US hurdler Allen Johnson defeated world record holder and Olympic champion Liu Xiang to seize the gold medal of the men's 110m hurdles at the IAAF World Cup in Athens on Sunday.

Johnson, who replaced Ryan Wilson at the midday in the US squad, won the race with 12.96 seconds, while Liu Xiang, who had a bad reaction time of 0.185s, finished second with 13.03 seconds. Cuba's new sensation Dayron Robles took the third place with 13.06.

All of them broke the previous World Cup record of 13. 07 created by Colin Jackson of Britain in September 1992.

Johnson failed to win at the IAAF World Cup in his two previous attempts in 1994 and 2002, but managed to do it at the age of 35.

Liu Xiang ran 0.15s slower than his world record time, but his time of 13.03 is also a world-class performance.

"I'm not satisfied with my start, the starter was very fast," said Liu.

"But I'm satisfied with my performance in general, this is my 4th best performance," Liu added.

By comparison, Allen Johnson had a very good start time of 0.168s.

"I saw yesterday that the track was very fast and I tried to have a quick start," said Johnson.

"It was a very special win for me against the best athletes in the world. The time was great, I am more than satisfied," he added.

(Xinhua News Agency September 18, 2006)