Jackson's Last Campaign Starts Well : 1-2 February Round Up

Colin Jackson started his last ever hurdles season in fine fashion. First on Friday night Britian's most medalled athlete was involved in a 7.58 dead heat with Jamaica's Maurice Wignall in Erfurht Germany, then on the Sunday the World Record holder improved to 7.55 to win for Great Britain and Northern Ireland as he won his seventieth vest in Glasgow, beating European Indoor silver medallist Elmar Lichtenegger into second [7.70]. Jackson's time elevated him to equal third on the World list for 2003.

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Also in Glasgow Diane Hawkins secured the UKA World Indoor Qualifying standard, running 8.20 - the exact required mark - in coming third in the women's 60m hurdles. The race was run in highly impressive fashion by Sweden's former World Junior champion Susan Kallur, whose 7.90 was the fastest time of 2003 to date.

Elsewhere on the weekend some of Britain's up and coming hurdlers continued their progress. In Birmingham in the first of the Indoor British Domestic Grand Prix series.. Dom Girdler ran two successive pbs clocking first 7.83 and then taking a further 1/100th off his 60 hurdles time to move tro sixteenth on the British all time lists. Narrowly behind Girdler in the second race was Rob Newton with 7.87. With Andy Turner clocking 7.97 and Richard Alleyene and Tristan Anthony also improving their season's bests to fractionally outside eight seconds flat the 2003 season UK list ended the day much improved.

In the women race there was an equal pb for Sarah Claxton whose 8.28 time in the second series was fractionally behind Ireland Derval O'Rourke. Indoor AAA u20 Champion Symone Belle improved her recent title winning pb by 1/100th to 8.46. Claire Millborrow Harrington clocked her quickest time of 2003 with 8.59.

Meanwhile in Manchester AAA u20 runner up Gemma Fergusson also improved her week old best to take the Northern Indoor Title with 8.54.

2nd February 2003