Olympic champion Barbora Spotakova broke the women's javelin world record with a throw of 72.28 meters at the World Athletics Final on Saturday. “This is strange because I did not expect it,” said the Czech who broke the previous mark of 71.70, set by Osleidys Menendez of Cuba at the 2005 world championships in Helsinki, with her first throw of the competition. Spotakova, also the world champion, will receive a $100,000 bonus for the record on top of her $30,000 winner's prize. Unseasonably cool and damp conditions ruled out a world record assault in the men's 100 meters but Jamaica's Asafa Powell clocked 9.87 seconds to easily retain his title. It was his sixth sub-9.90 performance in the last 14 days. Powell led a podium sweep ahead of Nesta Carter (10.07) and Michael Frater (10.10), both members of Jamaica's world record-setting 4x100 meters relay squad in Beijing. Powell also leapt to the defense of compatriot and sprint sensation Usain Bolt after ex-Olympic champion Carl Lewis questioned Bolt's performances in Beijing. Powell said he was disappointed with comments made by Lewis in the United States. After Bolt won three gold medals and set three world records in Beijing, Lewis said anyone who did not question the sudden improvements in the champions' performances was a ‘fool'. Powell will finish his season in Warsaw next Wednesday. In the afternoon's most dramatic race, Olympic 400 meters champion LaShawn Merritt beat Jeremy Wariner by 0.01 seconds. Merritt gradually ran down Wariner before tumbling across the line in 44.50. Beijing champion Andrey Silnov of Russia won the high jump by leaping 2.35 meters to beat Stefan Holm (2.33), who was competing for the last time. Other Olympic champions to produce victories included Gerd Kanter of Estonia who handily won the men's discus with a throw of 68.38 meters. Front-running Gulnara Galkina of Russia won the women's 3,000 meters steeplechase in 9:21.73, a meet record. Nelson Evora of Portugal won the men's triple jump with a leap of 17.24 meters and Poland's Tomasz Majewski took the shot put title with a best of 20.88 meters. America's Bernard Lagat won the 3,000m in 8min 2.97sec ahead of Kenya's Edwin Cheruiyot Soi. With Olympic champion and world record holder Yelena Isinbayeva sidelined due to illness, the surprise victory in the pole vault went to Silke Spiegelburg who cleared a personal best 4.70m. Portugal's Naide Gomes won the women's long jump, leaping 6.71. Josephine Onyia of Spain upset Olympic champion Dawn Harper and Lolo Jones in the 100m hurdles, winning in 12.54. Meseret Defar of Ethiopia and American Sanya Richards, won the 5,000 and 200m titles respectively on Saturday.
