was recently third in the Bahamas

:15:32. > :15:37.Championships. He will be nearly 38 in Rio, but says he wants to keep

:15:37. > :15:43.in Rio, but says he wants to keep going. David Furber was the world

:15:43. > :15:49.number seven this year, but he ran on the 45 years. Very high standard.

:15:49. > :15:56.This man has turned the tables on the champions, , only 20 years old,

:15:56. > :16:06.world junior champion back in 2010, and the fastest man in the world

:16:06. > :16:07.

:16:07. > :16:11.this year. Merit goes out in Lane number five. He is only 27, and had

:16:11. > :16:21.to hand over the mantle of world number one to the young man from

:16:21. > :16:24.

:16:24. > :16:28.Granada. Tony McQuade second in the US Championships three weeks back.

:16:28. > :16:33.The European champion from last year, who won the European indoor

:16:33. > :16:43.Championships in January. Has not been in great form this year in the

:16:43. > :16:47.

:16:47. > :16:51.Diamond League. Completing the line-up Anne and he was a bronze

:16:51. > :17:01.medallist in the games last week. 45.7, his lifetime best this season.

:17:01. > :17:03.

:17:03. > :17:08.A nice rematch between James and Shawna merit -- Shawn Merritt. They

:17:08. > :17:14.are 1-1 at the moment, James won in Doha, each defeated by the other in

:17:14. > :17:21.the last two races. Those are the only losses they have recorded. They

:17:21. > :17:25.share the lead in the Diamond League race as well. One of them or get

:17:25. > :17:29.macro -- four points from this. Although Moscow was a few weeks

:17:29. > :17:37.away, this matters. They will care about who takes this one. Conditions

:17:37. > :17:42.glorious, slight breeze. James, Neolithic champion -- the Olympic

:17:42. > :17:52.champion in Lane four. Away they go, in the centre of the field, the

:17:52. > :17:59.almost black stripped James, he tends to finish well as does

:17:59. > :18:03.Merritt. A similar running style. James and the light blue, centre, a

:18:03. > :18:13.bit of work today. James has run aggressively through the first 200

:18:13. > :18:15.

:18:15. > :18:19.metres. Karami James looks like he is coasting. Now James starts

:18:19. > :18:25.pumping hard with the arms. He is coming through. Easing away, keeping

:18:25. > :18:33.that one metre gap. Not enough to catch him. And look at the time,

:18:33. > :18:40.43.96, the first sub 44 of 2013, and that was a comprehensive run from

:18:40. > :18:50.the youngster. The maturity of his racing form technique, strategy,

:18:50. > :18:51.

:18:51. > :18:55.that belies his age. Merritt was outraced. It might have done better

:18:55. > :19:05.if he had not been on the outside of the American, and that was an

:19:05. > :19:08.

:19:08. > :19:11.absolutely textbook run from the young grenade in. - Granadan.

:19:11. > :19:16.agree wholeheartedly. He wants to let him know he is there. Had to

:19:16. > :19:20.work really hard round the top bend. And then was expected to come again

:19:20. > :19:23.and really pushed past him, but look how strong he is in the last 50

:19:23. > :19:32.metres. If anything he might have moved away another 30 or 40

:19:32. > :19:35.centimetres. Getting below 44, very close to his personal best. This guy

:19:35. > :19:45.has to continue to get better, but the fact he is right there with him

:19:45. > :19:49.

:19:49. > :19:55.and is pushing him so hard, that augurs well for a good year. McQuay

:19:55. > :20:05.back in third. A solid run from him, but what a run from the Olympic

:20:05. > :20:05.

:20:05. > :20:11.time or a personal best. James has the leading time in the world this

:20:11. > :20:17.year, he is on fire. Absolutely on fire. Below 44 is very special. You

:20:17. > :20:20.don't see it very often. This really proves the shape using, to do it in

:20:21. > :20:24.a head-to-head. He took the race on early, and he could have relaxed,

:20:24. > :20:29.but he decided to take it with him at his own game. -- the shape he is

:20:30. > :20:33.in. When you have got the main protagonist on your shoulder as

:20:33. > :20:37.well, that is the time to do it, especially in a world championship

:20:37. > :20:42.season, to show the kind of form you are in. It is always good to do it

:20:42. > :20:45.at the big meetings when no one is hiding. They are the top two 400

:20:45. > :20:48.metre runners in the world and it's great to see it. This is what the

:20:48. > :20:52.Diamond League is about. It gives the guy is the opportunity to go

:20:52. > :20:56.head-to-head and sort out who will be number one in the world going

:20:56. > :20:59.into the championships, but it might be a different story coming out. We

:20:59. > :21:02.talk about where you pick your race, and where you tail off, on the one

:21:02. > :21:05.hand the Americans know where they are because they have the selection

:21:05. > :21:10.criteria sorted out, but you run the risk of peaking early because you

:21:10. > :21:14.have to do the trials. Let's bring him in. Congratulations. Obviously

:21:14. > :21:19.going under 44 second, the leading time in the world. How good did it

:21:19. > :21:27.feel? It is a great feeling. I have come here, competing, the atmosphere

:21:27. > :21:30.is nice. Overall it was a good meeting for me. Talk us through the

:21:30. > :21:34.race, because you seemed to take him on. How much does it bring out

:21:34. > :21:42.having him there? It is all of those guys. They are very competitive as

:21:42. > :21:47.well. I have to give them credit as well. I think my win only looks good

:21:47. > :21:54.because of the other guys in the race. You are under 44 seconds. How

:21:54. > :21:57.much quicker can you go? We will have to wait and see. You have the

:21:57. > :22:03.world championships in five weeks time. Thinking about your programme

:22:03. > :22:06.before then, how many times will you race? We have to wait and see and go

:22:06. > :22:13.back to the drawing board and see what we have to work on and improve

:22:13. > :22:17.from there. Thank you very much indeed. It really sets a meeting

:22:18. > :22:24.like this light when somebody posts a time like that. What a cool guy.

:22:24. > :22:28.Absolutely. He just smiled when you asked how fast he could go. Perhaps

:22:28. > :22:32.we are going to see something very special at the world Championships.

:22:32. > :22:35.It is a competitive race, and that is what the crowd have come to see.

:22:35. > :22:40.No doubt about it, and they have already delivered. Two good races to

:22:40. > :22:43.kick the Diamond League. Giving the crowd what they want, and he also

:22:43. > :22:49.said it was about the rest of the field. And it shows you how strong

:22:49. > :22:55.the field was. Only two people Mr season 's best. That tells us the

:22:55. > :23:04.conditions. -- missed their season 's best. We could see an electric

:23:04. > :23:08.200 metres. Let's hope so. We still have some great field events, and

:23:08. > :23:11.like the long jump, Greg Rutherford, the Olympic champion is taking part.

:23:12. > :23:15.There were signs in Birmingham last week he was getting back to his

:23:15. > :23:22.best, but it's all worth -- always worth taking some time out to learn

:23:23. > :23:28.a bit more about Greg. Greg Rutherford, he leads at the moment,

:23:28. > :23:35.8.21. It is big. That will take some beating. And Greg Rutherford is the

:23:35. > :23:39.Olympic champion exhibition -- Olympic champion! . Winning the

:23:39. > :23:46.Olympic Games was the biggest thing ever. I will struggle to top that.

:23:46. > :23:51.So, for me, winning the Olympics. Sweet things, bad food. I love food.

:23:51. > :23:56.I don't think I've found anything I have disliked. I can juggle. I am

:23:56. > :24:00.pretty good with Coffey. I chucked all my eggs into one basket with the

:24:00. > :24:06.jumping, so I can't comprehend having other talents at the moment.

:24:06. > :24:10.Not that I can speak, anyway. It is probably my first sporting moment,

:24:10. > :24:13.watching Linford Christie with my dad and my brother winning in 1992

:24:13. > :24:17.in Barcelona. We were all getting really excited and jumping around.

:24:17. > :24:20.Then he won, and it was an incredible moment. A great bonding

:24:20. > :24:25.moment, and that got me so interested in track and field and

:24:26. > :24:30.sport in general. After that I think I was destined to be involved. I

:24:30. > :24:33.should have checked these beforehand. This is a tough one.

:24:33. > :24:39.That is a really tough one, actually. I can't think of anything.

:24:39. > :24:46.It is like picking your favourite film, and if it is that, I will be

:24:46. > :24:56.useless. How did I know? I genuinely don't think. I clearly don't like

:24:56. > :25:03.

:25:03. > :25:07.the evening. Tirunesh Dibaba going in the 5000 metres. Looking for a

:25:07. > :25:10.really quick time. Worth pointing out that these pictures are not from

:25:10. > :25:15.the BBC, we take the host broadcaster 's pictures, which is

:25:15. > :25:22.why it seems we might be jumping about from event to event. Let me

:25:22. > :25:27.tell you that Steve Lewis in the pole vault has got 5.60, a season 's

:25:27. > :25:31.best, and you will see that a bit later, I am sure. A strong field in

:25:31. > :25:41.this 5000 metres. They are looking for a quick time, a world leading

:25:41. > :25:42.

:25:42. > :25:52.time. Let's join the commentary team the world championships, and this

:25:52. > :26:04.

:26:04. > :26:07.ever, and if you want to wind the clock back to 2003, and what was a

:26:07. > :26:13.brilliant world Championships in this stadium, there were a lot of

:26:13. > :26:16.new, young gay Nash Dames -- and names coming around, and one of them

:26:16. > :26:20.was Tirunesh Dibaba, 18 at the time, and she became the world champion at

:26:20. > :26:25.the event. We had not heard much about them, but goodness me, she

:26:25. > :26:31.announced herself on the world stage. With a big, loud bang. Ever

:26:31. > :26:36.since then, to Olympic titles at 10,000 metres, and she's always been

:26:36. > :26:43.a good athlete to watch. As she gets older it's not surprising she wants

:26:43. > :26:46.to do every race flat out. But every now and then, with the crowds at the

:26:46. > :26:51.Diamond League, we see what the men do, you get a better depth in the

:26:51. > :27:01.5000 metres. It is much greater. I am not sure there is anyone in the

:27:01. > :27:02.

