Jonnie Peacock floors opposition to take world 100m title
Two-time Paralympic champion Jonnie Peacock was again in winning form and he kept Britain top of the medal table on the third evening of World Para Athletics Championships action in London.
Britain’s best-known para athlete won T44 100m gold in style, clocking a time of 10.75 into a slight 0.6m headwind.
Drawn in lane four, the 24-year-old didn’t get the greatest of starts and he trailed US rival Jarryd Wallace initially but by halfway he was ahead and the home crowd roared him to a clear victory.
Behind him, Germany’s Johannes Floors was finishing almost as quick and his 10.89 saw him rocket past Wallace (10.95). The times were a slight disappointment after the heats, which had been run in better conditions.
Despite easing back and looking round, Peacock had won his heat in an European record 10.64 with a 0.3 tailwind. Floors was second in 10.89, while Wallace won the other heat in 10.82.
"That was so scary," said the winner. "I got cramp in my hamstring in the warm-up and I was stretching it over and over which is not something you are normally doing at the start.
"I was so thankful I got the finish line in one piece. I am over the moon I managed to do it.
"Coming back to this stadium is insane. The heats showed I was in good form and should have dipped for the world record."
Isis Holt won a youthful T35 200m. The 16-year-old Australian won in a championship record 28.47 from fellow teenagers Xia Zhou (28.64) and Britain's Maria Lyle, who was cheered home by the crowd to finish a clear third in 29.87. She finished over two seconds ahead of fourth place.
The T54 1500m saw Britain’s Richard Chiassaro lead the opening lap in 55.21 and he was well placed until the bell but faded on the last lap. On a good day for Swiss sport, with tennis star Roger Federer winning at Wimbledon, ‘Silver Bullet’ Marcel Hug had the finishing speed in the last 200 metres and he won his 18th world medal in 3:04.33.
Yassine Gharbi of Tunisia was second in 3:04.58. Chiasarro was eighth in 3:06.24.
Roderick Townsend-Roberts was a class apart in the T47 high jump. While no else could go higher than 1.94m, the American world record-holder entered at 1.98m and with the gold assured he cleared 2.05m and a championship best 2.10m. He had some reasonable attempts at world record 2.15m.
Jason Smyth continued his dominance in the T13 100m. The Irish athlete won by over three metres in a time of 10.63 to just miss his 10.61 championship record from 2013.
"That’s what you come to major championships to do, to cross the line first," he said. "To be back in this stadium is incredible. I’ve got the 200m tomorrow so there’s not much time to relax and enjoy it.
"Where does this rank among all my titles? It’s going to take a bit of time to sink in before I enjoy it. As a world championships this is by far the best. I hope this sets the standard for the future."
Ten minutes later, Ireland won another gold as Michael McKillop controlled the T38 800m to win in 2:00.92.
Canadian Liam Stanley was his closest challenger until the last 30 metres and he stumbled and fell and ended up seventh.
Canada did better in the T53 200m as world record-holder Brent Lakatos won his third successive gold but it was close. He held on to win in 25.29 as Thailand’s Pongsakorn Paeyo almost caught him on the line and shared the winning time. Lakatos went on to finish fifth in the 1500m behind Hug.
There was a strong finish from Ukraine’s Leilia Adzhametova in the T13 women’s 200m and she took gold in an European record 24.63.
Qatar’s Abdu Abdulrahman claimed gold in the F34 men’s shot with a throw of 11.38m while China’s Fu Xinhan bettered the championship record to win the F35 shot with 15.30m. Britain’s Sam Ruddock was seventh in 12.84m.
Cuban Leonardo Diaz won the F56 men’s discus in a championship record 45.47m and he just missed the world record.
The T12 men’s long jump was won by Uzbekistan’s Doniyor Saliev. He dominated throughout with all six jumps over seven metres and saved his best for last with an Asian record 7.18m.
Tobias Jonsson of Sweden was second with a PB 6.99m. Saliev had been seventh in the London 2012 triple jump.
In the T52 1500m USA's defending Paralympic and world champion Ray Martin was unusually beaten by Japan’s Tomoki Sato, who also took Martin’s championship record with a time of 3:45.89. Martin followed him around the final bend but had to settle for second.
Martina Caironi of Italy came very close to her T42 100m world record in a time of 14.65 with a more favourable 1.0m wind than in some of the earlier sprints.
Britain’s Julie Rogers was in contention for a medal at 70 metres but just lost out in the closing stages with a time of 17.03 for sixth spot.
Irmgard Bensusan of Germany won the T44 400m in 62.33.
Last night’s 200m winner, Tatyana McFadden, set a championship record of 52.97 in the T54 400m heats.
» Full results can be found here, while a day-by-day look at the action in store at London 2017 can be found here
