2013 IAAF World Athletics Championships review - Positives for many after a dark summer

By Simon Wright - Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88

The 2013 IAAF World Athletics Championships came to their conclusion in Moscow this afternoon, and it has been a positive for the sport that has been rocked recently by scandals and cheats.  Some stars came to the Russian capital and enhanced their reputations; others fell by the wayside through injury and a loss of form.

Athletics has gone through a tough summer.  The Diamond League events have not lived upto expectations and the sport went through its biggest raft of drug scandals since the aftermath of the 2004 Olympics in Athens.  Not only that, but it involved some big names.  Former Olympic champion Veronica Campbell-Brown, Kelly-Ann Baptiste and top male sprinters Tyson Gay and Asafa Powell were among those to test positive for performance enhancing drugs.  All four have been caught which does show the system is working and that cheats don’t prosper.  The sport will move on from these scandals and I personally hope the book and lifetime bans from athletics follow for these four former stars of the track.

For Team GB, a total of six medals in total might seem like a grave disappointment, but in a post-Olympic year, there is real hope for the next golden generation to ensure the legacy from London 2012 is in safe hands.  Statistically, the performance wasn’t as strong as the team that went to Daegu in South Korea two years ago, but there was one extra gold medal than there was in Asia back in 2011.

Stars of the squad

The stars of the Team GB squad were Mo Farah and Christine Ohuruogu.  Farah underlined his superiority as the most dominant long-distance runner as he backed up his tremendous Olympics double last year by repeating the feat in Moscow.  In 2011, he had lost out in the 10,000m final to Ibrahim Jelan of Ethiopia and on day one, the two could hardly be split again over the same distance.  However, this is Farah at the peak of his powers and he held on for the gold that was missing from his outstanding collection.  He successfully defended his 5,000m title too, despite the best efforts of the former dominant nations over these distances in Kenya and Ethiopia.

Team captain Christine Ohuruogu set a great example, and won 400m gold

Christine (pictured) was the Team GB captain and she took on the role with great assurance and confidence.  Often overlooked when it comes to taking the acclaim she deserves, Ohuruogu produced the finish of the championships.  In the women’s 400m final, her amazing surge in the final 10m saw her edge out chief rival Amantle Montsho from Botswana to win back the gold medal she’d last won at the worlds in Osaka back in 2007.  She also did it by breaking Kathy Cooke’s long-standing British record over 400m.

The 4x400m female relay squad were hurt by Perri Shakes-Drayton’s knee injury she picked up in the final of the 400m hurdles.  The quartet of Eilidh Child, Ohuruogu, Shana Cox and Margaret Adeoye battled on hard though to win the bronze medal.  Tiffany Porter finally won a major medal in the women’s 100m hurdles.  She ran a personal best to come home third in the final, as Australian Sally Pearson was denied the gold by the young American Brianna Rollins.  There was initially another medal in the men’s 4x100m relay on the final day, but it was taken away after an illegal changeover in the race, meaning it is the sixth time in the last seven attempts that the British male squad have either failed to finish or been disqualified from a major championships race over this distance.  However, the sixth medal came later for the girls in the women's 4x100m relay after France were disqualified, giving the youngsters a deserved bronze medal.  

Disappointments and bright signs

There were disappointments for the British squad.  Dai Greene’s defence of the 400m hurdles title he won in grand style in Daegu have been damaged by an injury-hit campaign.  He failed to make it past the semi-final stage.  Olympic long jump champion Greg Rutherford failed to qualify for the Moscow final after rushing back from a hamstring injury sustained in the Diamond League event in Paris and the performances in the field events were a major disappointment.  Only London 2012 bronze medallist Robbie Grabarz made a final and despite reaching the same height he achieved a year ago for bronze in the men’s high jump – he was only eighth in the final this year as the competition increases.

For the disappointments though, there were great signs for the future too.  William Sharman finished fifth in the men’s 110m hurdles final, and so did Andrew Osagie in the men’s 800m final.  The 4x400m male relay squad narrowly missed out on a medal to come fourth, and were cheated out of the medals by a Russian quartet who should have been kicked out for clearly running out of their lane in the semi-finals.  It was fourth too for women’s 1500m runner Hannah England, as she proved her credentials again after an injury-hit 2012 meant she couldn’t build on the shock silver she won in Daegu.  In the absence of Jessica Ennis-Hill through injury, Katarina Johnson-Thompson achieved four individual PB’s on her way to a superb fifth in the women’s heptathlon and Adam Gemili and James Dasaolu reached the 200m and 100m finals to show British sprinting is on its way back after a lean few years.

