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August 27, 2004 10:52 pm

Liu's record run leaves Trammell with 2nd silver

By Elliott Denman

Gannett News Service

ATHENS, Greece - Xiang Liu of China delivered a track and field world record at the Athens Olympics, taking the gold medal in the 110-meter high hurdles in 12.91 seconds on Friday night at Olympic Stadium.

His record-tying performance - matching the 1993 mark of Great Britain's Colin Jackson - relegated Terrence Trammell to a second consecutive silver medal.

Liu's gold medal was the first ever by a Chinese man in Olympic track and field and clinched his expected status as a poster boy for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

``I am so happy that I don't even have the power to cry,'' he said. ``Still, feels like some kind of miracle. I didn't dare to think I would get a medal of any kind.''

Trammell, a 25-year-old University of South Carolina graduate out of DeKalb, Ga., out-leaned 2000 Olympic champion Anier Garcia of Cuba for the silver medal in 13.18 seconds. Garcia (13.20) just beat Jamaica's Maurice Wignall (13.21) for the bronze.

``At (hurdle) number six, my back leg dragged a little bit and I spent the rest of the race trying to get back up,'' said Trammell, who won the Olympic Trials last month in 13.09.

``The race didn't go as planned, but that's hurdles. As far as my race went, I did the best I could do, and that was silver.

``I'm not disappointed. There's only two other people in the world who have a medal.''

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