:27:02. > :27:07.field here who can give her too much to worry about. This will be a case

:27:07. > :27:15.of what Tirunesh Dibaba once. That is exactly right. Interesting see

:27:15. > :27:19.Gabriele Anderson -- to see. I had a chat with her, and she had a

:27:19. > :27:24.disappointing US Championships, only 11. This is her first-ever

:27:25. > :27:30.pacemakers role. She needs to be going round around 69 seconds per

:27:30. > :27:34.lap, and she went through pretty spot-on. About 68.5 at 400 metres,

:27:34. > :27:38.so a good job. But you are right, when Tirunesh Dibaba has a racing

:27:38. > :27:44.head on, no one in the field can trouble her. I wonder if she will go

:27:44. > :27:51.to the QuickTime, if the 10,000 is going to recover -- if the quick

:27:51. > :27:58.time. Maybe she could let the pace amble along and then test herself

:27:58. > :28:04.over the last 400 metres. We have seen her run 58 for the first 400.

:28:04. > :28:08.Meanwhile, the track starts, and Greg Rutherford, the Olympic

:28:08. > :28:14.champion in the long jump. A first-round effort from him. About

:28:14. > :28:17.7.7, there will thereabouts. Not too good on the board either. The wind

:28:17. > :28:27.speed affecting the jump so far, but only fairly modest. Not strong

:28:27. > :28:28.

:28:28. > :28:31.winds. Greg, on his day, the best in the world. Like Chris Tomlinson, his

:28:31. > :28:37.British rival, who is in the competition, he does not have the a

:28:37. > :28:41.standard for the world Championships, and Britain can only

:28:41. > :28:49.select Rutherford or Tomlinson for Moscow. Unless they both get the a

:28:49. > :28:53.standard. Yes, people mentioning that standard. Somebody was

:28:53. > :29:00.mentioning it during the week, as an interesting fact, that in the men's

:29:00. > :29:06.distance events, in the whole of Europe, there are only about macro

:29:06. > :29:13.-- for teams who can do it. It was very few men who had the a standard

:29:13. > :29:23.-- macro for teams. It does not bode well. Slightly different in the

:29:23. > :29:26.

:29:26. > :29:35.women's, but not that much by the world junior champion, in the

:29:35. > :29:40.yellow vest. I think the point you are making is that the a standard is

:29:40. > :29:43.incredibly difficult in some events, and in the men's long jump, that is

:29:43. > :29:46.8.25, and that would get you a medal in the world Championships because

:29:46. > :29:56.it's not an event going through a vintage period at the moment. I

:29:56. > :29:59.

:29:59. > :30:06.think some of those standards are significantly too hard. I agree. In

:30:06. > :30:11.significantly too hard. I agree. In the women's it is 15.15. You could

:30:11. > :30:14.argue that should not be too difficult to achieve. But in the

:30:14. > :30:23.World Championships we want as many athletes there competing. They

:30:23. > :30:29.should be competitive heaps in the 5000. Mauro that as we get closer to

:30:29. > :30:37.the championships. Anderson doing a great job here. She has done a

:30:37. > :30:42.sterling job as pacemaker. Clicking our watch as she goes through. Spot

:30:42. > :30:49.on through the first 1000 metres. She is maintaining that pace. Dibaba

:30:49. > :30:59.has slotted in behind her. Whether she keeps this going once Anderson

:30:59. > :30:59.

:30:59. > :31:04.drops out is another matter. So far, Anderson is setting the pace.

:31:04. > :31:14.It makes such a big difference when you get a good pacemaker. Nice,

:31:14. > :31:26.

:31:26. > :31:31.steady tempo. 69.25, metronomic competition in this poll vault. He

:31:31. > :31:41.is the only German here. The former world junior champion and an Olympic

:31:41. > :31:41.

:31:41. > :31:47.medallist in London last year. -- pole vault. No trouble at all. The

:31:47. > :31:51.story behind this young man is that this weekend is the German

:31:51. > :31:59.championships. He is going to get into a car late tonight, as soon as

:31:59. > :32:03.this competition is over, drive five or six hours to Germany and compete

:32:03. > :32:08.in the German championships tomorrow. He is pretty much

:32:08. > :32:10.confirmed for a place in the team. But to go to the World

:32:10. > :32:17.Championships, he has got to compete in the German national

:32:17. > :32:27.championships. Renaud led MLE, one of the great darlings of French

:32:27. > :32:39.

:32:39. > :32:46.athletics. -- Renaud Lavillenie. Add a bit of a disaster in laws and a

:32:46. > :32:51.couple of nights ago. That is much better. No problem at all. A good

:32:51. > :32:58.little opener from the Olympic champion. He is world indoor

:32:58. > :33:01.champion, Olympic champion, twice European champion. He said he had no

:33:01. > :33:06.excuses whatsoever for his performance in laws and the other

:33:06. > :33:16.night. On his behalf I will make one. It was windy and it was cool.

:33:16. > :33:19.

:33:19. > :33:22.The winning height was 5.72. It was not a great night for pole vaulting.

:33:22. > :33:32.Valid until the felony. This is his younger brother. -- Valentin

:33:32. > :33:39.

:33:39. > :33:47.Lavillenie. He came fifth in the Mediterranean games a few days ago.

:33:47. > :33:53.I bet that makes for some interesting dinner conversation. His

:33:53. > :34:03.second attempt at 5.60. No. Not quite as polished as his brother

:34:03. > :34:09.

:34:09. > :34:19.yet. He cleared 5.30 first time. He certainly gave that quite a platter.

:34:19. > :34:23.

:34:24. > :34:28.-- Quetta thump. Earlier on this evening we had the men's discus.

:34:28. > :34:38.Canter from Estonia opens slowly. Initially struggled to break 60

:34:38. > :34:40.

:34:40. > :34:49.metres. He was good enough for a third place. He is the third longest

:34:49. > :34:53.throw in history. Narrowly ahead of him was Hadadi. Last year's Olympic

:34:53. > :35:01.silver medallist, he only had three valid throws. The best of them came

:35:01. > :35:04.in around four. 65.53 was respectable will stop this, of

:35:04. > :35:14.course, is the Olympic and twice world champion, Robert Harting from

:35:14. > :35:16.

:35:16. > :35:23.Germany. A towering figure. Has lost two of his last three competitions.

:35:23. > :35:28.He threw good enough for the win. The smile is back. He is the man,

:35:28. > :35:33.remember, who famously likes to clear hurdles and rip his best to

:35:33. > :35:43.pieces when he wins those world titles. Four Diamond League points

:35:43. > :35:45.

:35:45. > :35:55.for Robert Harting. That keeps him in front of Canter and Malakoff ski.

:35:55. > :36:04.

:36:04. > :36:14.-- Canter. An interesting night for a French pole vault fans. Mess Neal

:36:14. > :36:20.

:36:20. > :36:30.will be retiring tonight. -- Mesnil. He has already gone out. This is the

:36:30. > :36:44.

:36:44. > :36:51.track. -- Dutra. Mesnil did a season's best. He is struggling as

:36:51. > :36:59.well. That is his second failure. Not happy at all. We can go back to

:36:59. > :37:04.the high jump. McPherson, the American. That is her second

:37:04. > :37:14.attempt. She goes through without any trouble. She is the fifth

:37:14. > :37:25.

:37:25. > :37:29.athlete clear. Barrett has had one failure. This is her second attempt.

:37:29. > :37:39.Almost scrapes over that one. Does just enough. Olympic silver

:37:39. > :37:39.

:37:39. > :37:49.medallist. That is 1.89. The sixth athlete clear. Now all eyes will

:37:49. > :37:57.focus on Jungmark. It has been interesting while we've been away.

:37:57. > :38:01.Anderson did a really good job as pacemaker. Dibaba then took over.

:38:01. > :38:11.Burka, the next most experienced athlete, tried to pick the pace

:38:11. > :38:16.

:38:16. > :38:26.began. Without really being able to, she was slipping to 70s and 70 ones.

:38:26. > :38:26.

:38:26. > :38:33.Iannone is the one who is left, the 21-year-old. -- Ayana. She has been

:38:33. > :38:42.dabbling with the steeplechase as well. She is the former world junior

:38:42. > :38:50.steeplechase record holder. I wouldn't imagine she thinks she can

:38:50. > :38:57.make the world 3000 metres steeplechase for the Ethiopian team.

:38:57. > :39:04.This is a big night for her. She could put herself in the frame for

:39:04. > :39:12.the Ethiopian 5000 metres team. She is doing well, hanging on Dibaba.

:39:12. > :39:18.Look at the splits. It has been a very quick race. The fourth

:39:18. > :39:22.kilometre was the slowest. Significantly. Dibaba gathering

:39:22. > :39:32.herself as she hits the bell. Guess what is going to happen now? Well,

:39:32. > :39:34.

:39:34. > :39:39.we expect anyway. Dibaba stretching away. There is not that

:39:39. > :39:44.scintillating burst of speed that we are used to. Remember when she first

:39:44. > :39:52.did this back in 2003, when she was just 18 years of age, at the world

:39:52. > :39:56.Championships in Paris. That was a real sharp intake of breath, with

:39:56. > :40:00.what she produced on the last lap. It doesn't look as if she is moving

:40:00. > :40:05.as quickly and as smoothly as she can do at her very best. But enough

:40:05. > :40:13.to beat this field. Just giving a nod to one of her young team-mates

:40:13. > :40:23.as she passes. It will be a pretty good time for Tirunesh Dibaba. Ayana

:40:23. > :40:25.

:40:25. > :40:35.behind. Dibaba takes the win. The fastest in the world this year. --.

:40:35. > :40:35.

:40:35. > :40:38.Ayana finishes second. Dragged along by Tirunesh Dibaba. But as quick as

:40:38. > :40:44.the time that had initially been suggested. I think Dibaba would be

:40:45. > :40:53.happy. She could easily have backed off. She tried to back off. Burka

:40:53. > :40:59.kept the pace going. Not a really big fast last lap. Well done to

:40:59. > :41:07.Ayana. She held on for as long as she could. She did not have the pace

:41:07. > :41:12.that Dibaba still possesses. Fastest time in the world this year. Most of

:41:12. > :41:16.the hard running coming in the last 200 metres. Not quite the zip there.

