Montgomery sets year-best in borrowed shoes

Marion Jones won her 51st consecutive 100 metres race at the Bislett Golden Gala on Friday, and then lent Tim Montgomery a pair of spikes which enabled him to run the fastest men's 100 metres this year.

"I lost my luggage and spikes and I had to wear her shoes," Montgomery said after running 9.84 seconds and setting a new Bislett record, beating Dennis Mitchell's 1994 mark of 9.94.

"And I am going to continue wearing them," he said.

"I know 9.84 is quite impressive, he will definitely have bragging rights in the camp," Jones said.

Montgomery, whose previous personal best was 9.92 seconds, attributed his victory to hard work and using weights in his training for a second year.

"This is the kind of results you have when you put in the work," he said.

Asked whether this was his perfect race, Montgomery said:

"Until I run 9.78, it is never a perfect race."

Maurice Greene, who currently holds the world record at 9.79, was not at the Bislett event.

Trinidad and Tobago's Ato Boldon finished second in 9.88.

"I'll go home and I'll be upset because I did not win, but I won last year," Boldon said. "I don't want to take anything away from Tim -- this is the race of his life."

Jones, who had made a false start in her race, clocked 10.94 seconds to beat Zhanna Pintusevich of the Ukraine in 11.05 and fellow American Chryste Gaines in 11.08 amid cold and cloudy conditions.

"After a false start, I did my best first 50 metres this season," said the triple Olympic champion. "I'm very satisfied with the race and the result."

Asked if she felt her rivals were closing in, Jones said: "A win is a win, a victory is a victory. As long as my time is the fastest on the paper, I'm happy."

WORLD RECORD TRACK

Montgomery's performance was the closest the audience of about 10,000 got to a new world record at Bislett, dubbed the "World Record Track" after 62 world records set here in the past.

The Dream Mile was settled at the goal line after a thrilling sprint finish between winner Algerian Al Said-Sief and Bernard Lagat of Kenya. Said-Sief finished at 3.48.23, just ahead of Lagat's 3.48.57.

In the men's 800 metres, Wilfred Bungei of Kenya held out against Jean-Patrick Nduwimana of Burundi to win in 1.44.91.

"I did not expect this," he said, adding: "Now I just can't wait for the World Championships in Canada."

In the 110-metres hurdles, Allen Johnson of the U.S. won in 13.21 seconds, three hundreds of a second ahead of fellow American Terrence Tramell.

Germany's Peter Blank won his first-ever international javelin event, at the age 39, with a winning throw of 86.90 metres.