Kenyan stems men in 800 m final

Press, 27 September 1988, Page 24

Kenyan stems men in 800 m final

NZPA-Reuter Seoul A Kenyan student, Paul Ereng, surged from near the back of the field to seize the Olympic men’s 800 metres gold medal yesterday. Ereng, aged 20, timed his finishing burst to perfection to upset the defending champion, Joaquim Cruz, of Brazil and Morocco’s Said Aouita. The Kenyan moved inside the Briton, Peter Elliott, and Aouita, on the final straight, then accelerated outside Cruz to take the race. Ereng clocked Imin 43.455, Cruz was second in 1:43.90 and Aouita finished third in 1:44.06. Minutes earlier the East German, Sigrun Wodars, repeated her world championships triumph over her compatriot, Christine Wachtel, in the women’s 800 m final. ■ Wodars clocked 1:56.10 and her clubmate, Wachtel, finished in 1:56.64. The American, Kim Gallagher, the 1984 silver medallist, finished third in 1:56.91. The men’s 800 was one of the most keenly anticipated races of the Games. Particular interest was focused on Aouita, who was attempting the 8001500 double and is also on the entry list for the 5000. Cruz was bidding to become the first man for 24 years to retain his title and the field also in-

eluded the world silver medallist, Elliott, and Brazil’s world bronze medallist, Jose Barbosa. Cruz made his move at the 200 metres mark with Aouita accelerating on the outside. But Aouita, running with bandages on his front right thigh and back left thigh, was clearly struggling and it was Ereng who seized the race with an electrifying sprint. Ereng told reporters while on his way to a mandatory doping test that his rivals had set a tough pace. “They went out too fast.” Cruz said: “I didn’t lose it in the final 100,1 lost it earlier. I was watching for Aouita but he never came up.” Sergei Litvinov led a Soviet sweep of the hammer medals when he took the gold with a throw of 84.80 metres. Litvinov, twice the world champion, not only beat the 1976 and 1980 Olympic champion, Yuri Sedykh, into second place but also broke his teammate’s Olympic record. Sedykh threw 81.80 in the 1980 Moscow Olympics. Sedykh’s best throw yesterday was his sixth and last when he managed 83.76 metres. Yuri Tamm was third with 81.16. The Italian, Pietro Mennea, competing in his fifth Olympics, withdrew from the second round of the men’s 200 with a groin

strain. Mennea, aged 36, is still the world record holder and won the gold medal in Moscow. Moulay Brahim Boutaib won Morocco’s second track medal of the day when he raced to victory in the men’s 10,000 metres, clocking 27min 21.465, the fourth fastest time in history. He looked behind repeatedly to catch sight of his opponents, Salvatore Antibo, of Italy, who took the silver medal and Kipkemboi Kimeli, of Kenya, who won the bronze. Olga Bryzgina, of the Soviet Union, added an Olympic gold to a world title when she made no contest of the women’s 400 metres. Bryzgina swept to victory in 48.655, breaking the Olympic record of 48.83 set by the American, Valerie Brisco, at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. The world silver medallist, Petra Mueller, of East Germany, came through strongly in the finishing straight to take second place in 49.45 and Olga Nazarova was third in 49.90. Brisco was fourth in 50.16. The world record holder, Petra Felke, of East Germany, won the women’s javelin with a throw of 74.68 metres. The world champion, Fatima Whitbread, of Britain, was second with 70.32 and the East German, Beate Koch, third with 67.30.