:41:16. > :41:26.I just wonder if that is because she did not want to crank it open any

:41:26. > :41:28.

:41:28. > :41:38.more than was necessary. -- crank it up. Not bad at all. Nine days after

:41:38. > :41:44.

:41:44. > :41:51.a pretty tough 10,000 in Oz B. -- Strabo. Three Olympic gold medals, a

:41:51. > :41:56.mass of world titles. She has pretty much done everything. Just watching

:41:56. > :42:06.others coming in behind. Watching the clock tick away. The likes of

:42:06. > :42:12.

:42:12. > :42:15.Twell just missed out. The top two were a long way ahead in the end.

:42:15. > :42:24.Only four women, just to underline the point we made at the beginning,

:42:24. > :42:31.under 15 minutes. Yes. And for me, 15 minutes is the benchmark of

:42:31. > :42:41.world-class. Strength in depth in women's running nowhere near as

:42:41. > :42:55.

:42:55. > :43:02.strong as the men. A new world leader for Tirunesh Dibaba. Ayana in

:43:02. > :43:12.second place. Burka in third. Utura, the only other athlete to get

:43:12. > :43:13.

:43:13. > :43:23.under 15 minutes. Molly Huddle will be delighted with her time. One or

:43:23. > :43:24.

:43:24. > :43:34.two others behind not able to pick it up the three laps. -- on the last

:43:34. > :43:36.

:43:36. > :43:39.it up the three laps. -- on the last three laps. When it is so

:43:39. > :43:44.competitive, you know you have got to post a great time to even

:43:44. > :43:52.qualify, you may be Olympic champion multiple times, but you still have

:43:52. > :43:58.got to get the times? It is certainly looking that way. I think

:43:58. > :44:02.the fact that she loves beating her old rival, she was enjoying the

:44:02. > :44:06.doing that. She will have at the clock and thought, it is not quite

:44:06. > :44:16.as quick as I had hoped but it is world leader. Establishing the

:44:16. > :44:17.

:44:17. > :44:26.pecking order in the Ethiopian distance running camp. Marilyn Okoro

:44:26. > :44:29.is in the 800 metres. She was beaten last week in Birmingham and was --

:44:29. > :44:39.by Jessica George, who went under two minutes for the first time in

:44:39. > :44:45.her life. What a prospect she is. What at chance for Okoro as well, to

:44:45. > :44:50.have a challenge. When you get a new fresh face involving Eurosport that

:44:50. > :44:59.does so well and burst onto the scene, yes, it can refocus you very

:44:59. > :45:04.quickly. With people dropping on the wayside, she would have thought she

:45:04. > :45:14.might have a clear run of qualifying and getting to the Championships,

:45:14. > :45:17.

:45:17. > :45:25.but along arrives Jesse J, to do her race, but it's a good opportunity

:45:25. > :45:28.for her. She can actually be in the pack can be towed around for a

:45:28. > :45:33.change. Last week in Birmingham, she did all of the hard work, pushing

:45:33. > :45:37.out everybody around her. She enjoys doing that and that is where she

:45:37. > :45:42.gets the majority of good times from. As we get into the season a

:45:42. > :45:51.bit more, she races more, gets into the groove, I think we will see her

:45:51. > :45:59.go under the two-minute barrier. They have got a pacemaker, but the

:45:59. > :46:04.girl from Bermuda, she is the quickest in the world this year.

:46:04. > :46:08.is the lead contender in this race. And with that in mind, where there's

:46:08. > :46:13.Marilyn pitch herself? Does she go with the pace from the beginning?

:46:13. > :46:17.She should go with the pace, but not lead it. These athletes are better

:46:17. > :46:22.than her, even though she was at her best, she would struggle to compete

:46:22. > :46:25.with these guys. At the best you should think about being there or

:46:25. > :46:33.thereabouts. She should be a bit more cautious with the first lap and

:46:33. > :46:37.use her strengths. Her coach is an experienced 800 metres runner, so he

:46:37. > :46:42.would have had a word to say to Marilyn, last week was one thing,

:46:42. > :46:49.get it out of your mind, enjoy racing, but race wisely. Let's hope

:46:49. > :46:59.she does that in this very strong field. There is the pacemaker, the

:46:59. > :47:04.

:47:04. > :47:13.Bulgarian, leading the pace. We week, third in Lausanne a couple of

:47:13. > :47:16.nights ago. And an Olympic finalist. Marina Arzamasova, the

:47:16. > :47:22.bronze medallist last year in the European Championship, she went a

:47:22. > :47:26.long way under two minutes in 2012. Kate Grace of the USA, fourth in the

:47:26. > :47:35.championship, won the New York meeting a few weeks back. She has

:47:35. > :47:41.never gone under two minutes. A 10th of a second off it, her best. Malika

:47:41. > :47:44.Akkaoui, for Morocco, she was due to be in the first line. She won the

:47:44. > :47:50.Mediterranean 800 metres title. A strong Moroccan pairing in this.

:47:50. > :47:56.Sharing the lane with her is Ajee Wilson. The world junior champion

:47:56. > :48:03.over the last three years. Third in the US Championships a couple of

:48:03. > :48:11.weeks back. Alysia Montano, she loves to run from the front, goes

:48:11. > :48:14.out hard. And there is Francine Niyonsaba. Just 20 years old. Her

:48:14. > :48:23.last defeat was in Berlin in September last year, on a wonderful

:48:23. > :48:31.streak. Svetlana usage has been asked to go out in 56 seconds, which

:48:32. > :48:40.is mighty quick. The world best was in the 1st of June is under threat

:48:40. > :48:45.today. Francine Niyonsaba, dawdling away when the gun goes, the slowest

:48:45. > :48:50.by several metres already. I wonder where her racing brain has gone.

:48:50. > :48:55.Montano, how Tim Lane number seven, she has gone off hard. She likes to

:48:55. > :49:05.push it through the early stages, and so does Marilyn Okoro. Quite a

:49:05. > :49:13.

:49:13. > :49:19.big field, 11 starters. Usovich Has gone out bouncing along, and you can

:49:19. > :49:26.see neon Saba -- Francine Niyonsaba coming into third, but she did start

:49:27. > :49:30.slowly. She did, but that's not so bad. She went off very slowly, but

:49:30. > :49:35.you can tell the others are watching her. Montano was in a good place,

:49:35. > :49:39.because she is so strong. She likes to get off her marks, so she will

:49:39. > :49:42.not necessarily be running hard. They both have clear air, but the

:49:42. > :49:45.others have not got into it as much as they should have done. Francine

:49:45. > :49:53.Niyonsaba looks as though she will have to start moving to close the

:49:53. > :49:58.gap on the American. 300 metres to go and do good pacemaking job.

:49:58. > :50:02.Montano went through in about 50.6. Still six or seven metres on the

:50:02. > :50:07.rest of the field although they are closing down. The pacemaker should

:50:07. > :50:12.move aside as she is not doing any good. Montano leading from Francine

:50:12. > :50:17.Niyonsaba. Then the Moroccan pair looking like twins in third and

:50:17. > :50:22.fourth. Marilyn Okoro coming round the outside in fifth at the moment.

:50:22. > :50:28.There is Kate Grace for the USA. Montano holding the lead. It comes

:50:28. > :50:38.Francine Niyonsaba, pumping hard, under threat from Malika Akkaoui.

:50:38. > :50:42.Montano losing ground. A big win, and the winning time, 1.57.26. It

:50:42. > :50:48.was perhaps a slightly smarter race from Francine Niyonsaba. Good

:50:48. > :50:57.running from Montano. Malika Akkaoui coming through second. There will be

:50:57. > :50:59.some good place times there. Her time confirmed at 1.57.26. A bit

:50:59. > :51:07.like one or two of the other Africans at the moment, dominating

:51:07. > :51:13.their events. A win by only a few tenths of a second ahead of a

:51:13. > :51:15.personal best for the Moroccan. A huge run for her. Montano, 1.57.75.

:51:16. > :51:19.In third, getting the reward for her. Montano, 1.57.75. In third,

:51:19. > :51:22.getting the rewards were brave run. Just waiting to see what Marilyn

:51:22. > :51:29.Okoro has run, because she was not far behind in fourth and it might

:51:29. > :51:37.have been a personal best. No, Kate Grace in fourth. 1.59.47. A season

:51:37. > :51:42.'s best for Marilyn Okoro. 1.59.76. She gets the standard. Some good

:51:42. > :51:47.steady runs behind the big names. Francine Niyonsaba has maybe only

:51:47. > :51:52.had ten big races in her career. She is learning her craft. With 300

:51:53. > :51:57.metres to go, you have to be careful, Montano is good. Neon Saba

:51:57. > :52:03.has just got so much humility. A bit more to offer than everyone else.

:52:03. > :52:08.She had to work hard down the home stretch. Malika Akkaoui running the

:52:08. > :52:10.race of her life in second. Montano, strong performance from the

:52:10. > :52:14.American. But Francine Niyonsaba, don't think anyone will find a way

:52:14. > :52:19.to beat this year because she can be so good on the second lap. As her

:52:19. > :52:22.experience grows, the race crafty were talking about, she has to

:52:22. > :52:29.develop that a bit more. She can make mistakes and still come away

:52:29. > :52:39.with a win will stop she can run 1.57 easier than most. They are flat

:52:39. > :52:44.

:52:44. > :52:47.out, but she can do it in different ways. Good running from Kate Grace.

:52:47. > :52:57.Francine Niyonsaba can win in any way, pretty dominant in the 800

:52:57. > :53:08.

