McKee to run against odds after lane draw

IRELAND’s Paul McKee must launch his European Championship campaign from lane nine when the first-round heats of the 400 metres get under way today.

This is the first time in the history of the European championships that the remote, outside-lane has been used in a 400m. In fact, not many tracks enjoy the luxury of the extra lane and while the Belfast-man was obviously bemused at the fact that he should have drawn lane nine, he promised to give it his best shot.

Yesterday, he walked around the track with fellow 400m runner, David McCarthy, who had better luck in the draw when he drew lane six in heat four and afterwards commented: “We were told this morning that lane nine might be used, if all the declared athletes stood their ground.”

Ireland’s team manager, Patsy McGonagle, said: “We will be bringing the matter up later today at the technical meeting but it does not appear anything can be done about it, with all the lanes in the other heats occupied.

“Unfortunately for Paul he drew the short straw. He will be joined in this heat by the French record-holder and gold-medal favourite, Leslie Djhone, who is world leader this year with 44.91 secs and there are three others, including Claudio Licciardello of Italy in the line-up who have run faster than McKee this year.”

With the first three in each heat and the four fastest losers to go through, McKee, a former world indoor bronze -medallist, will have to draw on all his experience to go through from this unusual and difficult draw.

There are no such problems for the European indoor 400m champion, David Gillick, who gets the prime lane four in the second of four heats. In fact, the newly crowned national senior champion can throw down a marker and earn a prime location for the semi-finals if he can reproduce the form that saw him run a lifetime best of 45.67 secs at the national championships. That would indicate that he can win the heat.

Unlike McKee and McCarthy, he did not go to the stadium yesterday morning, opting instead for a light work out at the nearby training track.

James Nolan was another visitor to the stadium where he won a silver at the European under-23 championships back in 1999. That was at 800m; this time he will line up for the 1,500m where his pedigree is equally impressive in European championship running.

He won a silver medal at the European indoor-championships in Ghent in 2000 and this evening he goes in the first of two semi-finals alongside the European leader, Ivan Heshko (30:31.08 in Saint-Denis), two Spaniards, including Arturo Casado who has run 30.35 this year and Michael East of Great Britain of whom a lot is expected.

Liam Reale from Limerick is drawn alongside another of the medal favourites, Mehdi Baala (France) in the second semi-final for his European championship debut.

“Everyone here is in really good shape,” Patsy McGonagle insisted. “And that includes Marie Davenport who runs in the first track final of the championships, the women’s 10,000m.” That was good news from the Clarewoman whose past performances at major championships have been hampered by an allergy problem. With the weather the way it is and unlikely to change until Wednesday, she should have no such problem this time.

Elvan Abeylegesse from Turkey moved up in distance this year to run the fourth fastest 10,000m of all time at the European Cup at 30:21.67. Record holder at 5,000m, she could threaten Paula Radcliffe’s mark in the not too distant future but her record at major championships is poor. She could get in a dog-fight with the three Russians, Galina Bogomolova, Inga Abitova and Lidiya Grogoreyeva with Lorna Kiplagat, the former Kenyan now champion of Holland, waiting to pounce.

Dubliner Michelle Carey goes in the first round heats of the women’s 400m hurdles, this morning. She is drawn in lane eight in the third heat. Eileen O’Keeffe from Kilkenny is also in action today in the qualifying rounds of the women’s hammer.

IRISH IN ACTION TODAY (Irish time) 9.15 am: Eileen O’Keeffe, Qualifying Round A of the women’s hammer. 10.40am: Michelle Carey, Round one of the women’s 400m hurdles. 11.15am David Gillick, Paul McKee and David McCarthy, first round heats of the men’s 400m 6.40 pm; James Nolan and Liam Reale, semi-finals of the men’s 1,500m, 7.10 pm; Marie Davenport in the final of the women’s 10,000m.