Athletics: Dreams of glory end in tears

MANCHESTER - This was one of the greatest sporting flops since they reinvented the way to do the high jump.

A night of supposed English glory at Manchester was left in tatters and tears as their three men's 100m finalists finished down, literally, and out.

This is not to gloat at England's misfortune, but little respect had been given for the Commonwealth opponents.

Dwain Chambers, Mark Lewis-Francis and even Jason Gardener were confidently touted as ready to sweep the medals.

One English tabloid made the remarkable claim yesterday that "England's threat to dominate world sprinting crumbled dramatically."

Gardener's prospects had been swept up by the optimism surrounding the other two, yet he finished last among the six fully upright finishers.

The 19-year-old Lewis-Francis crashed to the track with a hamstring injury while jousting for the lead at the 75m mark.

Almost at the same time 24-year-old race favourite Chambers - fourth at the Sydney Olympics - went veering off the track clutching a knee. The injury has been variously described as calf muscle damage or cramp.

The pressure of home-town expectations surely brought tension to bodies unable to respond.

Running between the English pair, Kim Collins from the Caribbean Island of St Kitts and Nevis - more likely to produce sportsmen who bowl England over in cricket - won his country's first Games medal in 9.98s.

Second was Nigerian Uchenna Emedolu (10.11s) and third Canadian Pierre Browne.

Collins heard Lewis-Francis scream, and the English runner's hand hit his body as he went down.

"I could hardly stop and ask them what was going on," Collins said. "The fans wanted to hear that the medal was going to England ... Most people had never heard of St Kitts.

"Unfortunately, I had a great day today, unfortunately for them. It was natural the local media would push their chances. I went to a boys' school. It's a jungle. You can't show fear."

Chambers' ability to handle the adulation he and Lewis-Francis appeared to enjoy had been questioned.

But generally, English opinion in the form of former star athletes such as Sally Gunnell reckoned they were the gold medal contenders.

The greatest 400m runner, American Michael Johnson, had warned England and the sprinters of the danger in promoting a two-man race.

"When you have that kind of pressure on you, and you're two or three metres behind, that's when you tighten up. Collins was in control, but that does not mean he was going to win. Mark was in it, but I don't think Dwain had a chance."

Lewis-Francis had banged his fist on the track and was in tears.

"I tried my best but it just did not happen," he said.

Chambers apparently has an exclusive deal with a British tabloid, but the only quotes available the day after the race were from his manager, who said the sprinter was heartbroken.

The newspaper's early edition carried a front page story instead about the television "reality" show Big Brother, where the nation watches a load of people living in a house and votes for winners.

It is a national obsession, which - in all seriousness - overshadows the Games at times and was still doing it yesterday after an extraordinary night on the track.

Debbie Ferguson, of the Bahamas, completed a superb night for the Caribbean - which has produced many world-class sprinters - when she won her first major title in the women's 100m. Her time was 10.91s, a Games record.

Veronica Campbell, of Jamaica, took the silver in 11s, with Sevatheda Fynes, also of the Bahamas, winning the bronze in 11.07s.

"To get the Commonwealth record is fantastic," Ferguson said. "It was a good field out there and my hat goes off to them. The stadium was sold out and it felt like it was the Olympics."

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