Williamson dethrones Chambers as king of British sprinters

WHILE there was once a time Dwain Chambers' raging sense of injustice spurred him to victory, it appears running angry will only get the British villain so far.

CHANGING OF THE GUARD: Simoen Williamson powers to victory at the Aviva UK Athletics Championships in Birmingham

Chambers, fuelled by his desire to prove his critics wrong, has been by far and away the premier 100m sprinter in Britain ever since making the decision to return to athletics.

But at the Aviva UK Athletics Championships , the Londoner looked every bit as old as his 31 years suggest - Simeon Williamson is the new kid on the block, and he announced himself in style in Birmingham.

Williamson, eight years Chambers' junior, clocked 10.05 seconds into a fierce headwind - Chambers was a distant second - a beaten man, 0.17 secs behind.

Chambers will still most probably make the trip to the World Championships in Berlin next month having already achieved the qualifying time, but his place is still to be guaranteed.

Williamson, who has already clocked 10.09 secs this season, is now safe in the knowledge his trip to the German capital is confirmed.

It may come as a shock to Chambers that he has been dethroned as the best of Britain, but in truth, it's be on the cards for some time.

The 2009 European indoor champion is prohibited from competing in more than 50 competitions across European by an unwritten rule between the Euromeet organisers that refuses to allow convicted drug cheats to compete.

It appears however hard he tries, Chambers cannot shake off the millstone around his neck.  

Deprived of the chance to race against opponents of the highest order, Chambers is still waiting for his season to kick into gear, and time is running out.

And the writing was on the wall in the semi finals. Williamson eased home 10.15 secs while Chambers could only manage a pedestrian 10.30 secs.

In the final it was a similar story and once Williamson was into his stride there was to be only one winner.

Chambers was defiant after his defeat but having set his sights on Usain Bolt at the start of the season, it's back to the drawing board for Britain's most controversial athlete.

"It looks like we've both qualified and that's what we came here to do," said Chambers. "There was no point in fighting Simeon when I saw him coming past because then I would have lost the other spot.

"It was always going to be hard at this point in time but the key is get to the World Championships and then I can start worrying about running fast.

"I have to hand it to Simeon, he ran an excellent race but the most important thing is to reach Berlin, not to get the victory.

"But there are no excuses I just got beat - that is unusual for me but I think I needed that kick up the backside - I have been complacent this year I think.

"I haven't had to fight for anything really but now I do - just because I have had a glitch it doesn't mean I am going to stop. I have had to deal with worse and I think a loss will give me that extra buzz to get back up there.

"I haven't lost all summer but I lost to someone good, he had the times and he wanted to beat me but he isn't going to do it again."

Williamson on the other hand, did not so much accept Chambers' mantel, as rip it out of his hands, and he will head to Berlin brimming with confidence.

Had the conditions not been so typical of the British summer, Williamson would surely have ducked under ten seconds for the first time in his career.

While Williamson and Chambers were slugging it out in Birmingham, Bolt and Tyson Gay have been a class apart and have clocked 9.86 and 9.77 respectively this season.

Seven sprinters have now gone under ten seconds this year, and there is not a Brit in sight, but while project Bolt now seems a million miles away, Williamson is more realistic about his World Championship chances.

"I'm not surprised to have won because I've had a really good season but I think a lot of other people might have been," he said.

"Everything has been about Dwain for the past few years but hopefully it will time in the spot light now.

"Going to Berlin is going to be brilliant. After today's performance I've got to be looking to run sub ten seconds.

"A lot of people think that with Tyson Gay and Usain Bolt that everyone else is just running for bronze. That might be the case but in a final anything can happen."

As Principal Partner of UKA, McCain has a long term commitment to athletics that will have a significant impact on the development of athletic talent in the UK and will increase opportunities for people of all ages to get involved in the sport.  For more information, go to www.mccaintrackandfield.co.uk