Saturday November 14, 2009
Liu Xiang wins his third ATF hurdles title
BEIJING: China’s former world record holder Liu Xiang has easily won his third Asian Track and Field (ATF) 110m hurdle gold medal, posting a time of 13.50 in a driving rain in the southern city of Guangzhou.
The 2004 Athens Olympic champion led from the start late on Thursday to win his second competition since returning from surgery on an Achilles tendon injury that kept him out of the 2008 Beijing Games.
“I had hoped to run faster, but due to today’s weather, it was better to be steady,” Liu Xiang said.
“I think that I’m in pretty good condition. Today I came here with a pretty relaxed attitude,” he said.
Liu Xiang The win automatically qualifies Liu Xiang for next year’s World Athletics Championships.
Team-mate Shi Dongpeng finished second, while South Korea’s Park Tae-kyong won the bronze.
“As long as his foot can completely heal, I believe that he can return to his peak form — at least he should have no problem running at around 13 seconds,” Liu Xiang’s coach Sun Haiping said.
The performance was far off Liu Xiang’s personal best and former world record time of 12.88 and slower than the 13.15 he ran in September when he finished second to US world number two Terrence Trammell in his first race after surgery.
Last month, the 26-year-old won his third national 110m hurdle championship at the China Games, winning in a time of 13.34.
The star hurdler will compete in next month’s East Asian Games in Hong Kong before beginning winter training and preparing for the World Indoor Championships in Doha in March, Haiping said.
Following Thursday’s race, the mega-star stripped off his shirt and tossed it into the grandstands, sparking a roar of approval from the crowd of thousands. — AFP
For Another perspective from the China Daily, a partner of Asia News Network, click here
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