Koeman, Bubka take titles and plaudits

An awesome illustration of 5000 metres running by Kenyan Daniel Koeman, ensured that the sixth world track and field championships ended with the applause of the masses ringing around the Olympic Stadium in Athens last evening.

Koeman filled the stage and the imagination of the crowd, by dominating the best of the middle distance talent and winning by 30 metres from the Moroccan, Khalid Boulami in 13 minutes 07.38 seconds.

Even in a land of so much running talent, the 21 -year-old who last month put two sub-four-minute miles back to back, is something special. And as athletes of the stature of the German, Dieter Baumann and the American, Bob Kennedy were to acknowledge later, it's bordering on the impossible to legislate for talent like that.

Burying the habits of a lifetime, Baumannn, the last-lap specialist, changed tack on this occasion and attempted to disrupt the Kenyan's rhythm if not his strategy by going out hard from the gun.

German observers couldn't believe the evidence of their own eyes as the bespectacled Baumann bowled around in the lead, a task that was shared for a lap by the Portuguese, Dionisio Castro.

When Koeman's entry into the drama came, it was ambitious and authoritative. First he tracked down team-mate Tom Nyariki and then, even as those behind were coming to terms with the new situation, he bolted like a startled hare to turn the race into a procession.

With 2000 metres to go, he lapped in 59.3 seconds and with more and more daylight opening up between himself and the pack, he proceeded to demoralise them further with another sub-60 seconds circuit immediately afterwards. "I think it was then that we finally accepted that he was unbeatable on the day," said Baumann, who eventually finished fifth behind Boulami, Nyariki and another Moroccan, Ismail Sghyr, at a stage when Koeman was already getting ready to embark on his lap of honour.

Later, Koeman would pay tribute to the men who inspired him in the formative stages of his career, Kip Keino and Moses Kiptanui but history may show that when the princes of middle distance running are evaluated, his is a talent which may well be recalled as the greatest.

The Kenyan needed to be extra special to top the bill on a day when the ageless Sergey Bubka won the pole vault title for a six consecutive occasion and Germany's sequence of success was extended by Lars Riedel in the discus.

Trading on the adulation of the crowd, Bubka defied the years yet again by going over at 6.01 metres but then abandoned his attempt at a world record of 6.15 metres and a prize of £65,000 halfway through his approach.

A big throw by Jurgen Schult on his first visit to the circle, established the pattern of the discus championship but before long, Riiedel's class had again surfaced and his fourth successive title was claimed with a throw of 68.54 metres.

Spain's tradition in marathon running was enhanced when Abel Anton, a former European 10,000 metres champion, beat his compatriot Martin Fiz in a sprint finish to score his third win in as many marathon starts.

Fiz had done almost all the work from the halfway mark, only to be upstaged by Anton.

There was rich merit, too, in the manner in which the Olympic champion, Ludmila Engquist held her nerve and her rating as the number one in the event by overtaking the leader, Michelle Freeman on the run to the line in the 100 metres hurdles final.

Freeman's win in the semi-final had been achieved with the kind of fluency which presaged ultimate success and when she went to the last hurdle in the lead, there seemed no reason to demur. But Engquist had her in her sights and with the Jamaican tieing up, Svetia Dimitrova of Bulgaria came through to take second place.

Hanne Haughland earned another gold medal for Norway by clearing 1.99 metres in the high jump before the relays brought a carnival day and the championship to a suitable closure.

Thanks to an electrifying run by anchor man, Donovan Bailey, Canada took the gold medals in the men's 4 x 100 metres in championship best figures of 37.86 seconds and the women's equivalent was won without undue difficulty by the United States.

Even without the favourites, America, disqualified after an elementary breakdown in communications between Brian Lewis and Tim Montgomery, the men's final was an exciting affair. And yet, in terms of entertainment scarcely compared with either of the 4 x 400 metres finals.

In the women's race, Grit Breuer, once at the centre of a drugs scandal, came with an irresistible run in the inside lane, to move Germany from fourth place to first in the last 60 metres of the race.

And then despite the best efforts of Jamie Baulch who made up significant ground on the third leg, Tyree Washington was equal to the challenge of mastering Mark Richardson and steering the US to success in the men's event.