23.08.2009

Berlin Day 8 - Evening session - LIVE

Three Australians are in action on the second last day of competition at the 12th IAAF world championships in Berlin.

Australia has two men in the final of the men's long jump. National champion Fabrice Lapierre and law student Mitchell Watt will take on one of the best long jump fields ever assembled. Three jumpers in the field have season's bests over 8.50m.

Olympic champion Steve Hooker will attempt to make it back-to-back global titles in the men's pole vault. Hooker is hurting though. Adductor and hip problems will limit his jumping to as few jumps as required.

Frenchman Renaud Lavillenie will be the one to beat, with the highest jump in the world this outdoor season.

Men's Long jump - Final - LIVE

Lapierre is the second jumper to go and hits a good one first up, 8.21m to take an early lead. With 11.2cm spare on the board there should be bigger ones to come.

2004 Olympic champion Dwight Phillips launches 8.40m to go into the lead and has plenty of room to spare as he missed the board. He actually travelled 8.65m then. Big jumping.

Watt goes second last in jump order.

A duo of Australians appear in a men's long jump final for the second time at a world championships.

Watt is up. Good chance for the Aussies to go top three. He does! 8.28m to go into second. The men are on fire early in the comp. Well they will be assured of all six jumps now.

Big jump from Saladino but it's a foul. The defending champion went about 8.50m on that one.

At the end of round it's Phillips leading from Lapierre and Watt.

The best finish by an Australian at a world championships is fourth by national record holder Jai Taurima in Seville in 1999. On that occasion Taurima jumped a then-Australian record of 8.35m. West Australian Shane Hair was fifth in the same competition.

Lapierre's second looked a good one but he over-rotated and ended up sprawled in the pit. He's okay though. 7.77m.

Phillips up now. He looks to be in his best ever form. He said earlier this year he wants the world record. That jump is a huge 8.54m or 28ft in the old language.

Mokoena jumps a massive 8.47m to fall just three centimetres short of his African record set earlier this year in Madrid. It was in that competition that Lapierre launched a wind-aided 8.57m to beat the South African.

Watt, currently in third, is getting ready to go for his second attempt as the crowd gives a huge roar for the German in the pole vault.

Watt runs through sensing a foul. He has some serious speed on the runway reminiscent of Taurima at the Sydney Olympic Games where he won silver.

There will be a pause in proceedings soon for the medal ceremony of the women's discus. Of course, that's Dani Samuels. The national anthem will inspire those boys.

Start of Round 3 and the placings are Phillips in first with 8.54m followed by Mokoena (8.47m), Watt (8.28m) and Lapierre (8.21m).

Rutherford (GBR) fouls his third attempt but is remonstrating with officials about the mark on the board.

Lapierre sprays the mascot, conveniently located at the end of the pit, with a mouthful of sand as he records 8.19m.

Sdiri the Frenchman can't get going tonight. 7.98m and 7.99m.

Third attempts now and another foul for Watt. He has to be one of the fastest jumpers out there. He ran a 10.37 on the Gold Coast in May.

Big news. The defending champion is out with a narrow foul in the third round. Before the competition Saladino was thought to be a lock for a medal and be battling Phillips for another title.

Start of fourth round and the jumpers are re-ordered in reverse order.  For the next two jumps anyway and then changed again so that the leading competitors jump last. It will be Rutherford, Sdiri, Tomlinson, Garenamotse, Lapierre, Watt, Mokoena and Phillips as the big screen shows Saladino blowing some kisses goodbye.

Rutherford is still discussing his third attempt with officials. It was a close foul but the the decision remains the same. He'll kick-off round four.

Sdiri moves into fifth with 8.07m.

Another halt in proceedings, this time the men's marathon and the Kenyan national anthem sounds throughout the Olympic stadium for Abel Kirui.

Lapierre gets the kit off ready for his fourth round. He urges the crowd to clap. It's a slight foul (1.2cm to be exact). Watt immediately follows. Another foul. They'll each have two more jumps.

Phillips goes 8.25m to complete the jumping in Round 4.

Placings remain the same: Phillips leading from Mokoena, Watt and Lapierre.

Start of Round 5 and Rutherford, fresh from his British record of 8.30m in the qualifying round, is out to 8.15m and into fifth.

Lapierre, chain-in-mouth at the start of his run-up, goes 8.21m. This is fantastic jumping for the men. Watt goes next and will be keen to go long.

Massive. 8.37m. That's his second longest jump ever and he had room to spare on the board. He consolidates third place, but perhaps he can find some more on the last attempt.

Last round not far away. We've seen what Lapierre can do in this round. In Brisbane earlier this year he was languishing in fourth before launching 8.29m on his last attempt.