:53:08. > :53:14.quick race, and maybe nobody more delighted than you, Marilyn, under

:53:14. > :53:20.two minutes. Thank you. I'm really happy. It has been an interesting

:53:20. > :53:24.few months for me. The coach said I was ready, just go out there, get

:53:24. > :53:27.faster in every race, and I've raced three times this week, and that was

:53:27. > :53:33.the plan, to race myself to fitness. I am happy to have got under two

:53:33. > :53:37.minutes. A bit of a bumpy ride, but it is coming. What changes your mind

:53:37. > :53:39.when you attack from the front? You go to the front and dominate and

:53:39. > :53:45.then you struggle up the home straight. What was the difference

:53:45. > :53:50.today, what was the decision? key thing is to run your race, your

:53:50. > :53:56.race plan. A fast pace is my rhythm. I come from a sprinter 's

:53:56. > :54:03.background. Some of the other girls are more endurance based, and it

:54:03. > :54:07.looks ridiculous sometimes when I overcook it, but even 52 seconds

:54:07. > :54:12.running at 400 is fine for me. Today there were a lot of girls are back

:54:12. > :54:19.and run at a faster pace. So the coach was like, just use them, let

:54:19. > :54:22.them pull you along. Next week there are the trials in Birmingham. What

:54:22. > :54:29.kind of pressure does it take off, and how does it change your mindset

:54:29. > :54:32.going into it, having run the a standard? A tremendous amount of

:54:32. > :54:36.pressure. You get the standard and you can focus on what is left to do

:54:36. > :54:40.to qualify, which is finishing in the top two. So after that Ultra

:54:40. > :54:47.three months I have had, I didn't know if I was running at all, but it

:54:47. > :54:53.shows I made the right decision -- tumultuous three months. My coach

:54:53. > :54:57.has mastered this event, so I can only listen to him. It seems to be

:54:57. > :55:04.working, so carry on, keep racing well. Isn't it great when a plan

:55:04. > :55:08.comes off? Yes, and it was good that she told us from her own mouth about

:55:08. > :55:11.why she runs the 800 metres in that way. She did it articulately and

:55:11. > :55:16.beautifully. We can pay her a lot of respect because we know how she runs

:55:16. > :55:22.and races. Macro white it is so interesting to hear why she attacks

:55:22. > :55:26.the races in these way. As she said, sprinter 's background, different

:55:26. > :55:30.from a distance background or cross country. Let's move to something

:55:30. > :55:33.that is definitely a sprinter's race, the women's 100 metres, and

:55:33. > :55:42.another strong field. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, English Gardner, they

:55:42. > :55:47.are the two outstanding women in the world. It certainly is a strong

:55:47. > :55:57.line-up. Let's join the commentary to this one and see who is nudging

:55:57. > :56:04.

:56:04. > :56:10.ahead as a likely candidate for gold beaten in Birmingham over 200

:56:10. > :56:14.metres, and she knows she has got her work cut out here, because

:56:14. > :56:24.English Gardner surprised everybody with a 10.85 clocking in the US

:56:24. > :56:24.

:56:24. > :56:29.championships. She also ran 10.87 in the heats. And Blessing Okagbare, in

:56:29. > :56:32.the shape of her life this year. Doing well in the long jump and with

:56:32. > :56:39.her sprinting. The big 200 metres victory over Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce

:56:39. > :56:45.in Birmingham last week. That was a confidence boost for her. Murielle

:56:45. > :56:52.Ahoure it, she did well from her silver last year. And the surprise

:56:52. > :56:56.winner in the Diamond League was this woman, Maria Rimini and. She is

:56:56. > :57:04.in lane number nine. Nine athletes. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce inlay number

:57:04. > :57:10.five. Ceri Ann Baptiste -- Kelly-Ann Baptiste to her left. English

:57:10. > :57:14.Gardner to her right. Conditions are pretty good. It has been warming

:57:14. > :57:19.Paris all day. Hardly a breath of wind in the stadium. Maybe they

:57:19. > :57:23.would have liked a slight following wind, but really good conditions

:57:23. > :57:32.here. It has not been this way in Paris for two or three years, I can

:57:32. > :57:42.tell you. The women's 100 metres. Blessing Okagbare could be a danger

:57:42. > :57:54.

:57:54. > :57:58.best start. Kelly-Ann Baptiste is there. Blessing Okagbare might get

:57:58. > :58:04.there. No, she doesn't, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce hangs on. Just when you

:58:04. > :58:07.saw Blessing Okagbare might get in, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce shows why

:58:08. > :58:13.she is the Olympic champion. Just enough in the end. 10.91 on the

:58:13. > :58:19.clock. She got a good start. Baptiste tried to get back involved

:58:19. > :58:21.and then faded towards the end. Blessing Okagbare was coming hard

:58:21. > :58:26.and chasing Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, and you thought the momentum would

:58:26. > :58:34.just carry her through. But in the last five metres the Olympic

:58:34. > :58:37.champion found something. Blessing Okagbare coming through strongly.

:58:37. > :58:41.She towers over Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. She leans a little bit

:58:41. > :58:47.too early, almost stumbles. She is beginning to lean about 15 metres

:58:47. > :58:49.out. She misjudges it. Fifth from left, right in the middle in the

:58:49. > :58:53.black, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, absolutely keeps going all the way

:58:53. > :58:57.through to the line. Funnily enough, doesn't really bother to dip, but

:58:57. > :59:01.she didn't need to. She knew she had the victory and I'm not sure if she

:59:01. > :59:08.was aware. I don't think she was aware the Blessing Okagbare was

:59:08. > :59:11.coming through. But disappointment for her. She just leaned into early.

:59:11. > :59:16.Watch as she comes into view on the other side. I hope she comes into

:59:16. > :59:19.view. The leaning forward was way too early, and Butler that she would

:59:19. > :59:25.have found the extra couple of inches, I'm sure. -- and but for

:59:25. > :59:30.that. She was coming and coming, and then doesn't quite get there.

:59:30. > :59:35.just ahead, and that angle isn't exactly right, but she looks for the

:59:35. > :59:39.line just a bit too early. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, just

:59:39. > :59:49.carrying on through. She maintained the speed. She almost stopped five

:59:49. > :59:54.

:59:54. > :00:04.metres, not stopped, but put the metres, not stopped, but put the

:00:04. > :00:07.

:00:07. > :00:12.brakes on by dipping too early. the top three running season's best.

:00:12. > :00:16.An hour ago you talked about how this track wasn't very well --

:00:16. > :00:23.wasn't running very well. Maybe it was you who wasn't running very

:00:23. > :00:27.well! Some really good times this evening. That man always seems to be

:00:27. > :00:31.the one to beat. He is having his rubdown ahead of his 200 metres

:00:32. > :00:36.later on. I think I would quite like to be lying down there having a mass

:00:36. > :00:41.eyes right now. He looks as though he hasn't got any worries in the

:00:41. > :00:48.world. No worries but I am sure he is a little bit anxious about his

:00:48. > :00:53.competition. We will try to get hold of Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. We are

:00:53. > :00:58.not in control of these pictures. If events pop up and we are not talking

:00:58. > :01:05.about them, that is because the host broadcaster is playing in field

:01:05. > :01:10.events which we cannot see. In the long jump, Greg Rutherford is behind

:01:10. > :01:20.Chris Tomlinson. Let's bring Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in. What a

:01:20. > :01:20.

:01:20. > :01:25.race that was? No thank you. Your fastest time in the world this year?

:01:25. > :01:31.It is not, actually. It is my fastest time. I am excited about

:01:31. > :01:35.everything that has happened so far. This season I am healthy. I was

:01:35. > :01:41.looking forward to racing and competing against the best.

:01:41. > :01:47.Hopefully I can deliver my best. you think blessing had it?

:01:47. > :01:50.really. I was not even looking. I knew it was not a great execution

:01:51. > :01:59.but it is a win and it is something to go back and look at and see how

:01:59. > :02:02.well I did, or how bad. How you feel compared to this stage last season?

:02:02. > :02:07.To be honest, I'm pretty -- I'm feeling pretty good. Training has

:02:07. > :02:12.been going good. No injuries. That is the most important thing as a

:02:12. > :02:17.sprinter. When we line up here, nobody knows if you are injured or

:02:17. > :02:21.not. They just want to see you compete. I am 100% healthy. I'm

:02:22. > :02:27.looking forward to competing against the best. I know you have got a

:02:27. > :02:32.salon back home. Will the hair change colour through the season?

:02:32. > :02:42.Yes, it will. I am going pink for the World Championships! Thank you

:02:42. > :02:45.

:02:45. > :02:48.very much. I just had to ask. will want to get that world title.

:02:48. > :02:53.She is obviously feeling good and looking good, and she is in great

:02:53. > :03:03.shape. There is a really high standard of competition taking place

:03:03. > :03:14.

:03:14. > :03:19.over there in the women's high jump. started off this season with an

:03:19. > :03:23.encouraging win in cold, windy, wet New York. It is great to see her a

:03:23. > :03:28.month or so later still in good form, gradually regaining that

:03:28. > :03:38.critical quality for a high jumpers, and that is confidence. I think she

:03:38. > :03:45.

:03:45. > :03:52.may yet be a force to be reckoned with. The three big names all clear.

:03:52. > :04:02.This was for clearance a few minutes ago. Those three starting to show

:04:02. > :04:03.

:04:03. > :04:13.why they are top of the pile this year. Simic still as one attempt

:04:13. > :04:16.

:04:16. > :04:25.left. Vlasic and Chicherova have yet to fail at any height. This is

:04:25. > :04:35.Chicherova. She passed at 1.92. She is just languid. She is a lovely

:04:35. > :04:37.

:04:37. > :04:42.technician. A little bit of a tough comeback for her. She is a mother

:04:42. > :04:52.now. Getting her life organised so she can train how she wants to.

:04:52. > :04:55.

:04:55. > :05:03.next event on the track is the men's 3000 steeplechase. Kemboi likes this

:05:03. > :05:13.venue. He won here in 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2008. We are looking for a

:05:13. > :05:33.

:05:33. > :05:36.steeplechasers is good form on the flat. The vast majority of them can

:05:37. > :05:41.really handle flat racing as well. That is probably what is lacking for

:05:41. > :05:47.the majority of female steeplechasers, which I think is

:05:47. > :05:57.really in the doldrums? Yes, I would agree. The depth has not appeared in

:05:57. > :05:58.

