LONDON, Aug. 12-- The Chinese men's team breezed through the 4x100m relay heats among group top three for a final spot, while their women's counterparts suffered a disqualification for a devastating takeover turnover between the second and third batons at the IAAF World Championships here on Saturday. Wu Zhiqiang, Xie Zhenye, Su Bingtian and Zhang Peimeng combined for a title for the Chinese team in the Monaco meet of IAAF Diamond League in July. However, Xie suffered injury to his left thigh in 100m semi-finals in London, posing uncertainties for the Chinese team's roster. Xie felt OK about his physical condition in Saturday's pre-game training, and the Chinese team could dispatch their strongest squad for the relay. The quartet clocked 38.20 seconds to sit third in the group and secure an automatic spot in Saturday evening's final. Xie's attendance was a huge boost for his teammates, as Su and Zhang did feel themselves. "It was not quite easy for Xie to decide to participate in the race," said Su. "This squad has been maintained over the past several years. If he had missed out the race, we would have felt a bit down in our morale." Xie immediately went back to the athletes' zone for ice bags for treatment. "We had great faith in him. When hearing that he could feature in the race, I felt pretty relieved," Zhang pointed out. For himself, a 30-year-old veteran, Zhang expected a perfect finish in the final. |