Rutherford gets it out to 8.17m. Australia will win a medal.

Can Lapierre get amongst them? If he does he will knock Watt out of third.

Another good jump. 8.20m from Lapierre. He'll end up fourth.

Watt going for his last. He launches out over the 8.50m but it's a decent foul, It doesn't matter, he has the bronze medal. Great jumping. It's Australia's best performance in the long jump at the world championships - third and foutth.

Watt becomes Australia's youngest male medal winner at the world championships. He was the find of the domestic season and confirms his meteoric rise by winning a medal at a major champs only 18 months after returning to long jump.

Lapierre confirms that he is always a force to be reckoned with amongst the world's best jumpers. Fourth place is a fantastic result.

Men's Pole vault - Final - LIVE

Introductions for the men's pole vault final are complete with big cheers from the Australian Flame contingent down pit-side.

The bar is at 5.50m and Steve Hooker has started doing some warm-up skips. His intention is to start jumping at a height that will win a medal then see how his body pulls up.

The bar moves to 5.65m and Romain Mesnil sails clear, and officials escort Hooker off to to get a local anaesthetic in his hip to reduce the pain.

Hooker is back now and continues his warm-up, which now includes some jogging.

5.65m is proving difficult for the men tonight. Jeng (Sweden), Mohr (Germany) and Chistiakov (Russia) all find it too tough.

The bar now at 5.75m. This will start sorting them out. Mazuryk and Gripich are over. Lavillenie needs three tries.

At 5.80 there are seven still in contention. Mesnil, Lavillenie, Mazuryk, Dossevi, Gripich, Gibillisco and of course Hooker, who passes. His intention is to jump for a medal.

When Dmitri Markov won gold in Edmonton in 2001 he required pain killing injections in his foot. As brave as that was, this is new territory. Markov knew his body would hold on if only he could control the pain. Hooker is hurting and is risking major injury.

The bar now goes to 5.85m and Hooker will enter the competition.

Mesnil and Lavillenie both made 5.80 and Mazuryk passes his remaining two attempts.

Amongst all the action with the Aussies, there was a world record in the women's hammer 77.96m. Sorry Anna, there's more important things going on.

Hooker's up. His right leg is heavily bandaged. Intense look on his face, as the biog screen flashes to coach Parnov.

Huge jump for Hooker. Over, took the bar off on the way down.

Lavillenie misses too. Hooker looked in pain for a moment and then some smiles. He knows he can get this.

Three left. Mazuryk out. Romain Mesnil goes clear and Lavillenie and Hooker pass to 5.90m.

Tears from Hooker as he's up and over 5.90m. Legendary. He's in the lead. Mesnil is up at 5.90m after Lavillenie misses his first.

Cameras following Hooker show he's trying to hold back the tears. Emotional stuff.

Hooker and Mesnil engage in short conversation. Hooker will pass at 5.95m. The Frenchman will jump.

Each will have two attempts only.

Lavillenie misses and is out. He missed and passed at both 5.85m and 5.90m.

Mesnil misses his first attempt and has one remaining since he too passed at 5.90m.

Hooker sits just near the 400m start and waits. Mesnil will have to equal his lifetime best to win.

Women's 5000m medal ceremony causes a pause in competition.

Mesnil gets the three minute countdown. He misses and Hooker wins.

Tears from Parnov, as Hooker thanks his mentor and team and personal medical staff.

Hooker win's Australia's second gold medal in the pole vault at the world championships.

Men's 4 x 400m - Heats

The Australian men are just about kick off their campaign for a medal in the men's 4 x 400m.

They line up against the US in the heat. In running order it's Milburn, Thomas, Offereins, Wroe.

They will need to be in the first three to automatically qualify for the final. Milburn runs a solid first leg and Thomas gains some ground back from the leaders.

Offereins ran a huge back straight to move the Australians into second.

Wroe runs a great first 300m on the final leg, but the Brits manage to grab the third automatic spot on the line. We'll have to wait for the results of the second heat to see if we make it. 3.02.04 is the time for the men.

The results of the second heat are in and Australia will qualify on times.

Women's 4 x 400m - Heats

Pirrenee Steinert, Madeleine Pape, Caitlin Pincott, Tamsyn Lewis is the order.

Pincott in fourth place for the Aussies. Lewis takes the baton in sixth. Moves into fifth at 200m and grabs another spot in the run in to the line for fourth.

3.30.80 for fourth. They are a chance of progressing.

No. The second heat is fast and the girls will place 11th overall.

Men's 4 x 100m

In a US-less men's 4 x 100m relay final, the Jamaican quartet of Steve Mullings, Michael Frater, Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell won as expected in 37.31, a new championship record and the second-fastest of all-time.