European Athletics (EAA) – News – Russians in the mood to add to gold

Russia has the honour of winning 50 gold medals at the European Athletics Indoor Championships and this year's event in Göteborg, which starts a fortnight on Friday, is likely to see that number increase.

At least that would seem the way after a brilliant opening day of the Russian Indoor Championships in Moscow were dominated by the performances of hurdlers Sergey Shubenkov and Yuliya Kondakova and 3000m runner Svetlana Kireyeva.

Shubenkov, 22, is one of the rising stars of international track and field as he proved last summer when he won the 110m hurdles gold medal at the European Athletics Championships in Helsinki.

Take 50 metres off of that distance and he remains a potent force.

Shubenkov soared to victory in 7.50 in the final in Moscow, a time that equals the best in the world this year from American Kevin Craddock.

Konstantin Shabanov was second in 7.67 with Aleksey Dryomin third 7.74 but it was Shubenkov's brilliance throughout the whole competition which shone through.

Shubenkov, who first came to light at the European U23 Championships in Novi Sad in 2009 when he finished second before winning the title two years later in Ostrava, produced quick times in Moscow in both the heats (7.64) and the semi-finals (7.60) and could be the man to beat in Göteborg.

His time alone gives him a 0.7 second advantage on the European Athletics rankings for 2013 over Hungary's Balázs Baji with Andy Pozzi, of Great Britain, next on the list with 7.58.
Kondakova was sixth in her semi-final at the Olympic Games in London but she is looking to make her mark this year.

She already leads the European rankings with 7.93 from a race in Moscow 10 days ago and she confirmed that superiority with another fine run to win the national title in 7.95 from Olga Samylova, second in 8.04, and Svetlana Topylina, who was third in 8.09.

With a time of 8:48.27, Kireyeva not only went to the top of the European Athletics rankings for the 3000m, but she did so in a race which will have the rest of the continent's runners taking notice.

Kireyeva showed fine power to win by more than seconds from Yelena Korobkina in 8:50.42 with Natalya Aristarkhova third 8:50.76.

Those times are the three best in Europe this year and with Natalya Leontyeva in fourth in 8:57.80, the quartet all set personal bests.

And in the heats of the 400m, the European rankings found themselves a new leader as Kseniya Ustalova advanced in her race in 52.05, the quickest of the year.

Double Olympic pole vault champion Yelena Isinbayeva is one of Russia's greatest athletes and she was at the event watching – and would not have been disappointed by the quality of the performance in her discipline.

At her second attempt, Anastasiya Savchenko cleared 4.70m for a personal best which takes her to second in Europe in 2013 behind Britain's Holly Bleasdale with 4.77m.

Prior to the winning mark, she had gone clear at 4.40m, 4.50m and 4.60m as she beat Angelina Krasnova, with 4.55m, Lyudmila Yeromina, with 4.50m, who both equalled their bests.

The men's 3000m was all about PBs too – won by Valentin Smirnov in 7:47.01 from Yegor Nikolayev in 7:47.57 and Andrey Safronov 7:48.49 while Aleksandr Brednev won the men's 60m in 6.68 and Yuliya Katsura took the women's in 7.28.