:05:58. > :06:04.the women's steeplechase. The time is getting nowhere near the world

:06:04. > :06:14.record at the moment. Not that you'd should be getting near the world

:06:14. > :06:45.

:06:45. > :06:52.know what pace they are doing. They have done this well in the past.

:06:52. > :06:55.Mekhissi-Benabbad not hanging about. He has got his coaching setup the

:06:55. > :07:00.way he wants it. He has been really preparing for this. This has been

:07:00. > :07:07.the target for a good few weeks. And you can see why. Let's hope he can

:07:07. > :07:13.get a bit of help. Kemboi likes Mekhissi-Benabbad as an athlete. He

:07:13. > :07:23.wants to try to help them. You'd think she could help them get a fast

:07:23. > :07:28.

:07:28. > :07:38.race tonight. They are coming into the straight. 2.39.60. Brilliant

:07:38. > :07:40.

:07:40. > :07:50.pacemaking. Five laps remaining. Co-edge just shadowing

:07:50. > :08:15.

:08:15. > :08:23.Mekhissi-Benabbad. -- kips allay he will be strong in the last 1000

:08:23. > :08:27.metres. Mekhissi-Benabbad will want a good race. He will want to be

:08:27. > :08:33.picking up the pace. The pacemakers have done a good job. Let's not

:08:33. > :08:41.forget, the European record he is after belongs to his big rise in --

:08:41. > :08:47.rival. We are told he will no longer steeplechase, which is sad. He has a

:08:47. > :08:57.stress fracture. That is the record. That is the target for

:08:57. > :08:58.

:08:58. > :09:02.Mekhissi-Benabbad. Kipsiele Koech moves in behind the two pacemakers.

:09:02. > :09:12.He is in third place behind the two pacemakers. The first pacemaker

:09:12. > :09:27.

:09:27. > :09:33.moves aside. Arab Taney has to get man at this distance this year in

:09:34. > :09:43.the world and the third fastest man in history. Three laps remaining.

:09:43. > :09:49.Even Kemboi has gone past McKenzie Ben Abad. The world record attempt

:09:49. > :09:55.may be going for the Frenchman. -- Mekhissi-Benabbad. He needs to dig

:09:55. > :10:05.deeper. Coming up towards 2000 metres. The Frenchman needs to hang

:10:05. > :10:18.

:10:18. > :10:24.on to the two Africans. 5.21.1. Pretty good pacemaking. Not bad.

:10:24. > :10:30.They should be able to clock up something below eight minutes.

:10:30. > :10:38.Certainly the front to because they have done it before. This is Vlasic

:10:38. > :10:44.in the high jump. This is two metres and one. No. Back to the

:10:44. > :10:49.steeplechase. Mekhissi-Benabbad is doing a great job. He will have to

:10:49. > :10:55.finish strong. He is probably not necessarily thinking about winning

:10:55. > :11:04.this race. But if he tries to race these two, he has got a better

:11:04. > :11:09.chance of getting the time. Kipsiele Koech still leading. Maybe there is

:11:09. > :11:15.a slowing in this penultimate lap as they gather themselves physically

:11:15. > :11:24.and psychologically for the charge on the final circuit. I don't think

:11:24. > :11:29.Mekhissi-Benabbad is going to break that European record. He is looking

:11:29. > :11:34.tired. One of the problems in running a big personal best in a

:11:34. > :11:38.middle-distance race is that the race is in your legs. It trains you

:11:38. > :11:47.a little bit. Maybe because he want to have the legs in the final

:11:47. > :11:54.circuit. Kemboi is now moving clear. They have slowed down. The Frenchman

:11:54. > :11:58.hits the front. There is a roar from the crowd. The race is on. He has

:11:58. > :12:06.got every opportunity. He is attacking this last lap. He knew the

:12:06. > :12:13.time was there. It is a race with Kemboi. I think he has got every

:12:13. > :12:18.opportunity. Look at the acceleration from Kemboi.

:12:18. > :12:26.Mekhissi-Benabbad needs to get his head down and drive on. Kemboi is so

:12:26. > :12:31.quick. He is so consistent, this man who came back last year and regained

:12:31. > :12:37.the Olympic title he had won in Athens. He has a little pitter

:12:37. > :12:41.patter stride as he hits the barriers. He clears it well.

:12:41. > :12:47.Mekhissi-Benabbad is going to run fast here. It will not be inside

:12:47. > :12:55.eight minutes, or is it? Kemboi is under it. I think he has done it! He

:12:55. > :13:04.might have done it! The winning time 7.59. My word, did they care around

:13:04. > :13:13.that last 200 metres? ! He embraces McKenzie Ben Abad and gives a wave

:13:13. > :13:20.to the crowd. -- Mekhissi-Benabbad. He had to chase so hard. He has run

:13:20. > :13:29.himself into the ground, the big Frenchman. Waiting for confirmation.

:13:29. > :13:34.It is the first soap eight minute time of 2013. I am pretty sure

:13:34. > :13:39.Mekhissi-Benabbad's time has beaten the European record. He may even

:13:39. > :13:46.have gone under eight minutes. The first European ever. It'll be so

:13:46. > :13:56.tight. We don't know yet. We will tell you as soon as it comes up. He

:13:56. > :14:00.is just outside eight minutes but it is a European record.

:14:00. > :14:06.Mekhissi-Benabbad. There aren't too many European records these days. It

:14:06. > :14:13.is quite a special occurrence, particularly on the track. What a

:14:13. > :14:21.great race. I have said that Kemboi likes this guy. He hoped he did it.

:14:21. > :14:25.He wanted to help them. He really only helped him on the last lap. The

:14:25. > :14:30.Frenchman got his head down. He realised he had a chance. Kemboi

:14:30. > :14:35.does not have the pace tonight that he does have. Even at this point, we

:14:35. > :14:42.know how good Kemboi is on the last two barriers. He finishes better

:14:42. > :14:47.than anybody. Mekhissi-Benabbad just needs to get his head down. Keep

:14:47. > :14:51.striving, keeps running hard. Yes, Kemboi is going to take the win.

:14:51. > :14:55.That is impressive. But Mekhissi-Benabbad has got the

:14:55. > :14:59.record. He is the 11th fastest of all time in the steeplechase.

:14:59. > :15:07.Goodness me, when he lies in his bed tonight, you will be thinking, I

:15:07. > :15:17.wish I run quicker. He could have got under the magical eight minutes,

:15:17. > :15:18.

:15:18. > :15:26.but a great run,. There is not a lot of love lost between the team-mates,

:15:26. > :15:32.we understand. Kemboi Enjoying that race, and topping the rankings for

:15:32. > :15:39.the time -- the time being. That is a world leading time and leading

:15:39. > :15:49.record. As I pointed out earlier, his fifth victory in this French

:15:49. > :15:52.

:15:52. > :16:02.meeting, at this stage of. An area record, a European record. -- this

:16:02. > :16:04.

:16:04. > :16:09.stadium. Renaud Lavillenie, a great one there, he loves this home crowd.

:16:09. > :16:15.Not so good in Lausanne, that is 5.77, and he leads in the pole

:16:15. > :16:24.vault. Only three men still left in this, Steve Lewis, in fifth, Brad

:16:24. > :16:27.Walker, he took fifth. Raphael Holzdeppe is out already and after

:16:27. > :16:34.the German championships. Blanka Vlasic, we saw her first failure at

:16:34. > :16:42.2.01. This is it. Her third attempt. Blanka Vlasic has had a good night

:16:42. > :16:51.already. She already has a season 's best with 1.95. Just looking, 1.98,

:16:51. > :16:59.she cleared that for third place at the first ask. One attempt left

:16:59. > :17:05.each. The crowd loving it. They are so close to her. She begins this

:17:05. > :17:10.long, long run-up. The acceleration on the curve. That was close -- not

:17:10. > :17:14.even close. That looked a little tired, that jump from Blanka Vlasic.

:17:14. > :17:18.I can tell you that Greg Rutherford has injured himself in the long jump

:17:18. > :17:27.and has a hamstring injury, which looks to have been pretty nasty. He

:17:27. > :17:31.has retired after three jumps. His best, 7.79 in the second round, but

:17:31. > :17:36.he has aggravated his hamstring injury and he could be in doubt for

:17:36. > :17:42.Moscow. Horrible news. This was a few minutes ago. The pressure was

:17:42. > :17:46.on, because that was a first-time clearance. She took to efforts to

:17:46. > :17:56.get over 1.98. But the Russian looks like she is coming into really good

:17:56. > :18:10.

:18:10. > :18:16.for just the right time. Gliding over 2.01. Smooth as you like. So

:18:16. > :18:26.Chicherova has got it won. The first time below eight minutes this year,

:18:26. > :18:28.

:18:28. > :18:32.ahead of the European record. Good pace and letting -- good pacesetting

:18:32. > :18:36.managed to set that up. I was kind of hoping when they rounded the

:18:36. > :18:39.times down that it might have just snuck under eight minutes. It is a

:18:39. > :18:45.European best time, but he will be kicking himself if he could have

:18:45. > :18:48.just gone that tiny bit quicker and gone under the magic eight minutes.

:18:48. > :18:52.It was only nine hundredths of a second, but a phenomenal

:18:52. > :18:56.performance. What a race, and the atmosphere here, you cannot put into

:18:56. > :19:01.words what it means to the home crowd. Just when one of their

:19:01. > :19:07.athletes produces, even though they were second. They understand a good

:19:07. > :19:11.race. They have seen a good, competitive race. The PA is keeping

:19:11. > :19:18.the crowd very informed, so they would understand how close he was to

:19:18. > :19:28.the record, and of course, he is French, they wanted him to do it.

:19:28. > :19:29.

:19:29. > :19:33.Never fails to disappoint. -- Kemboi never fails to disappoint. As soon

:19:34. > :19:39.as we can get a word with Greg Rutherford and how serious we think

:19:39. > :19:42.it is, it won't be for a while because he has to stay. The field

:19:42. > :19:52.competitions have been rich today. Let's catch up with the women's

:19:52. > :19:56.

