JEILAN IS UPSET WINNER IN MEN'S 10,000M
By David Monti
(c) 2011 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved. Used with permission.

DAEGU (28-Aug) -- Ethiopia's Ibrahim Jeilan scored an upset victory in the 10,000m over Britain's Mo Farah to highlight the distance action on the second day of the 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics here.

In a race which saw world half-marathon record holder Zersenay Tadese dictate the pace through 8400m, Jeilan and Farah's Samsung Diamond League rival Imane Merga were the only athletes still within striking distance of the Briton after he launched his long kick more than 600m from the finish.  Farah appeared to have opened a sufficient gap, but rounding the final turn, the European indoor 3000m champion turned around to see Jeilan right behind him.

"I tried to tell myself, 'don't panic, just relax and finish your kick,'" said Farah who clocked 53.4 seconds for his final lap.  "But my legs just didn't have it.  I was almost like cramping.  There was nothing there."

Jeilan, the IAAF world junior cross country champion in 2004, overtook Farah inside of 20 meters from the finish line to collect his first senior world title in 27:13.81.  Farah finished just slightly behind him (27:14.07) and Merga got the bronze (27:19.14).  Tadese, who did much of the pacing duties, finished fourth (27:22.57).

A corporate runner in the Japanese system for the Honda team, Jeilan said that beating Farah delivered a special feeling of satisfaction.  "We all know Mohammed Farah is very tough," he said in English.  He continued: "Everybody is strong, but he's the strongest."

RUDISHA LEADS 800M SEMI-FINALS:

David Rudisha's quest for his first senior world title took another critical step forward here today when he breezed through his semi-final of the 800m, winning his heat in 1:44.20. It was Rudisha's 31st consecutive 800-meter victory.

"The race today went well," Rudisha said in an e-mail message to Race Results Weekly provided by his manager, James Templeton.  "I felt comfortable and was happy to win the race. I feel strong and am looking forward to the final in two days".

Also advancing was American Nick Symmonds who won the second heat by controlling the pace from the front, then holding off Russia's Yuriy Borzakovskiy in the homestretch.  Both men were timed in 1:45.73.

"Yuriy made a really smart move down the backstretch and I just said, 'I can't let him get around me or I'll be boxed,'" Symmonds told reporters.  "I just did everything I could to hold him off on the curve.  I think we ran together down the homestretch.  It made sense that we would be in it. We're the veterans."

Coming from fifth place to first in the last 50 meters, Ethiopia's Mohammed Aman won the first heat, one which was led almost the entire time by the Sudan's Abubaker Kaki.  Kaki's huge lead crumbled in the last 200m, and he was lucky to finish third and advance to the final on time.  Poland's Marcin Lewandowski finished second, and also advanced.

JAMAL MOVES AHEAD TO 1500M SEMIS:

Reigning world champion Maryam Yusuf Jamal of Bahrain was the fastest of all qualifiers in the first round of the women's 1500m this morning, clocking 4:07.04 in the third heat.  Just behind her, Spain's Nuria Fernández, the fourth place finisher from Berlin two years ago, finished second, and America's Morgan Uceny, this summer's Diamond League 1500m leader, got third.

"I just made sure I was in the back in the beginning, and I was fine with that because nobody was clipping me from behind," said Uceny.  "And, at that sort of pace I knew I could move if I needed to.  It's all about staying out of trouble and putting yourself in good position."

Disaster seemed to have struck for Ethiopia's Kalkidan Gezahegne, the reigning world indoor 1500m champion.  Sprinting down the homestretch in a tightly bunched pack "Kalky" tangled feet with New Zealand's Nikki Hamblin.  While Hamblin fell hard on her chest and would finish last, Gezahegne managed to remain on her feet, but had to step over the rail into the infield, then back on the track, losing valuable time. She finished seventh in 4:14.45, too slow to advance on time.  However officials ruled that Hamblin interfered with her, so she was allowed to advance.

Also failing to advance was, Britain's Lisa Dobriskey who finished 11th in the second heat in 4:12.70. The reigning world championships silver medalist had been plagued by back problems all year.