Bolt does it again

Another three gold medals for the king of sprinting - Usain Bolt

There was only one man who was going to deliver on a worldwide scale and I think you might have heard of him before.  He goes by the name of Usain Bolt.  The Jamaican (pictured) turned up in Moscow without a serious challenger and leaves with another three gold medals without being at his starring best.  He ran 9.78m on a thundery night last Sunday to regain the 100m crown he lost to an unbelievable false start in Korea in 2011.  Bolt backed it up in the 200m to cruise to gold, and he anchored the Jamaican team home to victory again in the 4x100m relay.  He now has eight gold medals in just three World Athletics Championships, and has matched the record of 10 medals in total at the IAAF event, held previously by Carl Lewis.  The only botch on the Bolt copybook was there was no world record this time around.  In fact, there was not a single world record at these championships, the first time in the world championships proud history.  Some good things have to end, as the American team might have scooped up 25 medals, but were beaten in the medal table to top spot by an inspired home nation.  It is the first time the Americans have finished off the top of the medals since being beaten by the same country in the 2001 edition in Edmonton, Canada.

Bolt will have to share some of the worldwide honours with fellow Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.  She also won a triple gold, though her 200m title was overshadowed by a hamstring injury in the final for her main American rival Allyson Felix.  There was another discus title for the charismatic German Robert Harting and a fourth women’s world championship shot put gold for the awesome Kiwi Valerie Adams, who produced the most dominant performance in any individual event.

Some stars fell by the wayside.  Olympic 110m hurdles champion Aries Merritt produced a clumsy run to sixth in the final in Moscow, as team-mate David Oliver finally achieved a gold medal at a major championship after missing the London spectacular through injury.  The standard of the men’s hurdling was truly dreadful though, with many of the finalists preferring to clatter rather than jump over the barriers.  Felix Sanchez and Javier Culson disappointed in the men’s 400m hurdles final as they came a distant fifth and sixth which was won on the line by Jehue Gordon of Trinidad & Tobago in a dramatic dip for the line.  

Grenada’s main star Kirani James faded badly to seventh in the men’s 400m final which was won by main rival LaShawn Merritt.  Highly fancied pole vault sensation Renaud Lavillenie of France came up short in the final, having to settle for the silver behind surprise package Raphael Holzdeppe of Germany.  It was a horrific championship for France, who lost Christophe Lemaitre to a thigh injury in the 100m final, whilst Jimmy Vicaut struggled to recapture his Diamond League form and crashed out of three semi-finals.  The French only won one gold medal, and that came on the final day.  It was some medal though, as Teddy Tamgho jumped over 18m to win the men’s triple jump, and come so close to breaking the 18-year record held by Briton Jonathan Edwards.

Isinbayeva sparks controversy

The most popular gold medal though went to the Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva in the women’s pole vault.  While the atmosphere and lack of spectators inside the Luzhniki Stadium was a major let-down throughout the championships, it was electric on pole vault final night.  Isinbayeva held off challenges from Olympic champion Jennifer Suhr from the United States and Cuban Yarisley Silva to win the gold, though her outrageous comments about Russia’s policy on anti-gay laws left a bitter taste in the mouth with many in the days afterwards.  She said on Thursday: “If we will allow to promote, allow to do all this stuff on the street, we are afraid for our nation because we consider ourselves like normal, standard people.  We just live with boys with women, women with boys.”  Isinbayeva later claimed her comments were ‘misunderstood,’ but there was no need to make a remark like that and see the politics clashing with the sport yet again in Russia.

It was also a positive championship for the BBC.  Following the disaster that was Channel 4’s coverage two years ago, the Beeb produced extensive and great coverage of each event and even repeated the afternoon sessions in the evening on the red button for those like yours truly who missed the action live due to work commitments.  They proved again why the home of athletics is the BBC, and will continue to be so for the next six years.

Athletics has had much better years than it has had to endure in 2013, but it was a good and exciting spectacle in Moscow, and whilst there weren’t any record-breaking performances, some of the best cemented their place as legends while other youngsters came through to show why the sport is in safe hands.  