:19:56. > :20:02.occasionally into the face. For a lot of the jumpers it was with them,

:20:02. > :20:09.and Olha Saladukha could not take advantage of the conditions. She is

:20:09. > :20:19.the world leader this year, but tonight she could only muster 14.55.

:20:19. > :20:25.

:20:25. > :20:30.Anarchy as the Ava -- Knyazheva, she added eight centimetres to her

:20:30. > :20:36.record in the very first round. That shook things up. For while it looked

:20:36. > :20:39.as though the unbeaten Caterine Ibarguen might struggle as well, the

:20:39. > :20:46.Olympic silver medallist. She came close in the second round, just a

:20:46. > :20:53.centimetre down, but then in the third going out to 14.69. That was

:20:53. > :20:57.into the worst of the headwind. But when it counted, she managed to pull

:20:57. > :21:05.out a pretty decent effort of 14.69 to record her sixth win of the

:21:05. > :21:15.season. That new national record, not a personal best, but an Israeli

:21:15. > :21:18.

:21:18. > :21:22.record at 14.58. Olha Saladukha long jump. This has been jumped

:21:22. > :21:29.quite well by him recently. Just starting to find a bit of

:21:29. > :21:32.consistency. It can be erratic, of course. In second place tonight.

:21:32. > :21:38.8.08 in the second round. He will be delighted with his position, but he

:21:38. > :21:41.will be after the a standard, that is 8.25 for the world Championships

:21:41. > :21:45.beckoning. Tim was talking about Greg Rutherford, and if he does have

:21:45. > :21:51.a serious problem which might rule him out of those world Championships

:21:51. > :21:57.then Tomlinson might find himself able to go on the B standard, but it

:21:57. > :22:02.is so far eluded him. The leader, Damar Forbes, since the second

:22:02. > :22:12.round. Two times over eight metres, there's only been four of those

:22:12. > :22:22.

:22:22. > :22:29.looked at the start list, he would have known there were some good guys

:22:29. > :22:32.in here, for the Louisiana State University man. He represented

:22:32. > :22:41.Jamaica, went back there, won their championships. That was his last

:22:41. > :22:44.competition. He ran a new 100 metres personal best. That is the secret

:22:44. > :22:54.with the long jump, get the speed right and transfer it into distance

:22:54. > :22:55.

:22:55. > :23:00.on the board. Still a bit ragged. When you see these jumps, the

:23:00. > :23:03.majority of the field, the majority struggling to get over eight metres.

:23:03. > :23:09.Only three so far, you realise how difficult the a standard ease of

:23:09. > :23:16.8.25. You must feel as though you might as well say they will take the

:23:17. > :23:22.first 12 in the world rankings. it is not Greg Rutherford's day, but

:23:22. > :23:26.Chris Tomlinson, we had a little chat with him on a little street

:23:26. > :23:31.outside the hotel and he walked by and said he felt on good form. But

:23:31. > :23:38.still not with the a standard. is very tough. The boys mentioned it

:23:38. > :23:43.in commentary. We think that the Federation know what they are doing,

:23:43. > :23:46.we hope. But the world record mark is only an 8.3, so that is a tough

:23:46. > :23:52.standard. It is an interesting event. Incrementally, the other

:23:52. > :23:57.events push on. But it almost seems to go in peaks and troughs, the long

:23:57. > :24:05.jump. We have not had a really strong era for a while with people

:24:05. > :24:08.pushing those distances. You used to have them coming out of America,

:24:08. > :24:15.like Dwight Phillips from America, he used to jump 8.6, and since he

:24:15. > :24:19.has been injured nothing has come close to him. The Panamanian he was

:24:19. > :24:24.jumping over 8.5, so it has been one of these events where we have not

:24:24. > :24:31.really seen it, live yet. I will be honest, I am pretty pleased to say

:24:31. > :24:38.that it is a Brit who won that. He is making the most bit. You can only

:24:38. > :24:44.beat what is in front of you. 8.35 is there or thereabouts. Let's

:24:44. > :24:48.hope the boys keep it healthy. will try to find out what has

:24:48. > :24:55.aggravated Greg Rutherford now. Not long now. It is nearly Usain Bolt

:24:55. > :24:59.time. He is running the 200 metres at about 9:50pm. We saw him run his

:24:59. > :25:05.personal best in the distance in Oslo. He has a lot of athletes on

:25:05. > :25:10.his coat-tails this season. He is not stretching his lead and looking

:25:10. > :25:14.unbeatable. This is a pivotal time. It is a good time for him to pick

:25:14. > :25:19.and choose where he races. We came to Rome and lost the 100 metres to

:25:19. > :25:23.Justin Gatlin, but he said then it was an awful race. He said that if

:25:23. > :25:27.you go under ten seconds running like that, your opponents have to do

:25:27. > :25:34.watch out. His next race would be the 200 metres in Oslo and we await

:25:34. > :25:40.it with bated breath. It came down the home straight, took it with

:25:40. > :25:47.19.79. He has not run the 200 cents. Today will be a real interesting way

:25:47. > :25:56.to see he will run it. -- he has not run a 200 since. It does feel good

:25:56. > :26:01.for him. It depends what he feels like. I hope he gets around in 19.6.

:26:01. > :26:06.We will see hopefully another fast race, a metres hurdles, Aries

:26:06. > :26:10.Merritt with the world record at the end of last season. And an injury in

:26:10. > :26:12.Shanghai this season has slowed down his progress. Perhaps he was a bit

:26:13. > :26:16.disappointed with the time last week. But is it more important in

:26:16. > :26:21.terms of the form and coming back from injury and building up slowly

:26:21. > :26:25.as we head towards the world Championships. I said to him, how do

:26:25. > :26:31.you feel, under pressure from yourself? He said he feels it more

:26:31. > :26:37.from other people. He needs to switch off and just do what Aries

:26:37. > :26:45.Merritt can do. It is always good to learn a bit more about our stars, so

:26:45. > :26:49.here is a bit more about Aries. 110 meter hurdles final. The number

:26:49. > :26:57.one in the world, Aries Merritt. Forging ahead. Goal for Aries

:26:57. > :27:06.Merritt excavation mark 12.94. -- gold for Aries Merritt! . Winning

:27:06. > :27:16.the gold in London 2012. Dedicated, determined and dependable. That

:27:16. > :27:21.would have to be salt and vinegar. My mum's sweet potato pie. It is the

:27:21. > :27:27.best food on the planet. I really shouldn't be eating it. My hidden

:27:27. > :27:32.talent is that I can play the violin, but no one knows. When

:27:32. > :27:36.coming across the line, I just went crazy, that is my favourite moment

:27:36. > :27:46.ever. My favourite Olympic city would be London, the only one where

:27:46. > :27:51.

:27:51. > :27:56.season, and that taxes main protagonist will be David Oliver --

:27:56. > :28:03.perhaps his main protagonist. think you are right. He has the

:28:03. > :28:07.lead, in the world, and David Oliver ran 12.89, his personal best on this

:28:07. > :28:12.track. He will know this well indeed. People wanted put one over

:28:12. > :28:15.on these guys yet again. Let's not forget Ryan Brathwaite and Jason

:28:15. > :28:25.Richardson are reading -- leading in the Diamond league race. A really

:28:25. > :28:29.

:28:29. > :28:32.over the line in Lausanne, a real tragedy for him. It is busy going to

:28:33. > :28:39.take a lot of coming back from. Jason Richardson, Olympic silver

:28:39. > :28:42.medallist, struggling to find his form this year. Ryan Brathwaite,

:28:42. > :28:47.starting to rediscover some of the form that saw him win the world

:28:47. > :28:57.championship in Berlin. A bit of a surprise, wasn't it? And then Andrew

:28:57. > :29:05.

:29:06. > :29:12.Riley. The Jamaican champion this year. We have not seen Rob Les --

:29:12. > :29:17.Robles for a while. The 110 metres hurdles, nobody under 14 seconds

:29:17. > :29:23.this year. Oliver last night, 13.03, the fastest in the world.

:29:23. > :29:33.Oliver, in the light blue. Richardson next to him. Aries

:29:33. > :29:45.

:29:45. > :29:55.Merritt in the darker strip to his white shorts, does not have a kit

:29:55. > :30:15.

:30:15. > :30:20.deal with anybody. He tends to wear got a good start. Oliver are

:30:21. > :30:30.starting to come. This is going to be a blanket finish. Merritt gets

:30:30. > :30:39.it! Goodness me, he is back with a bang. It was very tight, very close.

:30:40. > :30:46.12 people may be thinking they got this. I said he would need a few

:30:46. > :30:56.more races to get anywhere near world record. That will delight him.

:30:56. > :31:05.

:31:05. > :31:10.Season 's best. Merritt takes the win. It was a blanket finish. Pascal

:31:10. > :31:14.Martinot-Lagarde finished second. He has been hovering for a while. He

:31:14. > :31:19.has been improving but in small increments. That is a big jump

:31:19. > :31:26.forward for the Frenchman. What about the scalps he has taken? That

:31:26. > :31:34.is probably more important. What a race. David Oliver won in Lausanne

:31:34. > :31:37.the other night. I thought Brathwaite was go to take it. Look

:31:37. > :31:46.at Merritt in the centre. His final running of the barrier absolutely

:31:46. > :31:51.brilliant. He is beginning to round into shape. If the timing is rather

:31:52. > :31:57.fortuitous -- the timing is rather fortuitous. Five weeks to go. He has

:31:57. > :32:01.won 's first big race of the season. After such a wonderful unbeaten

:32:01. > :32:11.season last year, he has had a difficult. There is Merritt, easing

:32:11. > :32:13.

:32:13. > :32:19.ahead of the rest. That is ominous. The times are starting to come up.

:32:19. > :32:23.Riley on the far side comes through almost beating Oliver. We have got

:32:24. > :32:30.national records, personal bests galore. Three hundredths of a second

:32:30. > :32:36.separating six athletes. Five of them, probably. Look at that. The

:32:36. > :32:46.ones missing out our Richardson and Rob Liz. You can excuse blows. What

:32:46. > :32:49.

:32:49. > :32:59.great race. -- Rob less. Merritt back. The hamstring injury now looks

:32:59. > :33:07.

