Idowu defends decision to miss UK trials

BIRMINGHAM,(AFP) – World triple-jump champion Phillips Idowu insists he was right to make a late withdrawal from the UK Trials and Championships in Birmingham on Sunday.

Idowu was one of the main attractions for the British crowd at his home track, along with world and European heptathlon champion Jessica Ennis and Olympic champion Christine Ohuruogu.

But while Ennis competed in five individual events over the weekend and Ohuruogu finished third in the 400 metres, Idowu told organisers just 24 hours before his scheduled appearance that he would not be competing.

Idowu is already guaranteed his place at next month’s World Championships in South Korea as defending champion and he felt he had nothing to gain by competing at Birmingham.

“I didn’t think it was respectful to come here and just do one jump or put in a performance which was below par because people pay their money to watch the best British athletes compete at their best and I’m not at my best right now,” Idowu told the BBC.

“It’s a shame but I’ve had a tough couple of weeks training and competing. I think people will prefer me to go out and jump well in Korea than to come here and jump poorly.”

Idowu is currently embroiled in a row with UK Athletics head coach Charles van Commenee over his withdrawal from the European Team Championships earlier this year.

But although this latest incident is unlikely to help matters, Idowu is firmly focused on retaining his world title in Daegu, where his cause will be helped by the absence of injured rival Teddy Tamgho.

“I don’t want to people to think I won the medal by default because one of my major rivals (Tamgho) wasn’t there,” he added.

“It’s a massive stepping stone for me and with Teddy out I have to put in a performance that stamps out I was going to win regardless.”

Idowu’s absence was put into perspective by Mo Farah, who claimed his ninth win in a row this season, the 28-year-old cruising to victory in the 5,000m in 14 minutes 00.72 seconds, more than a minute slower than the British record he set last Friday.

Farah also revealed he is set to miss the 5,000m at the World Championships to focus on the 10,000m event.

“I’m definitely going to concentrate on one event and put all my eggs in one basket and that is the 10,000,” he said.

Ennis produced a season’s best of 6.44m in the long jump, just seven centimetres below her personal best, and threw 42.93m in the javelin to complete a highly satisfactory weekend.