A round-up of the action on the penultimate day of the World Masters Championships

Britain s hurdlers took centre stage on the penultimate day of the World Masters Championships, as the only other track action was 400m and 1500m qualifying.

All together Britain won three gold medals in the hurdles and a further gold in the field, though an organisation problem meant many of the results from Saturday were not available on the day.

Greg Dunson, who was the M45 World Masters 110m hurdles champion from Brazil last year, won his first M50 title in fine style as he took the gold medal in 8.53 from Netherlands Johannes Bakx who recorded 8.79.

Britain did even better in the M55 hurdles as they scored a one-two through Tennyson James 9.12 and John Mayor’s 9.19. James thus went one better than he did in last year s European indoor event as he came within 0.03 of the British best. World Masters outdoor silver medallist Mayor actually shared his time with bronze medallist Wolfgang Richter of Germany.

The third British hurdler to strike gold was Tony Wells, who won the M65 hurdles without any pressure by over half a second in 10.12 from Italian Antonio Montaruli s 10.63. Last year Wells won the M60 110m hurdles world title in Porto Alegre and also won a silver in the 300m hurdles.

The British women didn t quite manage a gold in the hurdles but came close. Carole Filer, who earlier in the day was delighted to add a W55 high jump gold in 1.44m to her already won long jump gold, finished a close second in 10.28 to Sigrid Bose s 10.21 in the hurdles with Jane Horder just behind her British team-mate, third in 10.31.

Sally Stagles was second in the W50 60m hurdles in 9.69 as she was beaten by American Joy Upshaw s 9.48.

The third British woman hurdler to strike silver was Emily McMahon who ran 11.14 to claim her medal by one hundredth of a second, though Belgium s Hildegard Vanhorenbeeck was a clear victor in 10.58.

Arguably the world s greatest ever Masters athlete, Germany’s M75 Guido M ller, won the 60m hurdles in 10.65 to just miss the European record and he won by a second to add to his 60m and 200m golds. He also goes in the 400m in which he has a PB of 47.6. He has a PB of 51.3 for the 400m hurdles and just missed making the GDR’s team for Tokyo Olympics in 1964.

He has won over 80 international Masters titles since setting a world M45 400m hurdles record at the championships in Brighton in 1984.

He was the 2009 winner of the IAAF World Masters athlete of the year award where he received his award at the Monte Carlo Gala from Sebastian Coe.

Rolf Geese of Germany won the M70 hurdles in a world record 9.76. He had already won the pole vault and pentathlon. European champion Barry Ferguson missed a medal by 0.01 of a second and finished fourth.

Shaun Bownes, who beat Colin Jackson to gold in the 2002 Commonwealth Games with a time of 13.35 to the Welshman s 13.39, won another gold here in his Masters debut.

The South African, who bronze medalled at this event in the 2001 World Indoor Championships and had also competed in Budapest in the 2004 World Indoor Championships, had to really fight for victory as he came through late to win in 8.12 from Jon Drummond s 8.19 and British fast-starting Joe Appiah s 8.21.

Bownes had retired from the sport after rupturing his Achilles over five years ago but decided to make a comeback and targeted this event, and while hoping to run faster, was pleased to win gold and with the less cut-throat and more friendly atmosphere within Masters athletics.

Other British medallists in the field other than Filer included Stuart Thurgood, who won gold for Britain in the M35 weight.

Stephen Whyte, who a few days earlier set a world record in the weight, narrowly missed out in the M50 hammer. He threw 59.71 to agonisingly miss out to Pole Lech Kowalski s 59.74m.

Trudi Carter won W40 bronze with a vault of 2.80m while Andrea Jenkins was second in W35 discus with 39.59m.

James Thie qualified as fastest from M35 1500m with a very quick 3:59.40.

Anthony Whiteman won his heat in the M40 1500m but only qualified as seventh of 12 fastest, taking a chance as qualifiers were entirely by time.

Clare Elms, like Thie and Whiteman on course for a distance triple, was fastest in the W50 in 5:10.24 with cross country champion Fiona Matheson second fastest with 5:10.83.

John Thomson was the fastest qualifier in the M55 1500m with 4:42.53.

Adrian Haines and David Cowlishaw were joint fastest in the M45 1500m with 4:19.64.

W35 Lesley Owusu, who can boast a 52.15 indoor PB and ran for Britain s 4x400m team in the 1991 World Championships, was fastest 400m qualifier with 57.27.

W55 800m champion Laura Mahady easily qualified as fastest in the W55s with 64.38, which was over five seconds better than the next best.

Michael Gardiner was the fastest in the M45 400m semis with 52.69.

Richard Beardsall (51.24) and James Brown (51.39) were the fastest two qualifiers for the M35 400m final.

Angela Copson who has already won cross country, 800m and 3000m golds in W65 category, qualified as second fastest for the 400m final in 76.74. She also goes for gold at 1500m tomorrow as well as 400m.

The 97-year-old Giuseppe Ottaviani, who only took up athletics at 70, won the triple jump with 4.44m.

Olga Kotelko, the 95-year-old Canadian with Ukranian parents, added further to her medal collection. She had already won the W95 discus with 11.17m, the 60m in 16.53 beating the W85 champion, the high jump, the long jump with 4.73m, the hammer with 14.76m and the 200m in 74.14.

But her javelin world record of 11.24m was probably her most pleasing mark. She only started competing at the age of 77 and she still has further events before she returns to her home in Vancouver.

Image above by Tom Phillips, with further photos from the World Masters Championships available for viewing via @TomSprints on Twitter

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