Next stop for the worlds is Beijing in 2015, with the next major athletics competition being next year’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, followed by the European Championships in Zurich.

Categories: 100m, 2013, Athletics, Captain, Christine Ohuruogu, Diamond League, Drugs, IAAF, Mo Farah, Moscow, Pole Vault, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Team GB, Usain Bolt, Yelena Isinbayeva

2012 - A year in review - The Olympics & Paralympics

By Simon Wright

The Olympics were everything and more in London

This year has been the greatest sporting year in history and it has been a real privilege to watch it all unfold over the past 12 months.

We were introduced to plenty of new heroes, some of the most sensational finishes you could ask for, the giant-killing surprises and pure emotion. 

The main event has been the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games, and here is my review of the spectacular events.

The Olympics totally delivers

Could debt-ridden Britain afford the Olympic Games?  Probably not but it was certainly worth it.  Team GB’s success on the track, in the velodrome and rowing amongst others went down in folklore. 

In total, we won 29 gold medals and finished a magnificent third in the medal table, only behind the world superpowers of the United States and China.

After the Beijing brilliance of 2008, there was scepticism before the games began, most notably when it emerged less than two weeks before the show, there had been a real muddle over security measures.  The brilliant military had to step in and did the job impeccably. 

The Olympic Torch Relay dismissed many of these fears though, and Danny Boyle’s opening ceremony was a joy to watch.  London showed itself to the world, full of colour, tradition and modernity.

Having Mr Bean in the opening ceremony was a brilliant idea

From the Queen and James Bond to Mr. Bean, some people might have wondered if Britain was totally bonkers.  However, we did it and in our own unique way possible.

When the action began, it started slowly for Team GB.  There were no gold medals in the first four days of competition. 

Lizzie Armitstead got silver in the women’s cycling road race and there was a historic bronze in the men’s team gymnastics final, but there was concern, particularly with the form of our swimmers.

It was at Eton Dorney when the gold rush finally kicked off on day five.  Heather Stanning and Helen Glover delivered gold in the coxless pairs and from there on, we didn’t look back.

Bradley Wiggins followed a few hours later, with a dominant victory in the men’s cycling time trial.  The next day, the British achieved gold and silver in a dramatic men’s canoe slalom final and minutes later, there was an emotional and unexpected gold medal for Peter Wilson in the Men’s Double Trap Shooting.

Wilson had his funding cut after Beijing, and it was the backing of a rich Arab Sheikh that saw him realise his dream.  Realising dreams also was Gemma Gibbons, who collected a popular silver medal in the judo, then left us with one of the most iconic pictures of the games. She pointed to the sky, saying ‘I love you Mum,’ in memory of her mother, who passed away eight years ago.

Team GB’s women’s footballers improved the profile of their game.  70,000 saw Hope Powell’s side beat Brazil at Wembley Stadium, with Steph Houghton becoming an overnight sensation, scoring in all three group games.  Quarter-final heartbreak would follow against Canada but they credited themselves magnificently.

The gold rush continues

The gold medals continued.  Katherine Grainger finally reached the pinnacle when she doubled up with Anna Watkins to win the Women’s Double Sculls at Eton Dorney – after three successive and agonising silver medals.

Andy Murray was too good for Roger Federer in the men's singles

Andy Murray dismantled Roger Federer in the Men’s Singles Final at Wimbledon, losing just seven games at SW19, writing the wrongs of his painful Wimbledon loss less than a month earlier.

Ben Ainslie became the most successful sailor in Olympic history, as he won his fourth gold medal at Weymouth, and Welsh teenage kicking sensation Jade Jones became Olympic champion in Taekwondo.

Of course, there were disappointments along the way.  Smart tactics from the rest of the field meant Mark Cavendish’s dreams of winning a medal disappeared in the men’s cycling road race.

The swimming team were a major letdown.  Michael Jamieson did get silver and there was double bronze for Beijing golden girl Rebecca Adlington, but targets were not met at the Aquatics Centre.

Phillips Idowu wandered into the Olympic village with an injury he wanted to keep secret.  The Hackney local made a tame exit from the qualifying rounds of the men’s triple jump – his creditability shattered. 

