Farah wins first gold of London 2017
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E-mail Xinhua, August 5, 2017
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Mo Farah of Great Britain competes in the Men's 10000 metres final. |
Local favorite Mohamed Farah won the highly-anticipated first gold medal for Britain at the IAAF World Championships with his 10,000m victory on Friday, while Chinese sprinters Su Bingtian and Xie Zhenye made into the men's 100m semi-finals along with Usain Bolt in the Jamaican's swan song.
It was Farah's third consecutive triumph in the event at worlds after 2013 and 2015. He was also the two-time Olympic gold medalist in 2012 and 2016, winning 5,000m and 10,000m in both occasions.
Farah positioned himself in the leading group with several other runners for the most part of the race. Although clipped twice in the final lap, Farah made a sprint with 100m remaining to cross the finish line with a world leading time of 26 minutes and 49.51 seconds.
Joshua Kiprui Cheptegei of Uganda finished runner-up with 26:49.94, while the bronze medal went to Paul Kipngetich Tanui of Kenya, who clocked 26:50.60.
Farah shared his victory at the first momement with his family. "It was a long journey, but it was amazing. Thanks for everyone's support. It was hard, but I tried to be as strong as I could," he said.
Winning eight Olympic gold medals and 11 world titles, the 30-year-old Bolt announced his retirement after the worlds.
Bolt undoubtedly grabbed the spotlight to receive enthusiastic cheering in London Stadium, even when he appeared on the screen in his pre-match training. He responded the crowds with a smile.
Bolt withheld a slow start to upper in his group with 10.07 seconds and ease into the semi-finals. He decided to compete in 100m and 4x100m relay events in London.
"That was very bad. I stumbled coming out of the blocks. I'm not very fond of these blocks. I think they are the worst ones I've ever experienced," said Bolt.
"The crowd is always wonderful. They always show me so much love and I always appreciate being here. I'm excited about getting through and doing my best," he added.
Su finished group first in heats with a season best of 10.03 seconds. Xie ranked third in his group with 10.13 seconds. Both Chinese sprinters automatically secured a semi-finals berth.
"I felt that I didn't perform quite well in today's heats, and messed up on my rhythm," said Su, adding that his rival's false start actually helped him because he could put more focus on his start.
"Overall, I'm satisfied with this result," he commented.
For Xie, the aim was to break the 10-second barrier and make into the final.
American Justin Gatlin also got the ticket to semi-finals with 10.05 seconds.
Chinese promising long jumper Shi Yuhao secured the final berth at 8.06 meters, along with teammate Wang Jianan, bronze medalist two years ago in Beijing. However, Huang Changzhou crashed out from the competition.
A record 2,038 athletes from 203 countries and regions will be competing at the 16th edition of the IAAF's flagship event, which runs through to August 13.
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