Bekele & Isinbayeva miss records

Bekele left himself with too much to do after a steady first mile

Kenenisa Bekele produced an awesome run but just missed out on breaking Haile Gebrselassie's two-mile world record at the Birmingham Indoor Grand Prix.

The Olympic and world 10,000m champion ran a blistering solo race to clock eight minutes 05:12 seconds - just 0:43 outside Gebrselassie's mark.

Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva also failed to set another lucrative indoor mark in the pole vault.

The peerless world record holder failed all three attempts at 4.92m.

The best British performance in Birmingham was delivered by Robert Tobin, who continued his good form ahead of next month's Commonwealth Games with an impressive 400m win.

The 22-year-old ran a well-judged race, surging past Daniel Caines and Jamaica's Davian Clarke on the home straight to win in 46.20 seconds.

"This win gives me a lot of confidence for the Commonwealths," Tobin said.

Bekele holds the indoor and outdoor 10,000m world records

Caines, who goes to the World Indoors in search of a second title, set a season's best of 46.51.

Olympic and world champion Tonique Williams-Darling won the women's race in 51.85.

The Bahamian said after the race she is still undecided about whether to go to the Commonwealths.

Freddy Mayola upset Britain's world indoor champion Jason Gardener in the men's 60m.

The Cuban recovered from a false start to clock 6.55 seconds to edge out Gardener (6.57), who will contest the Commonwealth 100m instead of defending his world title.

"It's a little bit disappointing but I left myself too big a gap to claw back," Gardener said.

"It's still a good time for me and it bodes well for the 100m in Melbourne."

France's Christine Arron claimed the women's 60m in a season's best of 7.15 in only her second race on British soil.

Overall it was a positive day and I'm in good stead for Melbourne Kelly Sotherton

Former American world 100m champion Torri Edwards made her return after serving 15 months of a two-year drugs ban and finished fourth.

There were no fireworks in the women's long jump following Jade Johnson and Kelly Sotherton's public spat in Sheffield last weekend.

Sotherton kept her Commonwealth heptathlon preparations on track with a decent jump of 6.50m - good enough to take second behind Spain's Concepcion Montaner.

"Overall it was a positive day and I'm in good stead for Melbourne," Sotherton told BBC Sport.

There were also good signs for fellow heptathlete Julie Hollman, who is also going to Melbourne, as she landed a personal best of 6.47m to take third.

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Johnson, making her comeback from a back injury, looked a little lacking in confidence and finished down in seventh with a best jump of 6.26m.

In the men's event, Nathan Morgan took second with 8.02m, which is outside the qualifying mark for the World Indoors.

Tim Abeyie, third in the 60m sprint, took second behind American Wallace Spearmon with a personal best of 20.86 in the 200m.

Jamaican Veronica Campbell won the women's event in a season's best of 22.84 with Britain's Christine Ohuruogu third in 23.74.

The Olympic champion said afterwards she was running into form ahead of the Commonwealths despite combining study with her training.

World 5,000m and 10,000m champion Tirunesh Dibaba also exuded class as she comfortably won the 3,000m in a season's best time of 8.41:22.