:33:07. > :33:17.as though it has healed. He can only through. He has got the competition

:33:17. > :33:19.

:33:19. > :33:29.won. Way, way clear. Renaud Lavillenie. That is a replay of

:33:29. > :33:33.

:33:33. > :33:43.5.92. Our computer showing 6.02. He is about to go at 6.02. He passed

:33:43. > :33:44.

:33:44. > :33:54.5.97. That was a lovely clearance. The confidence is back. He had a

:33:54. > :33:54.

:33:54. > :34:04.terrible time in Lausanne two nights ago. He was still going boards when

:34:04. > :34:05.

:34:05. > :34:14.he passed the bar. No, that was all over the place. Very untidy. He

:34:14. > :34:22.knows it. Perfect setting, Steve, home crowd, great conditions, just

:34:22. > :34:32.easing into fine form. His season had been going well until Lausanne.

:34:32. > :34:32.

:34:32. > :34:38.That was a real hiccup. Very unusual for him. He did say no excuses. What

:34:38. > :34:41.an exciting 110 metres hurdles. Merritt takes the win. Pascal

:34:41. > :34:47.Martinot-Lagarde, big personal best for the Frenchman. That was a

:34:47. > :34:57.surprise. Oliver, Riley and Brathwaite. Ryan Wilson was just

:34:57. > :35:03.behind him. The French crowd enjoying the pole vault. Aries

:35:03. > :35:08.Merritt, a season's best. What kind of form are you in? Still not in my

:35:08. > :35:12.best form, obviously. But I am trying to run myself into shape. You

:35:12. > :35:15.will see me drop my time or as the season progresses. It has been a

:35:16. > :35:23.long road for me this season but I am determined to get back to the

:35:23. > :35:27.form I was in last year. He looked very in control. Around the eighth

:35:27. > :35:33.hurdle you started to press. I could see you grimacing. What you

:35:33. > :35:38.thinking, bring on the line? I was feeling myself getting tired. I was

:35:38. > :35:43.like, no! I need more training. I'm not as disciplined as I was this

:35:43. > :35:46.point last season. It has been a long, long road this year. I am just

:35:46. > :35:50.happy to make my team and to come out here and continue to drop my

:35:50. > :35:56.out here and continue to drop my time. You told us your nickname last

:35:56. > :36:00.week. The hurdles magician. The tricks didn't seem to come off last

:36:00. > :36:07.week. You looked more comfortable today. You said last week you were

:36:07. > :36:10.going to run under 13 seconds but it was a few weeks away? Yes, they call

:36:10. > :36:15.me the hurdling mused -- the hurdling magician these days. I

:36:15. > :36:18.don't know where they get it. I am just going to run with it. I'm still

:36:18. > :36:25.breaking down the last two hurdles. With more training it will smooth

:36:25. > :36:32.itself out. Hopefully by London. Colin said at the beginning of this

:36:32. > :36:36.meat that this was not the quickest track. We have seen 20 of best

:36:36. > :36:46.times. Was it just Colin who did not run well year? I could not quite

:36:46. > :36:49.

:36:49. > :36:54.here you! Go! Go! That was tactical. He saved you there! Brilliant. It is

:36:54. > :36:59.lovely to see him return like that. It is true. You do feel a little bit

:36:59. > :37:04.stressed when you know you have not quite the work in you. Normally by

:37:04. > :37:14.hurdle six or seven he would pull away. Unfortunately, because he has

:37:14. > :37:18.

:37:18. > :37:22.missed that crucial training racing, he can go back and do ten

:37:22. > :37:26.days of real punishing -- polishing. That'll be enough. Let's head over

:37:26. > :37:33.to Renaud Lavillenie, pleasing the home crowd with a good performance

:37:33. > :37:43.home crowd with a good performance in the The wind has been pretty

:37:43. > :37:46.

:37:46. > :37:54.straight all night. Shades of the indoor season in Gothenburg. Over

:37:54. > :38:03.six metres. That was better. He is not getting up there. He's not

:38:03. > :38:08.getting the height, obviously. One more to come. There is Lagat. Three

:38:08. > :38:14.times world indoor champion at 3000. I was talking to his agent last

:38:14. > :38:24.night and he thinks he is in about 3.33 shape. Nobody has broken 3.31

:38:24. > :38:31.

:38:31. > :38:41.this year. The record is 3.28. Taree is in good form. -- tar free. Wote,

:38:41. > :38:56.

:38:56. > :39:06.they get it right? The pacemaking is so important when you are at the

:39:06. > :39:09.

:39:09. > :39:19.edge of the envelope. There is Monsanto, a tiny figure. -- Manzano.

:39:19. > :39:27.

:39:27. > :39:37.Away they go. This promises to be fast. Manzano is a very quick

:39:37. > :39:44.

:39:44. > :39:54.finisher. It is single file already as they come around the top bend.

:39:54. > :40:16.

:40:16. > :40:22.Souleiman in third. Lagat is in I was Souleiman... Wote is going to

:40:22. > :40:30.be a big danger. Lagat is letting those to chase the pace early on. --

:40:30. > :40:38.two. I would like to see it nice and relaxed at halfway rather than push

:40:38. > :40:48.this first lap. You can see what has happened there is Lagat, with

:40:48. > :40:49.

:40:49. > :40:52.letting those two go, there is a big gap. This looks already as though it

:40:52. > :40:58.is Souleiman and Wote will have taken it with the pacemakers. The

:40:58. > :41:02.others have a lot of work to do to get back on terms. Rono doing a good

:41:02. > :41:06.job. Maybe the first lap was a little bit too enthusiastic. The

:41:06. > :41:16.runners behind enough to trust his pace judgement. They were looking

:41:16. > :41:28.

:41:28. > :41:38.for 1.52. It is very quick. I wonder if the pack are just going to close

:41:38. > :41:39.

:41:39. > :41:44.these two down? Now they are isolated. The pacemaker is 12 or 14

:41:44. > :41:51.metres in front. He is not doing any favours. He might as well start of

:41:51. > :42:00.the track and let them race. They hit the bell. Steve, it is

:42:00. > :42:04.anybody's race. It is bizarre. Carvalho has done a good job. It is

:42:04. > :42:08.anybody's opportunity. I am surprised Lagat has not come through

:42:08. > :42:12.with the others. Souleiman will try to fight them off. When you have

:42:12. > :42:19.expended as much energy as he has done, yes, he has saved something,

:42:20. > :42:26.but he completely ruined the race by going with the fast early pace.

:42:26. > :42:34.have got a great race. Souleiman leading. Carvalho having a heck of a

:42:34. > :42:41.run. Amazing running. Second in the European Championships last year.

:42:41. > :42:51.Now Wote, a long stride. He eases among Souleiman. Manzano finishing

:42:51. > :42:52.

:42:52. > :43:02.strongly. What's the clock. Quick times. Probably the first 1003.35,

:43:02. > :43:03.

:43:03. > :43:13.World Championship qualifying. -- the first ten hundred 3.35. The

:43:13. > :43:13.

:43:13. > :43:23.first 800 metres ruined it. The third lap of 59 seconds. 53, 56, 59.

:43:23. > :43:24.

:43:24. > :43:29.That tells the story. To hold off the chasers, Wote in particular,

:43:29. > :43:39.Souleiman deserves that win. Let's take a look at the place times.

:43:39. > :43:44.

:43:45. > :43:49.There were men they're looking for a sub 3.35. Among them, Manzano.

:43:49. > :43:56.Souleiman and Wote first and second. It was an interesting race if not

:43:56. > :44:02.quite one that goes by the textbook. Hats off to them, as I said. You

:44:02. > :44:06.have to talk to the pacemakers. You see how strong these two guys are on

:44:06. > :44:10.the last lap. They ran a shopping third lap but they came back and

:44:10. > :44:20.hung on. Lots of good performances behind them. Manzano came on

:44:20. > :44:27.

:44:27. > :44:36.brilliantly. Lalang, big personal best for him in fifth. The pole

:44:36. > :44:40.vault continues. One final attempt at 6.02. It was set up for him

:44:40. > :44:48.tonight, and that was his best effort at 6.02, a couple of minutes

:44:48. > :44:54.ago. Undoubtedly totally dominant again, as he has been this season.

:44:54. > :44:59.Not too many low points, although Lausanne was one on Thursday. 5.92,

:44:59. > :45:09.looking good until that point. 6.02 a stretch too far. Definitely his

:45:09. > :45:11.

:45:11. > :45:15.best effort. Renaud Lavillenie keeping the crowd pumped up here. A

:45:15. > :45:20.cracking Diamond League so far. Fantastic performances, but

:45:20. > :45:24.everybody here knows it's all about to crank up that little bit more,

:45:24. > :45:30.because this man, Usain Bolt, is entering the arena. This is his

:45:30. > :45:37.Diamond League so far. The men's 100 metres. Usain Bolt has come back and

:45:37. > :45:47.we shall see how good he is. Justin Gatlin is going to take it. Justin

:45:47. > :45:48.

:45:48. > :45:53.Gatling gets it. Bolt is beaten. Well, he just wasn't very good. His

:45:53. > :45:58.first 200 of the year, beaten over 100 in Rome last week. He has gone

:45:58. > :46:06.well and is already. He now gets into his run in, into his stride.

