For China’s Top Star, Record Is Lost and Challenge Grows
“…Dayron Robles of Cuba set a world record of 12.87 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles Thursday, eclipsing the mark previously held by China’s most celebrated Olympic star and setting the stage for a potential upset in the country’s most eagerly awaited event at the Summer Games in Beijing…”
By Jere Longman
Source: New York Times
Dayron Robles of Cuba set a world record of 12.87 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles Thursday, eclipsing the mark previously held by China’s most celebrated Olympic star and setting the stage for a potential upset in the country’s most eagerly awaited event at the Summer Games in Beijing.
Robles, 21, set his record at a meet in Ostrava, the Czech Republic, shaving by one-hundredth of a second the record time of Liu Xiang of China, the 2004 Olympic champion and the favorite in Beijing this August.
Liu, who set his record in 2006 and has become highly visible in China as a star athlete and corporate pitchman, did not participate in Thursday’s race. His outdoor season has been brief and disappointing. A hamstring injury kept Liu from participating in the Reebok Grand Prix meet in New York on May 31. Last weekend, a false start disqualified him from the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore.
And now, Liu’s record has been surpassed by Robles, who defeated the Chinese champion twice outdoors last season but has struggled to perform to his capabilities in major championship races.
As it prepares to host the Olympics, China has been dealing with a devastating earthquake and has been facing criticism over the issues of human rights and news media freedoms. On a competitive level, it now faces questions about its two most renowned Olympic stars - Liu and the N.B.A. player Yao Ming, who had foot surgery in March and whose availability for the Beijing Games remains uncertain.
“It’s such a good time; I wasn’t expecting that. Wow!” Robles, who wore glasses and a cross around his neck, told reporters after his record race. “I do not know if I can beat Liu Xiang in Beijing now. But we will see.”
Liu was scheduled to return to China after the Prefontaine meet and has said he would not compete again until the Beijing Olympics, which will be held from Aug. 8 to 24. But his American-based agent, Mark Wetmore, said the chances were better than 50-50 that Liu would run in a meet on the European circuit in July, perhaps in Madrid, Rome or Athens.
“He said he wanted to go home to make sure his hamstring was O.K.,” Wetmore said. “It’s his decision about running. But if he’s going to come back, a Golden League meet would make the most sense, where he’d have the best possible competition.”
Robles has clearly gained top form as Liu tries to restore his health. On Thursday, Robles shaved five-hundredths of a second - a considerable amount - from his previous best, 12.92 seconds, run last September.
In the clouded world of track and field, where doping has been rampant, Robles is sure to face some skepticism about his performance. He has not failed a drug test.
Thursday’s performance by Robles, who is 6 feet 3 ½ inches, was the second stunning record effort in two weeks. Usain Bolt of Jamaica ran 9.72 seconds to set the world record in the 100 meters at the Reebok Grand Prix meet.
Robles is no newcomer to the hurdles the way Bolt is to the 100. Last year, Robles defeated Liu twice, at a meet in Paris and again at a race in Shanghai. Cuba has long been known for the technical skill of its hurdlers and coaches. Anier Garcia of Cuba won the 110 hurdles at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
“He’s a tall guy with quick feet who is very efficient over the top of the hurdles,” Renaldo Nehemiah of the United States, a former world-record holder and the first man to run the event in less than 13 seconds, said of Robles in a recent interview. “Obviously, the road to Beijing travels through Liu. He’s not going to give it to him. But in a one-race environment, all it takes is one mistake and anything can happen.”
Liu seems to have one advantage: he seems to be at his best in major championships, and Robles does not. Robles finished a disappointing fourth to Liu last August at the world track and field championships in Osaka, Japan.
Then, after a dominant indoor season in 2008 in the 60 hurdles, Robles mistakenly believed a false start had been called on Liu in the first round of the indoor world championships in March in Valencia, Spain. Robles stopped running and was eliminated from the competition, which Liu eventually won. They are considered friends, and Liu offered his condolences.
The next time the two men are scheduled to meet, an Olympic gold medal will hang in the balance.
“There is no favorite,” Allen Johnson of the United States, the 1996 Olympic champion, said.
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