European Athletics (EA) – Lavillenie is jumping for joy, Johnson-Thompson shows what the future holds and it’s high fives for Obergfoll

It was the second day of the IAAF Diamond League meeting in London and 12 months on from the Olympic Games, memories came flooding back. But so did the brilliant performances for so many as once more 60,000 supporters packed into the arena.

Talk so often is about what legacy an Olympics brings but crowds of this size – there had been 60,000 on Friday night as well – showed just how popular track and field remains.

Lavillenie breaks his personal best – and then goes off on a run

Renaud Lavillenie took himself to new heights with a glorious performance.

Lavillenie stole the show, even with all the noise for Mo Farah and Jessica Ennis-Hill, as he returned to the arena which brought him Olympic gold 12 months ago to deliver another landmark moment in his career.

The French pole vault star broke his personal best as he cleared a brilliant 6.02m, overtaking his old mark by a centimetre which had stood since Leiria in 2009.

As he landed on the mat, he was off again, rushing towards the crowd, leaping over an advertising hoarding with impressive style, to find his coach Philippe d'Encausse.

He jumped into his arms and celebrated, and no wonder.

Lavillenie is once more the red-hot favourite for the World Championships in Moscow, an event where he has not won gold. Twice it has been bronze but now Lavillenie, the European champion indoors and out, is dominating once more which had not always been the case in earlier Diamond League meetings.
Victory meant he could choose the next height – and he opted for 6.16m, which would have broken Ukrainian Sergey Bubka's world record of 6.14m.

This time it was not to be but having entered at 5.70m and also clearing 5.84m and 5.91m at the first time, Lavillenie is in such fantastic form.

He said: "I am really happy because coming back to this stadium was amazing. I am definitely ready for Moscow, before coming here I knew that I am ready because I was jumping 80s and 90s easily, but now I have jumped over six metres in the Olympic Stadium, it was really important."

And the result was just as it was 12 months ago – with Germans Bjorn Otto second, with 5.77m, and Raphael Holzdeppe, third in 5.70m.

Farah raises the noise as a new British star celebrates
Mo Farah can do no wrong at the moment and so it proved once more as he won the 3000m in a personal best of 7:36.85.

Eight days after his European Athletics 1500m record in Monaco, Farah was always in control on a track which had become wet from the rain that arrived later than expected.

His event, the second last of the day, was worth the wait for the fans as he took over with 500m to go to pull away with Ryan Hill second in 7:42.32 and his American teammate Andrew Bumbalough third in 7:42.91.

The noise was amazing and Farah, who would double Olympic gold here in the 5000m and 10,000m, said:

"It was just like it was last year. The crowd were fantastic and I wanted to make them proud.

"I am really looking forward to Moscow and will now go away to train in St Moritz before the Championships."

It was always going to be a big afternoon for Britain's heptathlon gold medallist Jessica Ennis-Hill, who is not definite about competing in Moscow as she battles with an Achilles tendon injury.

But while she came through two events unscathed, the woman tipped to succeed her as Britain's No 1 multi-eventer achieved another memorable result.

Fresh from gold at the heptathlon at the European Athletics Under-23 Championships in Tampere earlier this month, Katarina Johnson-Thompson won her first Diamond League meeting as she triumphed in the long jump.

She won on countback in a dramatic last round, having led into it with 6.44m.

But then Bianca Stuart, of the Bahamas, jumped 6.46m to take over before Johnson-Thompson responded with exactly the same distance to take victory because of her better record.

"The long jump is my best event and this place is my favourite track to compete at," said Johnson-Thompson. "For Moscow, I just want to be consistent in each event. I am not looking to set the world alight but hopefully I can have a good run."

In London, she was 15th as Ennis-Hill won gold but the champion has only competed this week since then.
She finished last in the long jump on Saturday with 6.16m – her personal best is 6.51m – and earlier in the afternoon she was fourth in the 100m hurdles in 13.08 as Australia's Olympic champion Sally Pearson won in 12.65.

Ennis-Hill said: "It was great to come here and test things. It is frustrating not to be in the shape I want to be in.

"I will now see how it reacts and see where we are ahead of Moscow."

Obergfoll has the winning touch over Abakumova
Christina Obergfoll's domination of the javelin in the Diamond League took her to win number five and 20 points in the series and it was all over after round one when she threw 65.61m.

It means the German star now has a 5-0 record over Russia's defending world champion Mariya Abakumova who was second with 64.48m from the third round with Australian Kimberly Mickle third with 63.05m.

"It was a good competition for Moscow," said Obergfoll. "I am feeling confident. I am happy but I wanted to throw a little bit further."

Menkov leaves it late – very late

It only takes one great effort to win a field event as Russian Aleksandr Menkov proved on Saturday afternoon.

The European Athletics Indoor champion was not having the best of afternoons in the Olympic Stadium where he was in eighth place in the long jump as Australia's Fabrice Lapierre led with 8.17m.

Menkov's record was foul, foul, 7.69m, foul and foul as the final round arrived.

But then the Russian, who should be one of the favourites at the World Championships in Moscow, came soaring down the runway to leap a brilliant 8.31m – and victory.

The confidence that will give him is immense so close to the Championships and he said: "I am happy to win in this stadium. I am feeling very good this season, now I want to win in Moscow."

It was Menkov's second victory in England in just over a month after his triumph at the European Athletics Team Championships in Gateshead.

Lapierre was second with Brazil's Mauro da Silva this with 8.00m.

Great day for Ohurougu
Britain's Christine Ohuruogu was the Olympic 400m champion in Beijing in 2008 and a year ago, on a track just a few miles from her home in east London, she won silver.

But this time she was first, cheered all the way by this huge crowd as she won in a season's best of 50.00 from Americans Francena McCorory, second in 50.13, and Natasha Hastings, third in 50.68.

It sets Ohuruogu up perfectly for Moscow and she said: "I put the result down to hard work and will go away and peak with my coach and see what we can work on for the World Championships."

Schwanitz takes second – as does Sharman in a personal best
Germany's Christina Schwanitz discovered how tough an afternoon it would be after the first round of the shot put as Olympic champion Valerie Adams began with 20.70m.

Schwanitz started with a foul before a best of 19.74m in the third round which brought her second as
Adams won with 20.90m, the best throw in the world this year and a meeting record, as American Michelle Carter finished third with 19.24m.

William Sharman had a day to remember in the 110m hurdles as he ran a personal best of 13.26, the fourth fastest time on the British all-time list.

And until the final strides it looked like it might bring him victory in a dramatic race as America's Olympic champion Aries Merritt crashed out after slamming one of the barriers.
Sharman was in front before another American, David Oliver, came charging through to win in 13.20 with Poland's Artur Noga third in 13.31.

But Sharman was delighted and said: "I am so pleased with the pb. There should have been more but I lost concentration. I was so close to David but I will beat him next time."

 

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