Day 8 Cover
So it happened again. Day 8 of the World Championships, just like every other day to come before it, produced a dose of astounding performances and surprise winners. It’s exhausting just trying to keep up, not that we’re complaining. For the penultimate time, it’s the Beijing Wrap.
Captain Ashton
Cometh the hour, cometh the man. After seven days of gripping action, the only thing that could have improved these world championships was a world record. Cue Ashton Eaton.
The American’s pacing over the ten events was as perfectly judged as his personal best in the 400m yesterday. He didn’t blitz it in every discipline, just steadily underlined his all-round dominance in each. By the time he rounded the last bend in the 1500m he had just enough in the tank to turn on the gas and etch his name into the record books once more. Gold with 9045 points to make an improvement on his own world record.
And as if he wasn't incredible enough, in the press conference he insisted on reporters asking the other medallists questions too – didn't want to steal their thunder. A true class act.
Ramblin’ men
Before that happened, Spaniard Jesus Angel García Bragado was setting a record of his own. The 1993 title winner made an unprecedented 12th world champs appearance when he set off in the 50km race walk this morning. He came home in 9th place, which is the 45-year-old’s best finish since his bronze medal in 2009.
That wasn’t the only history made in Beijing's rising sun: the winner was Matej Toth, whose early move proved decisive as he became the first Slovakian athlete ever to win a world champs gold.
The early risers in the Bird’s Nest didn’t have two home athletes to cheer as they had the previous morning, but they still gave Toth a rousing reception as he entered the stadium to complete his mammoth race and earn an historic title. China loves race walking.
Stars in Their Eyes
What China loved even more today was the 4x100m relays. The noise level reached scary levels this morning when the men’s team emerged from the call room like contestants on a game show (just like at the World Relays), and the decibel level didn't drop as they ripped their way round the track in a 37.93 Asian record to make the final.
That meant the whole process was repeated in the last act of the evening session, only louder. The Chinese team came home in third, sending the Bird’s Nest in to delirium. Things went even wilder when news came through that the US team had been DQd, gifting silver to China and tinnitus to everyone in the stadium. Best birthday ever!
Jamaica, Jamaica
Both the men's and women's relays were won by the Jamaican teams, bolstering the country's reputation as the sprinting centre of the world.
The relays are a team effort, but each Jamaican quartet contained special anchors. In bringing each of their respective groups home, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce picked up her seventh world championships gold medal, while Usain Bolt got his eleventh. Remarkable hauls for a pair of remarkable athletes.
Triple double
Another remarkable athlete is Mo Farah. There's not much we can say about the guy that hasn't been said elsewhere, but we couldn't not give the Brit a mention.
This evening he secured a third straight 5000m world title, doubling up on the 10k gold he won last week. It means he's doubled up on the double he scored in Moscow, which at the time was a double of the double he achieved at London 2012. None of that makes any sense, but you know what we mean.
Special friends
It was great to see Ashton Eaton climb into the crowd to give his wife and heptathlon silver medallist Brianne a lovely big smooch after his heroics in the decathlon.
The Bird's Nest incredibly popular KissCam was too slow to pick them up (we weren’t), but it did at least dig out these two camera shy young lovers. Pucker up, boys!!