“It’s still mine after 15 years. Of course, one day somebody may break it, but at the moment, I don’t see anybody who can break the record,” said Syedikh, who needed just one throw to win Thursday’s Kansas Relays hammer competition with a heave of 204-feet, 5-inches.

Not bad for the 45-year-old, two-time Olympic gold medal winner out of the former Soviet Union, who threw a world record 284-7 in 1986.

Mike Koenning of the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse placed second Thursday in 189-4.

“The generation after me … they don’t care much about technique, just power,” Syedikh said. “The technique in the hammer has come down so much at the international level.

“The competition in Sydney (2000 Olympics) … it was so difficult (to watch),” added Syedikh.

Syedikh battled gusty conditions to win a hammer competition that started late and concluded in darkness outside Memorial Stadium.

Syedikh, in fact, threw just three times, electing to bypass the finals.

“With no lights, I was afraid,” Syedikh said in broken English. “It’s no condition to compete without lights. I only practice once a month the past three years. You can get disoriented in the dark and that is a dangerous situtation.”

The event, set to start at 5 p.m., started about 6:15 p.m. The reason? The decathlon ran late, thanks to a marathon decathlon pole vault competition. The 14 decathletes, who were scheduled to throw the javelin at 3:15 p.m., actually started the javelin about 5 p.m., meaning the hammer throwers had to wait to use the same area for throws.

“I’m sorry the competition was delayed,” said Syedikh, who signed autographs for the hundred or so fans who watched him compete.

Syedikh, who will also compete at Central Missouri State today, is in the area visiting his buddy Wichita doctor Ken Jansson who placed fifth in the hammer with a throw of 174-6. Jansson is 43 years old and a former Dartmouth All-American.

“I did this for fun, maybe give some enjoyment and some motivation to people,” said Syedikh. He’s married to Natalya Lisovskaya, who holds the women’s world record in the shot put (74-3, set way back in 1987).

“Somebody my age … without any practice can win … maybe it will inspire some of the boys and girls who know history of the hammer.”

Decathlon champ

Joe Cbulski of Bell Athletics won the decathlon, outdistancing Andy Basler of Wisconsin-LaCrosse, 6,095 points to 5,833.

Cbulski, 24, no-heighted in the pole vault competition. He waited 2 1/2 hours for his first jump at 16-0, missing three times. That probably cost him a qualifying mark for this summer’s U.S. championships. He needed 7,800 to qualify.

“The worst thing today was the wind in the discus,” Cbulski said. “It was probably the worst wind I’ve ever thrown in. It turned the discus over on its side. Last week, I threw 174 feet; today I threw 143. That knocked me out of contention. The wind … it was wicked out there.”

KU officials elected to use just one instead of two pole vault pits, turning the competition into a three-hour plus marathon. Some of the competitors started at the incredibly low height of 7-feet-7.

“I took two naps,” Cbulski said. “One in my car and one in one of the rooms.”

It took eight hours to complete the five decathlon events Thursday.

“The long wait really didn’t bother me,” he said. “It’s those wind gusts that were the most difficult.”

Livesey wins heptatlon

Nebraska junior Katherine Livesey won the heptathlon with 5,385 points. Livesey, who hails from England, easily outdistanced Kristy Naef of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (4,810 points). Baker’s Candace Fortney placed 10th (3,857).

KU performances

KU’s Katy Eisenmenger won the unseeded women’s 800 in 2:14.34. KU’s Amanda Reves was second in 2:16.63. KU’s Courtney Deutsch placed second in the unseeded 1,500 in 4:50.89. KU’s Andy Tate did not compete in the steeplechase. KU officials indicated he’s competing at the Mount SAC Relays in California, instead. Scott Russell, who is recovering from an injury, will not compete in the javelin today. He’s red-shirting at KU this season.