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You are in: Special Events: 2001: World Athletics |
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Saturday, 11 August, 2001, 02:53 GMT 03:53 UK
Backley crashes on black day for Brits
Backley could not find his best championship form
Steve Backley failed to reach the final of the javelin following a dismal display in the qualifying competition at the World Championships in Edmonton.
The former world record holder suffered a shock exit to complete a miserable eighth day at the championships for the Great Britain team. Two other medal hopes - Chris Rawlison and Ashia Hansen - also saw their dreams shattered in sorry fashion. Rawlison could only finish fifth in the men's 400m hurdles, while Hansen was seventh in the women's triple jump. Backley was seen as one of Britain's best bets for a medal after an impressive run this season.
There had even been talk of him going one step better than the Olympics and finally beating his nemisis, Jan Zelezny of the Czech Republic.
But he never looked at his best and all three of his throws were short of the automatic qualifying mark. The 31-year-old, who has a season's best of 90.81 metres, managed only 81.50 to finish in sixth place in his pool of the competition. Backley then had an agonising wait in the stands to see whether he would make the top 12 and reach the final. But one by one his rivals threw further than him and he finished in 13th place - just outside the qualifying positions. "I just didn't get hold of it," he told BBC TV, "it was nothing more complicated than that. "In the third round I floored it, but I mis-timed the throw. But that's just the way it goes."
At least Backley's team-mate Mick Hill qualified for Sunday's final with a best effort of 84.88m - but even then he looked to have suffered a recurrence of an Achilles injury as he completed the throw.
There was further misery in the semi-finals of the men's 1500m, where both Britons finished outside the top six needed to reach the final. First Anthony Whiteman came home in seventh place in 3:36.77 behind Bernard Lagat of Kenya and then John Mayock trailed in tenth spot, behind race winner and hot favourite for gold, Hicham El Guerrouj of Morocco. The one bright moment for Britain on day eight was provided by Kelly Holmes. The former army sergeant reached the final of the women's 800m with another gutsy display. She will now look to repeat her performance at the Olympics last year, when she defied long-term injury to claim a surprise bronze medal.
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