Emel Dereli at the IAAF World Youth Championships - Day 2 (© Getty Images)
Turkey’s Emel Dereli has dominated the girls’ Shot Put this year and last month threw a fine 19.99m, so it was no surprise to see the 17-year-old capture the World youth title in impressive fashion.
Following a 19.18m effort to lead the qualifying round on Thursday (11), she threw a superb 20.14m personal best and championship record in the first round of the final to clinch her nation’s first medal in this event during the eight editions of these championships.
Competing with a 3kg implement for the first time at the World Youth Championships, and thus her qualifying throw becoming a championship record before her mammoth effort in the final, Dereli was followed at a distance by Russia’s Alena Bugakova and the USA’s Ashlie Blake, who took the silver and bronze medals with 18.60m and 17.57m respectively.
Dereli had so much distance to spare over her compatriots that, in addition to her third round effort of 18.96m which would have also won the gold medal, she could afford the luxury of registering three fouls and declined to take her sixth and final attempt.
Bugakova, still 16 and with a lifetime best of 19.17m set last month after improving by more than four metres this season, went over 18 metres three times and finished clear of her US rival, who was just 40cm adrift of her personal best.
Blake’s bronze medal represents the USA’s first medal in this event since current US champion and record-holder Michelle Carter took the 2001 title in Debrecen.
