Matusevich falls short of glory
By Viva Sarah Press
Constantin Matusevich posted the highest finish for an Israeli in an Olympic athletics competition with a fifth-place showing in the men's high jump yesterday.
The Russian-born high jumper shared the local spotlight with sailors Shani Kedmi and Anat Fabrikant, who temporarily moved into first place in the fourth day of the 470 two-handed dinghy races.
The delegation's other athletes - Greco-Roman wrestler Michael Beilin, sailboarders Amit Inbar and Michal Hein, and sailors Eli Zukerman and Elad Ronen - suffered setbacks.
"We seem to be lacking luck at these Games, especially since Matusevich was so close," Gilad Lustig, the delegation's professional manager, said. "He gave the best performance ever for an Israeli in an Olympics."
Competing on a cold and windy night with the rain pouring down, Matusevich cleared his first three jumps - 2.2m., 2.25m., 2.29m. - on his first attempts and in good form. It took him three attempts to clear 2.32.
Now with only seven competitors remaining, Matusevich failed, in all three attempts to clear 2.35m., which turned out to be the gold medal height.
Gold medalist Sergei Kliugin from Russia was the only one to succeed in arching his body over that height.
Since all the competitors from second to seventh place cleared 2.32, final placings were determined by the number of misses in the earlier parts of the competition. The second, third and fourth-place finishers cleared 2.32 on their first tries, while Matusevich needed three attempts to clear the height, relegating him to fifth.
Silver medalist was Javier Sotomayor of Cuba, who was returning from a drug ban, and Abderrahmane Hammad of Algeria won the bronze.
Stefan Holm of Sweden was fourth.
Matusevich's personal best is 2.36m., which he achieved in Australia in January.
Kedmi and Fabrikant had a good and bad race in the women's 470 two-handed dinghy event yesterday. The duo sailed into third place in race No. 7, putting them in first overall. But their stay on top was short-lived, following a weak eighth race in which they finished 14th. They are now in fourth overall with 45 points.
Australia's Jenny Armstrong and Belinda Stowell are in first with 39 points, the Ukrainian team of Ruslana Taran and Olena Pakholchyk are in second with 40 points, and Japan's Yumiko Shige and Yurie Alicia Kinoshita have 43 points. Because of the close scores, there is still no favorite regarding the medal winners. There are three races to go.
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