Team GB’s male footballers spectacularly failed on the big stage.  Despite winning their group, they lacked conviction and predictably exited via a quarter-final penalty shootout to South Korea in Cardiff.  Daniel Sturridge can add his name to those queuing up for fame for a pizza chain commercial! 

However, there were more success stories than failures, and they came in 45 glorious minutes on Saturday, 4 August.

Super Saturday

Team GB had already racked up another two gold medals and one silver in the final day of rowing competition, and another gold medal in the velodrome. 

Jessica Ennis showed she was the best all-round athlete

Then, it went crazy in the Olympic Stadium.  First, the poster girl of the Olympic Games, Jessica Ennis stormed to victory in the 800m, the final event of the women’s heptathlon. 

Ennis had started a day earlier, with the fastest time ever by a heptathlon athlete in the 100m hurdles, one of her favourite events.  She achieved lifetime bests in the javelin and long jump, and Sheffield’s star finished it off in fitting fashion on the Saturday evening.

She had realised her dream after the injury heartache of four years ago.  Meanwhile, another athlete who had his injury issues over many years was finally delivering on his promise in the jumping pit.

Step forward Greg Rutherford from Bletchley in Milton Keynes.  He produced a jump of 8m 31 to win gold in the men’s long jump.  There was immense pride as a local lad to MK, and sheer delight for a crowd that were witnessing a very special evening.

The 'Mobot' became a big hit with many.

Then, it was back to the track for the final of the men’s 10,000m.  Mo Farah, withstanding the pressure from the Kenyan and Ethiopian athletes, took the gold medal.  The place erupted on an extraordinary evening.

If that wasn’t enough for Farah – he returned a week later to achieve the long-distance double, winning the 5000m title too.

What a night – the greatest in the history of British sport.

World feats

Of course, the Olympic Games were not just about the British.

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt was doubted by many before arriving in London, with the man himself claiming only to be ’95 per cent fit.’

He retained all of his Olympic titles – becoming the first sprinter to ever achieve this.

On ‘Super Sunday,’ he won the men’s 100m in 9.63secs in a new Olympic record, holding off compatriot and world champion Yohan Blake, and the American trio of Justin Gatlin, Tyson Gay and Ryan Bailey.

Four days later, Bolt was back to defend his 200m title, again seeing off Blake in a Jamaican 1-2-3.  Lastly, to conclude the events in the Olympic Stadium – he anchored the Jamaican team to the 4x100m title, smashing their own world record in the process.

The American team did this in the women’s equivalent, breaking the last ever record held by East Germany.  Allyson Felix won three gold medals and Carmelita Jeter got two gold’s and one silver for her efforts.

Kenyan David Rudisha destroyed the competition in the men’s 800m, taking the first world record of the games in the Olympic Stadium.  Felix Sanchez of the Dominican Republic found some unexpected form to triumph in the men’s 400m hurdles – then he broke down in floods of tears on the rostrum.

Kirani James produced Grenada’s first ever Olympic gold in the men’s 400m, a feat also achieved by Lithuania as they won their first Olympic gold in the swimming pool, courtesy of Ruta Meilutyte.

The US retained the women’s football title and Mexico stunned Brazil to take the gold medal in the men’s football.  Brazil coach Mano Menezes would end the year unemployed.

Serena Williams dismantled Maria Sharapova to win women’s tennis gold and ultimately, America would end up top of the medal table with various successes across the UK.

Most of it arrived in the swimming pool.  The world saw the likes of Missy Franklin, Rebecca Soni and Katie Ledecky set new world records and even higher standards.  Ryan Lochte had his moments too, but there was only one Olympian who stole the show in the Aquatics Centre.

London 2012 started in shaky fashion for Michael Phelps.  He finished fourth in the men’s 400m individual medley, and was part of the 4x100m relay team that were beaten by an inspired French squad.

Then, he was edged into silver by South African Chad le Clos in the 200m butterfly, making Chad’s Dad an overnight internet phenomenon from his BBC interview with presenter Claire Balding. 

We won't see the likes of Michael Phelps again in sport

Phelps’s silver did though equal the tally of 18 medals overall at the Olympics, previously held by Larisa Latynina.  An hour later, Phelps made it 19 when he won his first gold in the games – winning the 4x200m relay.

