World Athletics Championships Day One: Heartbreak and Hoffa

by Sanchez, Shot To Nothing

There were bad times and there were good times. And there was a lot of fucking popcorn, let me tell you.


The woman in the picture is British 10,000m runner Jo Pavey and her story is a one of heart break. Ever the bridesmade and never the bride, Jo has finnished fourth or fifth in just about every World and Olympic Championship she has ever raced in.

With just five laps to go in the Womens 10,000m final Ethiopian runner Mestawet Tufa, pulled out of the race leaving Tirunesh Dibaba and Elvan Abeylegesse on their own at the front in the race for first. A few metres down Jo Pavey saw this happen and must have thought that, after so many horrible fourth place defeats, she might finally have a chance at a well deserved Championship Medal. She found herself in a race for third with two far inferior athletes in Kimberly Smith (NZL) and Kara Goucher (USA) and, with three laps to go, she began winding it up, determination written all over her face.

But sadly, Goucher had chosen today to have the race of her life and in the last 300m she passed Pavey with a sprint finish that she just couldn't match. Pavey crossed the line in fourth again, devastated. She must know that this was her last chance at a World Championship Medal and no doubt she will feel this defeat for many years to come.

On a brighter note, Reese Hoffa won the Mens Shot-Put in excellent stlye and was cheered on in his last throw by ever the gentleman Adam Nelson, who finished in second with the grace of a true champion.

The Mens Marathon was surprisingly (?) won by a relativley unknown Kenyan, Luke Kibet, who fought off an undeafeated Mubarak Hassan Shami (QAT) to take the title. Swiss runner Viktor Rothlin came in third to the delight of rich folk everywhere declaring 'If you can dream it, you can do it'. Does that mean I can bone Aimme Perkins then?

Tonight will see the Mens 100m Final and the showdown we've all been waiting for (Well, some of us anyways...) between Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay. Carolina Kluft will hope to hold on to her Heptathlon crown and some scary, scary women will compete for the Womens Shot-Put title.

Oh, and theres the Mens 20km 'Race-Walk' too... but nobody actually thinks that shit is a sport do they?

Didn't think so.