Averbukh, Kolganov hope to shine for Israel

Alex Averbukh will look to clear 5.75 meters in the pole vault qualifiers to advance to his third straight Olympic final.

By ALLON SINAI, BEIJING
Averbukh 224.88 (photo credit: AP)
Averbukh 224.88
(photo credit: AP)
Shahar Tzuberi's push for a windsurfing medal will grab most of the attention, but one of Israel's greatest ever athletes will also compete in the Olympics on Wednesday. Alex Averbukh will look to clear 5.75 meters in the pole vault qualifiers to advance to his third straight Olympic final. So far this year, the 33-year-old has only jumped 5.55m, but he hasn't competed much in 2008, saying he's saving himself for the Beijing Games. The two-time defending European champion finished eighth in Athens four years ago and 10th in the Sydney Games and is hoping to cap his career with yet another memorable performance in the bird's nest. Also Wednesday, Michal Kolganov will compete in the semifinals of the K1 1000 meters competition. He will need to cross the finish line among the top three to progress. Kolganov advanced to his second semifinal of the Beijing Games on Tuesday, clocking a time of 1:38.396 minutes in the K1 500 meters competition. The 33-year-old won his heat, but was only 13th overall and will have to be at his very best if he's to finish among the top three in Thursday's semis and advance to the final. Rami Zur, who represented Israel in the past, but has raced under the US flag in the last two Olympics, finished third behind Kolganov, who pretty much forced him to leave Israel to pursue his Olympic dream, as each country is only allowed one participant in the Olympic kayak competitions. Among other Israeli participants on Tuesday, Anastasia Gloushkov and Inna Yoffe failed to reach the final of the Synchronized Swimming duet competition, finishing the free routine in 16th position and the event as a whole in 15th place overall. The duo, which had hoped for a top-12 finish and a final berth, did at least improve on their 17th place in the Athens Games, recording an overall score of 86.917 in Beijing. "I'm delighted," said Gloushkov. "I felt very good in the water and I'm pleased. We have consistently improved in recent years and that is very rare in synchronized swimming."