:46:06. > :46:10.Further and further clear. Winning by six or seven metres. 19.80, and

:46:10. > :46:16.indeed he has delivered and he is back in his winning ways. Usain

:46:16. > :46:22.Bolt's season gets underway properly. Usain Bolt running in the

:46:22. > :46:27.200 metres here. He has only won one more of these competitive events,

:46:27. > :46:31.the 200 metres in Oslo. What would you expect his time to come down by

:46:31. > :46:34.tonight, if it is going to come down? He has been training hard,

:46:34. > :46:38.that is the story coming out of Jamaica. When we spoke to him

:46:39. > :46:45.beforehand in Oslo we asked him how the 200 metres would go and he said

:46:45. > :46:48.he had no idea. He goes to Oslo and it took all of the pressure off his

:46:48. > :46:53.shoulders because he started to believe in himself again. He

:46:53. > :47:00.thought, OK, I have the speed in my legs, the 100 metres was down to bad

:47:00. > :47:05.execution and now I can focus on running the race again. It will be

:47:05. > :47:08.interesting if he charges out of the blocks. Once he gets down the home

:47:08. > :47:12.straight and kicking out his long legs and turning them over with the

:47:12. > :47:19.speed we know he has he could go around 19.6 which would be

:47:19. > :47:22.sensational. He knows so much about it, training together, you know

:47:22. > :47:25.everything about each other, your weaknesses and strengths and where

:47:25. > :47:29.you would like to pitch yourself against them in the race. Is that

:47:29. > :47:35.help when you are trying to improve your time through the season, or a

:47:35. > :47:37.hindrance to know the opposition? You have to add in the unknown

:47:37. > :47:44.situation, how do they compete. When you are training, you are just

:47:45. > :47:49.training. How do they respond to competition? Their pressure is

:47:49. > :47:54.something different to Usain Bolt's everybody has huge expectations on

:47:54. > :48:01.him delivering, but they just run freely and they will try to get hold

:48:01. > :48:04.of him as quickly as they can and hang on as long as they can. Even in

:48:04. > :48:09.training he can wave a little bit, and they will think if they can get

:48:09. > :48:12.to him, they can shake him up. But either way they will have to do

:48:12. > :48:19.something sensational. I think he has really got it in him to do that

:48:19. > :48:22.19.6 today. The Jamaicans have had their trials for the world

:48:22. > :48:29.championships, and those done and dusted. While I have a couple of

:48:29. > :48:34.minutes before come out and get ready, would you improve our trials

:48:34. > :48:37.by going to the American model? Is it better to do it earlier in the

:48:37. > :48:43.season are you happy with the way things are, that level of

:48:43. > :48:46.uncertainty? This is what happens, because the selection policy is

:48:47. > :48:54.difficult. Everybody you choose will always be wrong to someone. You have

:48:54. > :49:04.to make it the simplest and clearest so the athletes understand. Let's

:49:04. > :49:10.

:49:10. > :49:14.just pause and hear this. Usain Bolt wherever he goes. This is all part

:49:14. > :49:19.of the build-up. It almost takes the pressure off him, taking him into

:49:19. > :49:22.the state of competitiveness. is the way he prepares, and you

:49:22. > :49:30.heard a loud roar for him, but what about this young man, Christophe

:49:30. > :49:36.Lemaitre. He has not been at his best. No, he has been struggling on

:49:36. > :49:44.many levels. We are used to seeing him running consistently but he has

:49:44. > :49:49.lacked that a little bit. There's Mikael Ashmead -- Nickel Ashmeade.

:49:49. > :49:56.If you asked me who the European top 100 metres runner was at the moment,

:49:56. > :50:00.and no respect -- this respect, I think Jimmy Vicaut is the man. The

:50:00. > :50:06.200 metres is not his territory. It will be interesting to see how he

:50:06. > :50:12.can lower his best. Might that be a bit political to get another French

:50:12. > :50:21.athlete in the meeting? There was no hundred metres there, so they wanted

:50:21. > :50:31.to get the stars on show. It is a brilliant line-up, Mikael neighbours

:50:31. > :50:35.

:50:35. > :50:41.youngster, and this man certainly did. The big athletics fans will

:50:41. > :50:43.remember him running at about 15 years of aid at the world union

:50:43. > :50:47.Championships -- world Junior Championships. A long time this was

:50:47. > :50:50.considered the best event, and I think it still is for Usain Bolt. He

:50:50. > :50:54.has been brilliant at the 100 but had to develop that in the second

:50:54. > :50:59.half of his career, but for much of his younger career this was the

:50:59. > :51:06.event on which everybody thought he was going to be best at. 19.19 back

:51:06. > :51:16.in Berlin four years ago now. He has work to do here. Christophe

:51:16. > :51:28.

:51:28. > :51:33.Lemaitre, Warren Weir, Nickel does Christophe Lemaitre. He has got

:51:33. > :51:36.Warren Weir outside to work. Nickel Ashmeade right alongside him. The

:51:36. > :51:40.Jamaicans not too far away. Now Usain Bolt will have to find

:51:40. > :51:50.something extra. Being pushed by Warren Weir. He has to keep working,

:51:50. > :51:51.

:51:51. > :51:57.but he will take it. 19.73. Warren Weir pushed him really hard. Every

:51:57. > :52:02.time he comes out, as good as he is, as brilliant as he is, and that

:52:02. > :52:06.win is so important, but he is going to have to be on his best as he

:52:06. > :52:13.approaches Moscow. He has got Warren Weir for company, and he is yet to

:52:13. > :52:17.meet Tyson Gay, but he keeps getting going -- better as 2013 goes on. The

:52:17. > :52:20.little problem seemed to be settling down, and this was him not at his

:52:20. > :52:26.best, but that's the quickest we have ever seen in Paris at this

:52:26. > :52:30.meeting. The quickest in the world this year. Once more, the big man on

:52:30. > :52:34.top. Christophe Lemaitre finished third, close to 20 seconds, but he

:52:34. > :52:38.could only watch as Usain Bolt disappeared around the top end.

:52:38. > :52:45.Goodness me, he had to be on the top game to hold off Warren Weir and it

:52:45. > :52:48.was only in the last 20 metres as he moved away by a couple of tenths.

:52:48. > :52:52.That is exactly right, but he delivers again and again. With five

:52:52. > :52:56.weeks to go, I think he will sharpen up, have another couple of races and

:52:57. > :53:00.be right on song for Moscow. Year after year, and this is the third or

:53:00. > :53:04.fourth year running, when people have been a bit previous with

:53:04. > :53:10.writing him off and their worries about his early-season form. He is a

:53:10. > :53:13.big, big fellow. He has to get the peak right. He cannot hold the top

:53:13. > :53:18.form through from June to September. He gets the peak right again and

:53:18. > :53:22.again. Credit to his coaches and his support team for that. Come the

:53:22. > :53:26.really crucial period of the summer, and that is for any athlete of his

:53:26. > :53:33.calendar, that has to be about one month. He does get it right. He

:53:34. > :53:37.starts well. Moves up on Warren Weir. Looking really strong, and

:53:37. > :53:41.great Ben by Nickel Ashmeade. Really struggling, Christophe Lemaitre, in

:53:41. > :53:45.this company. This is his better event. What was impressive about

:53:45. > :53:49.Warren Weir is that Usain Bolt does not get away from him much down the

:53:49. > :53:52.home straight. I expected him to open up another metre or two, but

:53:52. > :53:58.Warren Weir was chasing hard, and that is a very impressive run for

:53:58. > :54:05.the Jamaicans, all of them. Christophe Lemaitre, did he come

:54:05. > :54:09.through for third? What are run over the last 50. He finished strong, but

:54:09. > :54:14.not a good event for him. You cannot give Warren Weir and Usain Bolt

:54:14. > :54:21.something like that. But he does finish strong, we know he does. But

:54:21. > :54:25.the race is gone, it is finished. It is cap -- Usain Bolt and Warren Weir

:54:25. > :54:29.who produce these times. Let's put this into perspective, apart from

:54:30. > :54:36.himself, only eight men have ever run quicker than 19.73. You are

:54:36. > :54:42.right, he will keep getting better and the standard here, 19.19, that

:54:42. > :54:46.would be unbelievable out there. But he could run 19.5. Can anybody else?

:54:46. > :54:53.That is the question. We know Warren Weir is getting better. 19.97

:54:53. > :54:58.tonight. Jacob Young was OK on the outside lane. At the end of the

:54:58. > :55:08.day, this man is bossing it, still on top, still the best, not at his

:55:08. > :55:11.best, but still the best. Isn't he just? Maybe the loss to Justin

:55:11. > :55:16.Gatlin in Rome a month or so ago was just what he needed. It woke him up

:55:16. > :55:19.a little bit. He did talk very honestly, very frankly, a few weeks

:55:20. > :55:23.back about being lacking in motivation in the weeks and months,

:55:23. > :55:30.perhaps not applying and being as focused as he has been in the years

:55:30. > :55:32.gone by, but these people are not machines, they are human beings.

:55:33. > :55:37.Most of them are human beings, not completely sure about the guy who

:55:37. > :55:47.won it. A brilliant run from him. A world leading time. Warren Weir

:55:47. > :55:53.

:55:53. > :55:56.pushed him hard. Christophe Lemaitre hundredths of a second off his

:55:56. > :56:03.earlier time in Oslo. What did you see there that you liked or that he

:56:03. > :56:07.needs to improve? What does he need to do? I liked the fact that he

:56:07. > :56:10.won, but I'll be interested in what he said about it. His start was

:56:10. > :56:16.great. Aggressive out of the blocks, just what you want to see, but

:56:16. > :56:20.coming off the turn, the transition, it was not smooth at all. He is too

:56:20. > :56:23.wide coming off that lane. He needed to have the inside bit more. I think

:56:23. > :56:29.that would have really thrown him into the home straight better, and

:56:29. > :56:32.when the commentators were saying about can we get him going,

:56:32. > :56:38.expecting him to be a metre in front, that is where he got it

:56:38. > :56:43.instantly. So, breaking it down, you would be working about the

:56:43. > :56:48.transition? Yes, after then, off the home straight, just run it a bit

:56:48. > :56:51.more. He is lapping up the interview -- attention. We will get an

:56:51. > :56:55.interview with him, but it will go on to the website and the news

:56:55. > :57:05.channel. And we will put that question to him, of course we will.

:57:05. > :57:13.

:57:13. > :57:16.Just away from the race, your Merritt comeback. It has been a

:57:16. > :57:22.really good meeting, fantastic atmosphere, lots more athletics to,

:57:22. > :57:25.as well. It is the trials next weekend. Who are going to get those

:57:25. > :57:30.important places for the British team for the world Championships in

:57:30. > :57:34.Moscow in about five weeks time? We are in Birmingham next weekend for

:57:34. > :57:39.you on Saturday and Sunday afternoon heat wave set to continue.

:57:39. > :57:43.Temperatures will be soaring and competition is high. We can also