Bucher takes 800m gold in Rome
Switzerland's André Bucher has won the 800m race at the Golden League athletics meeting in Rome.
Bucher established an early lead as he stole away from the pack within the first 200m, but a late sprint by the Russian athlete, Juri Borsakovski, nearly pushed the Swiss into second place.
Borsakovski raised his hands in triumph as he crossed the line, thinking he had clinched the 800m title, but the scoreboard flashed up a moment later to disappoint the Russian and please the Swiss crowd at the stadium in Rome.
The Swiss star claimed victory with a time of 1:44.02, the best time of the season in the 400m.
The Swiss Olympian’s success in Rome comes just 48 hours after his appearance at the annual athletics meeting in Lucerne, where Bucher came fifth in the 400m race.
Bucher, who came fifth in the 800m at the Sydney Olympics, began running the 400m at the beginning of the season.
Bucher’s success in Rome also guarantees he will participate in this summer’s world championships in Edmonton.
The Swiss 1500m runner, Sabine Fischer, finished seventh in Rome with a time of 4:05.60. Fischer’s performance means she too qualifies for the Edmonton championships.
Swiss 3000m steeplechaser Christian Belz fared less well, coming in a disappointing twelfth place, over 13 seconds behind the leader, Kenya’s Reuben Kosgei.
The meeting in Rome is the first of the prestigious Golden League athletics events. The Zurich Weltklasse tournament, another stage on the Golden League circuit, is scheduled to take place on August 17th.
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