Three more gold medals followed, meaning he bowed out of the Olympics and swimming with 22 Olympic medals – 18 of them being gold.

It is safe to say that we will never see the likes of Michael Phelps again in sport.

The medal factory at the velodrome

While British success in the pool was limited, the cycling velodrome has become the medal factory in recent Olympics.

After effectively whitewashing the field in Beijing four years ago, the track cycling governing body UCI, decided to crack down on such dominance, and insist that each country had just one entry per event in the track cycling.

If they thought that they had done the right thing to stop supremacy, then they were to be seriously mistaken.

Laura Trott and Jason Kenny took double gold, as Team GB stormed the main prizes once again.

However, it would be the feat of two of Britain’s cycling legends that took the accolades.

Victoria Pendleton made a messy start, after an illegal changeover which was her fault, saw her and Jess Varnish disqualified from the women’s team sprint.

She recovered 24 hours later to win the first ever women’s keirin, but had to settle for silver in her final event, beaten by great rival, Australia’s Anna Meares in the individual sprint.

Sir Chris Hoy became the most successful British Olympian and in style

While Pendleton didn’t quite finish in style, Sir Chris Hoy certainly did.  Together with Kenny and Philip Hindes – he won his fifth Olympic gold in the men’s team sprint. 

He then returned to win the men’s keirin and overtake Sir Steve Redgrave, to become the most successful British Olympian of all-time, with six gold medals.  While Pendleton has retired totally – Hoy still might go on to the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, but won’t be back for Rio in 2016.

Overall, Team GB won eight gold’s, two silvers and two bronzes.  Wiggins won BBC Sports Personality of the Year and Dave Brailsford was Coach of the Year.

As cycling eras ended, the Olympics closed with some history in the boxing ring.

There were gold medals for Luke Campbell and Anthony Ogogo, while Katie Taylor became Ireland’s first gold medallist at the Olympics since 1996.

And Nicola Adams made her own history too – becoming the first ever champion in women’s boxing at the Olympics, which was introduced this year.

Let’s not forget either a bronze for Tom Daley in diving or Charlotte Dujardin taking double gold in a very successful equestrian team.

The Olympics definitely inspired a generation, and there was more to come from the Paralympics a few weeks later.

Paralympic joy

It was time for the superheroes to perform on the main global stage and they didn’t disappoint.

Team GB came third in this medal table too, achieving 34 gold’s, 43 silvers and 43 bronze medals.  It was one place below from four years ago, but crucially it was their biggest ever medal tally at a Paralympics.

The best feats belonged to David Weir, Ellie Simmonds and Sarah Storey.

Storey won Britain’s first paralympic gold of London 2012, taking the honours in the women’s individual C5 pursuit race.

Three more gold medals followed at Brands Hatch in Kent, including the 500m time trial C4-5 and the individual road race C4-5.  She equalled the tally of the most Paralympic gold’s of all-time by a British athlete in the process.

Weir matched Storey’s total of four gold medals in London, and he did his work on the athletics track.

Competing in a wheelchair, he retained his 1500m title in the T54 category, and also triumphed in the 800m, 5000m and the marathon. 

Ellie Simmonds was one of the stars in the Paralympics

In the S6 swimming disability category, 18-year-old Simmonds won two gold medals, in the 400m freestyle and the 200m individual medley – taking two world records in the process.  She won four medals overall at the Aquatics Centre.

On a worldwide scale, South African Oscar Pistorius became the first ‘abled’ athlete to compete in both the Olympics and the Paralympics.  He left London with two gold medals, a silver medal and many more friends.

Italian Alessandro Zanardi produced one of the miracle stories of the year.  11 years after losing both his legs in a racing crash driving in Germany, the former Formula One driver won two gold medals in the Hand bike category. 

He took the honours in the individual time trial and road race, and one relay silver medal.  He is a true inspiration to any athlete taking part in the Olympics or the Paralympics.

What an unbelievable summer it was and it will never be forgotten.  The greatest show on earth absolutely delivered.

Categories: Andy Murray, Ben Ainslie, Bradley Wiggins, Danny Boyle, Greg Rutherford, Jade Jones, Jessica Ennis, Katherine Grainger, London, Mo Farah, Olympics, Paralympics, Peter Wilson, Steph Houghton, Team GB, Usain Bolt