Mark Lewis-Francis storms to shock silver medal at European Championships
Jul 29 2010 by Lee Gibson, Birmingham Mail
IT may not have ended with Mark Lewis-Francis standing on the summit of the podium in Barcelona – but the Brit produced a fairytale performance to rejoin international sprinting’s top-table.
The 27-year-old has suffered a wretched time since rupturing 95 per cent of his Achilles tendon in 2008 but last night at the European Championships Lewis-Francis demonstrated he’s well on the road to recovery by claiming a shock silver medal in 10.18 seconds.
Missing out on the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the 2009 World Championships in Berlin, while also losing his Lottery funding, has certainly made the man nicknamed the Darlaston Dart a more determined athlete.
Having scraped through to the final as a fastest loser after finishing third in the first of three semi-finals in 10.21 seconds – a season’s best – Lewis-Francis again raised his game when it mattered most. Anchoring Britain home to 2004 4x100m Olympic gold in Athens must have seemed like an eternity ago but Lewis-Francis gave the British public a flashback in Barcelona to some of his previous best performances.
“Wow, that just shows what the underdog can do,” said Lewis-Francis. “I just can’t believe it.
“This is the biggest comeback ever – it’s a dream come true and I’m just so pleased with that performance.
“My coach Linford Christie has been telling me this is only the start of rebuilding Mark Lewis-Francis.
“Some people have doubted me but that just shows what I’m capable of still.
“Some people said I wouldn’t even make it to the final. I’m just so excited with my silver medal.”
Frenchman Christophe Lemaitre took gold in 10.11 seconds, while Lewis-Francis British team-mate Dwain Chambers finished outside of the medals.
Lewis-Francis was scathing after his semi-final run, describing his performance as ‘rubbish’ after Lemaitre and evergreen Italian Emanuele Di Gregorio pipped him to the automatic qualifications berths.
But unlike his compatriot James Dasaolu, who was eliminated at the semi stage, Lewis-Francis was given a reprieve – and didn’t he take it.
Talking about his coach Christie, who famously claimed Olympic gold in the same stadium in 1992, Lewis-Francis said: “He’s an inspiration; he has motivated me throughout this championship and I couldn’t have done it without him.”
Meanwhile, Tamworth 400m hurdler Nathan Woodward scraped into the semi-final.
Woodward could only finish fourth in his first round race but secured one of the three automatic qualifying spots after Greece’s Sotirios Iakovakis was disqualified.
He will be joined by fellow Brits Rhys Williams and Dai Greene who both strolled through qualification.
n Aviva’s support, both at home and abroad, is helping the team prepare to compete at their best. Watch the Aviva GB & NI Team live in action at the Aviva London Grand Prix. For more details visit aviva.co.uk/athletics
