Athletics: Pickering Sees Off Lewis-francis to Glimmer in the Gloom

On a day more resembling winter, with puddles strewn across the track at the Scotstoun Stadium and the majority of the crowd wearing freebie pack-a-macs, Craig Pickering demonstrated that his sprinting exploits of three months ago were just the start.

Pickering, 20, all but booked his place in the British team for the European Cup with the best 100m performance of his career at the Norwich Union Glasgow Grand Prix yesterday. Despite the weather, the Bath sprinter equaled his personal best time of 10.22 with a run of power and maturity.

Since the turn of the year an athlete who had looked destined to be quickly forgotten has been fast developing into one of Britain's best prospects. The Olympic Games in Beijing next year are likely to arrive too soon for Pickering, but he has a rare ability to improve with every race.

His training partner Jason Gardener was disqualified because of a false start but that probably made no difference such was the strength shown by Pickering, the European junior champion, to prevent any challenge from Mark Lewis-Francis, who was second in 10.37, with Tyrone Edgar third in 10.43.

As a shoot-out to see who represents Britain at the European Cup in Munich in three weeks' time, Pickering was in total control.

"Mark is top of the rankings but I have done enough and deserve it," said Pickering. "I am really happy. I just could not wait for the summer season to start. I have been looking forward to this race for weeks and I am delighted how it has worked out."

Having won the European junior title in 2005, Pickering disappeared from the scene last year when he changed coaches and moved to join Gardener's group under the guidance of Malcolm Arnold.

The results have been striking. Pickering won silver - behind Gardener - in the 60m at the European Indoor Championships in March and he showed here how well he can transfer that form to outdoors with the final part of his race proving as good as the start.

As Gardener said: "It was Craig all the way. He is a strong competitor."

Goldie Sayers, 24, who broke the national javelin record with 65.05m in Loughborough two weeks ago, beat the European champion, Germany's Steffi Nerius, to achieve a victory which Britain's former Olympic silver medalist Steve Backley insisted was significant.

"In these conditions, it could be a life-changing throw," said Backley. "It was against world-class opposition and she showed she can mix it with the best."

Sayers triumphed with her second throw of 63.59m, ahead of Nerius with 62.57m. Barbora Spotakova, of the Czech Republic, was third with 62.26m.

"I don't think anyone is invincible," said Sayers. "I was aiming to do what Steve [Backley] used to do and land a big one early on and it worked."

Nicola Sanders, Britain's European Indoor 400m champion, marked her first race of the season with victory in the 300m in 36.64.