Lagat gives Bekele gentle reminder in Doha

From David Jordan, Sportsbeat, in Doha

AMERICAN Bernard Lagat gave defending champion Tariku Bekele a gentle reminder of his presence in Doha as he stormed to victory in second heat of the 3000m at the World Indoor Athletics Championships.

ON FORM: Bernard Lagat storms home in second heat of 3000m in Doha to issue his rivals with a message of intent (Getty Images)

Bekele, younger brother of Kenenisa Bekele, clinched gold two years ago in Valencia but 35-year-old Lagat, the world indoor champion in 2004, has a plethora of medals to his name, including two World Championships golds from Osaka 2007.

And he showed Bekele who is boss in Doha, storming ahead of his younger rival on the final lap to cross the line in 7:59.99 minutes.

The heat, a great deal slower than the first, looked like ending up as a bunch finish with just one lap to go but Bekele - the second fastest man in the world this year - along with Lagat and Kenya's Sammy Mutahi eased clear in the closing stages.

In the first heat Kenya's Augustine Kiprono Choge, who has clocked 7:31.75 this year, cruised to victory ahead of Ethiopia's Dejen Gebremeskel, who clocked a personal best of 7:43.80 to finish second.

Spain's Sergio Sanchez finished third in that heat, ensuring the fastest four men in the world this year, as well as Lagat, have all advanced in what promises to be a highly competitive field.

Meanwhile, Great Britain's Scott Overall came home in 8:08.02, good enough for eighth place in his heat.

In the heptathlon, Olympic decathlon champion Bryan Clay has retaken the lead after three events with a best shot put distance of  15.31m - good enough for 809 points and 2690 overall which hands him a lead of 16 points over Oleksiy Kasyanov.

Aviva has been proud to have helped and supported the Aviva GB & NI junior, senior and disability teams as they prepare for all major events and championships since 1999. Visit www.aviva.co.uk/athletics for more information