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Roundup: Bolt wins duel against Gatlin, again

Xinhua, August 27, 2015 Adjust font size:

Usian Bolt won his second duel against American Justin Gatlin at Beijing athletics world championships on Thursday as the Jamaican "Lightening" stormed to defend the 200m title, winning every world and Olympic title he actually ran in the past seven years.

Bolt clocked 19.55 seconds in his favorite event, beating Gatlin to the second place and the American's former world leading time of 19.57.

The 29-year-old, who celebrated his birthday in Beijing last Friday, seemed on way back to his best shape after struggling for the season to run sub-20.

Gatlin, who finished second to Bolt in the 100m final on Sunday, took silver in 19.74. Anaso Jobodwana of South Africa in 19.87

By now, Bolt has clinched 11 world and Olympic individual gold medals, just missing the 100m title in 2011 Daegu worlds due to a false start.

World record had been expected in women's hammer throw when London Olympics runner-up Wlodarczyk held a firm lead in her third attempt with 80.27 meters, which broke the championships record of 78.80m set by Tatyana Beloborodova in Moscow two years ago. She improved to 80.85 in her fourth throw and clinched her second world title.

The 30-year-old is in an incredible form this season. On August 1, Wlodarczyk became the first woman to break the 80-meter barrier, tossing the hammer out to 81.08m to break her world record.

Beijing Olympic bronze medalist Zhang Wenxiu created her best result at the top world competitions, winning a silver after the 29-year-old threw the hammer to in 76.33 in her fourth attempt.

"The Bird's Nest is my lucky place," said Zhang. "I am very happy with my silver today but it did not come easy to me. I got a season's best, that is great."

French Alexandra Tavernier bagged a bronze in 74.02.

In the men's triple jump, the world record of 18.29 set by Britain's Jonathan Edwards in 1995 world championships looked within reach for the two 20-something men - London Olympic champion Christian Taylor of the United States and former junior world champion and Moscow runner-up Pedro Pichardo of Cuba.

Taylor won at the end, creating this year's world leading result of 18.21 meters in his last jump while Pichardo had to settle for second place in 17.73. Beijing Olympics champion Nelson Evora from Portugal, 31, took bronze in 17.52.

In the women's 400m, world and Olympic 200 meters winner Allyson Felix of the United States fended off challenges from younger opponents to be crowned in 49.26 for the first time in this event at a world championships.

Former world youth champion Shaunae Miller from Bahamas, nine years junior to Felix, was second in 49.76 before Jamaican Shericka Jackson, also born in 1994, came third in 49.99. Enditem