Athletics - Hellebaut wins high jump gold

By Julian Linden

BEIJING (Reuters) - Tia Hellebaut won Belgium's first gold medal of the Beijing Olympics in the women's high jump on Saturday, edging out Croatian world champion Blanka Vlasic.

The pair both jumped 2.05 metres and missed at 2.07, but Hellebaut was awarded the gold on the countback rule because she cleared 2.05 at her first attempt while Vlasic needed two goes.

Anna Chicherova of Russia won the bronze medal, clearing 2.03 but missing at 2.05, while Russia's defending champion Elena Slesarenko finished out of the medals in fourth place after bowing out at 2.01.

Hellebaut, 30, competes in both heptathlon and high jump, but this was her first Olympic medal in either event. The winning jump equalled her personal best.

She won the European high jump title in 2006 and the world indoor heptathlon title this year but only entered the high jump in Beijing after she injured her shoulder, restricting her ability to throw the javelin.

Vlasic finished out of the medals at the last Olympics in Athens when she was suffering from a respiratory illness but has dominated women's high jump in the past two years.

Unbeaten since June 2007, her victories included last year's world championship in Japan and this year's indoor world championship in Spain.