China's 110m hurdles world record holder Liu Xiang said he was disappointed by the lack of competition after he cruised to victory at the National Track and Field Championships yesterday.

Liu won the race so easily that nearest rival Shi Dongpeng was almost a metre behind when he crossed the finishing line. Liu's winning time was 13,30, almost half a second outside his 12.88 world record. It was still too quick for China's other hurdlers though, with Shi's 13.39 the only time within 13.60.

"It is meaningless to compete here," Liu complained, annoyed at having to break his busy international schedule to compete in a domestic meet.

"I had no choice but to come here (to Shijiazhuang)."

Ever since Liu's historic victory at the 2004 Athens Olympics, his presence at domestic competitions has been much in demand, as it always to leads to sold out stadia and huge enthusiasm.

Ticket prices for last night's competition doubled due to Liu's appearance. Many people waited outside the stadium, hoping to buy a ticket for the rare opportunity to watch the national hero in the flesh.

It was Liu's first race after he smashed the world record at the super grand prix meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, last month.

Liu said when he races against other Chinese athletes, winning is all that matters.

"My first goal in domestic competitions is to win rather than try my best. When I am well ahead during the race, I will slow down before the finishing line," said the confident youngster.

Coach Sun Haiping admitted other hurdlers in China lag far behind Liu. He hopes Liu's achievement will inspire athletes to work harder.

"I would rather look at the competition as a training session. There are too few excellent hurdlers at the moment in China.

"I hope Liu's participation in national competitions will attract more attention to the development of China's track and field."

With the meeting out the way, Liu can now focus on major international competitions next month.

The Athens Olympic gold medallist will take part in the 4th IAAF World Athletics Final from September 9-10 in Stuttgart, Germany and the 10th IAAF World Cup, from 16-17 in Athens in Greece, before he comes back home to Shanghai to challenge the world's best hurdlers at the 2006 Shanghai Golden Grand Prix,

"Those competitions are different from this one. You are pushed to limit if you want to win. And the atmosphere will also be totally different," Liu said.

Liu mania

While Liu showed little enthusiasm for his visit to Shijiazhuang, residents of Hebei's provincial capital were ecstatic at the chance of seeing him.

Posters reading "Liu Xiang is coming" lined all major streets and taxi drivers were glad to find a common topic with visitors from around the country.

"After Liu Xiang, people may have to wait a long time to see another Olympic gold winner and world record holder on the track. So it is no surprise that our people are crazy about him," said Li Zhuang, a taxi driver.

According to the organizing committee, over 130 press cards were handed out this time round, while normally the event struggles to attract more than 10 press organizations.

Two years ago when Liu came to compete in the city as a nobody, the organizers needed to hand out tickets for free to attract spectators.

But when Liu came back last year as an Olympic gold medallist, people rushed to the stadium, shouting and cheering every move he made. This year Liu's feat of breaking the 110m hurdles world record has made the fever even more intense.

In fact "Liu mania" caused security headaches as some scheduled activities in open areas were cancelled due to too many people.

Source: China Daily