US collegian breaks indoor heptathlon world record

American Ashton Eaton, a University of Oregon student, set a world record of 6,499 points in the indoor heptathlon to win at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships on Saturday.

Eaton defended his US college crown in the seven-event discipline and shattered the former world mark of 6,476 points that was set by Dan O'Brien of the United States at Toronto in 1993, when Eaton was only five years old.

After setting a personal best in the pole vault with a clearance of 5.10 meters, Eaton had 5,542 points entering the last event, the 1,000-meter run.

Eaton crossed the finish line in 2mins, 32.67secs, 1.91 seconds under the time he needed to break O'Brien's mark and well under Eaton's prior personal best in the event, which was 2:38.02. "I didn't think I was going to have what it took to get it," Eaton said. "I (thought) 'I guess I'm just going to run as fast as I can.'"

In the two-day event, Eaton had other personal bests, clocking a 6.71-second effort at 60 meters, a 7.86-second run in the 60m hurdles, 2.11m in the high jump and 7.73m in the long jump. He also had a mark of 13.12m in the shot put.

Eaton's Oregon teammates were trying to avoid bringing up his world record chances, not realizing he was well aware of the mark and what he needed to do to break it.

"Everybody thought I didn't know," Eaton said. "At least my teammates were trying to be like, 'Shhh, don't tell. I was like, 'Come on, you know something like that.'"

FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas, Sunday AFP