The 10th World Championships in Athletics (Finnish: Yleisurheilun maailmanmestaruuskilpailut 2005, Swedish: Världsmästerskapen i friidrott 2005), under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), were held in the Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland (6 August 2005 – 14 August 2005), the site of the first IAAF World Championships in 1983. One theme of the 2005 championships was paralympic events, some of which were included as exhibition events. Much of the event was played in extremely heavy rainfall.
Background
Bidding
The original winning bid for the competition was for London but the cost to build the required stadium at Picketts Lock and host the event was deemed too expensive by the government. UK Athletics suggested to move the host city to Sheffield (using Don Valley Stadium), but the IAAF stated that having London as the host city was central to their winning the bid. The championships bidding process was reopened as a result. The United Kingdom's withdrawal as host was the first case for a major sporting event in a developed country since Denver's withdrawal as host of the 1976 Winter Olympics.[1]
With the addition of the women's 3000 metres steeplechase to the schedule, that year's program of events was closer to parity for women and men. With the exception of the 50 km walk the women competed in practically the same events as the men. Two differences remaining from before, though, were the short hurdles race (100 metres for women vs. 110 metres for men), and the multi-event competition (heptathlon for women vs. decathlon for men).
The IAAF conducted their largest ever anti-doping program at an athletics event for the championships, with 705 athletes subjected to a total 884 of tests.[2] There were two athletes who failed drugs tests: Indian discus throwerNeelam Jaswant Singh tested positive for the stimulant pemoline, and Vladyslav Piskunov, a Ukrainian hammer thrower, tested positive for the steroid drostanolone.[3] Singh received a two-year ineligibility ban,[4] while Piskunov received a life ban from athletics as this was his second offence.[5]
In March 2013, the IAAF announced that re-testing of samples taken during these championships revealed that five medal winners had proved positive for banned substances. The athletes involved were Belarusian Nadzeya Ostapchuk (shot put gold), Belarusian Ivan Tsikhan (hammer throw gold), Russian Olga Kuzenkova (hammer throw gold), Russian Tatyana Kotova (long jump silver) and Belarus's Vadim Devyatovskiy (men's hammer silver).[6] Belarusian Andrei Mikhnevich (shot put 6th) had also tested positive and was disqualified.[7]
Justin Gatlin wins the 200 metres, becoming the second athlete to win a sprint double in a single World Championships (Maurice Greene was the first, in 1999). Tyson Gay finishes fourth (20.34) to complete an American 1-2-3-4, the first time any nation has achieved this in a world championship athletics event. Usain Bolt of Jamaica pulls a muscle at about 150 m into the race and finishes last.
Yuriy Borzakovskiy starts his trademark sprint finish at 200m to go, but was boxed in behind Mehdi Baala of France which allowed Rashid Ramzi to win his second gold in the championships.
This was the first 800–1500 m double in open global championship since New Zealand's Peter Snell achieved it at the Tokyo Olympics in 1964. Ramzi, near the front at the bell, kicked with 300 metres to go and made another decisive move with 200 to go.
A slow pace race, ending in a sprint for the line in the last lap. Defending champion Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya just misses out of the bronze. (13:33.04)
The pace was slow for the first sixteen laps until Bekele surged to the front with a 62-second seventeenth lap, whittling the pack down to nine men. The pace would dawdle again, the ninth kilometre was the slowest since the first in 2:48, though the last one was run in a furious 2:29. The pack of nine was still together at the bell, although somewhat strung out. Bekele ran the last lap in 54 seconds, holding off the challenge of Mosop thanks to help from Sihine and Dinkessa, who boxed him on the penultimate straight. Bekele would then hold off a charge from Sihine, while Dinkessa faded to seventh due to his exertions.
Gharib attacked just before 30 km mark, getting Italian Olympic champion Stefano Baldini with him. Baldini had cramps few kilometres later and he retired after 35 kilometres.
In a very tight race, Frenchman Ladji Doucouré wins the 110 m hurdles, battling with Allen Johnson in the middle lanes and just crossing the line ahead of the fast finishing Liu Xiang.
In driving rain, Dai Tamesue starts fast to take the early lead before being overtaken on the final bend. Bershawn Jackson shows better form in the final straight to stretch away from James Carter. Tamesue dives over the line for a bronze to edge out Kerron Clement of the USA who jogs over the line.
A comfortable race for Said Saaeed Shaheen as Ezekiel Kemboi fails to mount a serious challenge. Brimin Kipruto finishes fast to edge Brahim Boulami into fourth place by two hundredths of a second.
Sergey Kirdyapkin, the former junior world champion led from early on and secures the global title in a personal best time. At around the 20 km mark he was caught by Aleksey Voyevodin, but by 40 km Kirdyapkin had shaken off his fellow Russian, who went on to earn silver in 3:41.25. Italian Alex Schwazer powers through late on to claim the bronze in a national record 3:41.54. There were fourteen disqualifications, and seven athletes did not finish.
The Great Britain team just beat Jamaica (38.28, SB) and Australia (38.32, SB) to bronze medal position. The United States' team does not participate, having bungled their first relay stick handoff in their qualification heat the previous day.
