INDIANAPOLIS (AP) Marion Jones and Justin Gatlin eased through today's weather-delayed first round of the 100 meters at the U-S track and field championships.<br>
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They were the fastest qualifiers to advance to the semifinals in heats that were delayed when severe thunderstorms forced postponement of most of the meet's Thursday night schedule.<br>
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The 100 semifinals and finals are scheduled for later today.<br>
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Gatlin, who shares the world record of nine-point-77 seconds with Jamaican Asafa (A'-suh-fuh) Powell, was clocked at ten-point-02 seconds despite starting poorly out of the blocks and easing up at the end.<br>
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Jones covered the distance in eleven-point-17 seconds on the track in Indianapolis where she won her first two U-S championships. She won both the 100 and the long jump in 1997 at the age of 21.<br>
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(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
