ATHLETICS: Australian javelin thrower Kimberley Mickle says she's still searching for "that one big one" and hopes to unleash it at the world athletics championships in Beijing next month.
The 30-year-old placed third at Saturday's London Diamond League meet in front of a crowd of more than 50,000 at the city's Olympic Park.
The 2014 Commonwealth Games gold medallist threw 63.39m, behind Latvian Madara Palameika (65.01) and Czech Barbora Spotakova (65.00).
"I thought I was going to throw better but then I got out there and just got a bit flat," she told AAP.
"I probably should have saved my energy a bit more in the warm-up and just really unleashed in the actual comp.
"It's still a whole month away from where I want to be firing," she said, referring to her next comp at the IAAF World Championships in Beijing from August 22.
The West Australian said she was happy with her consistency and couldn't complain at being third when all her throws, including three fouls, went over 60m.
"I just didn't hit that one big one that I have been searching for this year but I'm hoping that will come in the next comp I do, which is in Beijing."
Mickle has a personal best of 66.83m (2014) and a season best of 66.57.
In the women's pole vault on Saturday, Australian Alana Boyd managed equal fourth with a leap of 4.37m behind Greece's Nikoleta Kiriakopoulou (4.79) and Russian Anzhelika Sidorova (4.79).
The 31-year-old Commonwealth outdoor record holder and two-times Commonwealth Games champion told AAP she struggled at 4.52 on Saturday but aimed to get back over 4.60 and be in the best shape for Beijing.
"Physically I'm fit and technically I'm jumping well, I've just been struggling a little bit the last couple of competitions," she said.
Boyd has a personal best vault of 4.76m (2012) and a season best of 4.65.
On Friday about 40,000 people attended Olympic Park in wet conditions to watch British runner Mo Farah cheered on to an easy win in the 3000m and Jamaican fast man Usain Bolt show good form with a 9min 87sec win in the 100m.
Australian Collis Birmingham came fifth in the 3000m, running a season-best 7:39.85, while in the men's discus, Australian Benn Harradine took third with a throw of 63.98m.
Lloyd Jones
AAP