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
Note: * Indicates athletes who ran in preliminary rounds.
Dwight Phillips takes the gold comfortably with his first jump, but the contest for the other medals is fierce. Tommi Evilä wins the host nation Finland's only medal of the championships, just beating Salim Sdiri of France and Joan Lino Martínez of Spain to third place.
After two Olympic and two World Championship silver medals, Adam Nelson finally took his first gold at the global level. Nelson would retroactively gain the 2004 Olympic gold after drug sample retesting disqualified the original gold medalist, but without a podium ceremony.
Surprise winner Andrus Värnik takes Estonia's first gold medal at the World Championships, beating the reigning Olympic champion Andreas Thorkildsen by 99 cm. Finland's young star Tero Pitkämäki throws below his usual level in the heavy rain, and finishes fourth (81.27 m).
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
Yuliya Chizhenko finished second in 4:00.93, but she was disqualified for obstructing Maryam Yusuf Jamal of Bahrain, therefore Olga Yegorova gets the silver and Bouchra Ghezielle of France gets the bronze.
Tirunesh Dibaba becomes the first woman to win the 5000 m and 10000 m at the same championships. Also, as in the 10000 m race, the winner's elder sister Ejegayehu Dibaba takes the bronze, stepping onto an entirely Ethiopian podium. Ethiopia claim the first four places, the second time that a country has ever achieved this (after the USA Men's 200m above).
Fascinating race with Paula Radcliffe, using the race as preparation for the marathon, setting most of the pace before her lack of competitive 10k races this season sees her drop back with three laps to go. The three medal winners shows amazing acceleration with one lap to go, Berhane Adere kicking first but quickly covered by Tirunesh Dibaba with elder sister Ejegayehu Dibaba unable to match their pace. Tirunesh kicks again and goes past Adere with 250 metres to go to claim the gold. Reigning Olympic champion Xing Huina cannot cope with the acceleration and finishes fourth.
Paula Radcliffe sets the pace of the race, leading all the way from start to finish. Constantina Tomescu is able to keep up with Radcliffe the longest, but begins to fall behind after the 25 km mark and at the end finds herself overtaken by the defending champion Catherine Ndereba. Derartu Tulu finishes fourth.
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
Note: * Indicates athletes who ran in preliminary rounds.
The weather conditions during final were not the best, and may well have hampered performances. Kajsa Bergqvist showed what willpower and dedication can achieve, as she claimed her first world championship gold medal after clearing 2.02m with only one foul in her entire series of jumps despite being having only recovered from injury within the past few months. Newcomer Chaunte Howard was the only real threat to Kajsa, and a big surprise, seemingly to herself as much as to the spectators. Her respectable jump technique and result make her someone to keep an eye on in the future. Swede Emma Green continued her quick rise to the elite level, taking the bronze in her first ever major championships.
Already having secured her victory by doing the competition's only 4.70 m jump, Yelena Isinbayeva breaks her own world record from three weeks ago by 1 centimetre.
An unexpected win for Tianna Madison, as Tatyana Kotova finishes second for the third World Outdoor Championships in a row. In 2013 Kotova's drug test sample from this event had been retested and found to be positive.[8]
Trecia Smith makes the three longest jumps in the final to take the gold. Yargelis Savigne takes silver in her first international competition with Anna Pyatykh third. Pre-event favourite Tatyana Lebedeva from Russia, who would go on to be the sole winner of the 2005 Golden League jackpot, did not take part because of injury.
Twenty-year-old Valerie Vili earns a surprise bronze, as Nadzeya Ostapchuk wins her first Outdoor World Championships Gold. In March 2013 the IAAF reported that Ostapchuk's drug test sample from this event had been retested and found to be positive.[6] Her result was subsequently annulled.[9]
Dominating the competition in her second podium performance over the course of eight World Championships, Franka Dietzsch gets the gold medal, as she did in Sevilla six years ago.
The original winner, Olga Kuzenkova of Russia was stripped of the gold medal after failing drugs tests revision in 2013. The rest of the competitors were elevated by one position accordingly.
A close heptathlon saw Eunice Barber take the early lead after winning the 100 mH and HJ. A foot injury hampered Carolina Klüft who jumped 12 cm below her season best in the HJ, however, she struck back in the SP with a PB. After the first day, Barber had only a 2-point lead over Klüft. Day two started with the LJ, where Klüft was expected to jump poorly due to her injury. If she had problems she hid them well, winning with an SB. In the JT Margaret Simpson set a new PB with an impressive 56.36 m, this would propel her to Ghana's first ever world championship medal. Before the final event, Klüft's lead was 18 points and Barber needed to beat her by 1.5 sec in the 800 m to win the gold medal. Barber stuck to Kelly Sotherton, the eventual winner of the race, until the last 200 m but Klüft timed her race perfectly to beat Barber with another PB.
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
Exhibition events
Paralympic exhibition events at the World Championships:
Paralympic champion Leo-Pekka Tähti got off to a good start, but a battle between Britain's David Weir and Dutchman Kenny van Weeghel pushed both of them forward in the latter stages. Weir eventually won out, breaking his own British record, which he set in the semifinal at the 2004 Paralympics, by 0.02 s.
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
