New world record holder China's Liu Xiang gestures with the time he set in the men's 110m Hurdles at the athletics IAAF Super Grand Prix Athletissima, in Lausanne. Liu scorched to the finishing line in a time of 12.88sec, beating the old mark of 12.91 that he shared with Britain's Colin Jackson and which had stood since 1993.

Liu scorched to the finishing line in a time of 12.88 seconds, beating the old mark of 12.91 that he matched in winning gold at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Jackson ran 12.91 in Stuttgart, Germany, in August 1993.

Dominique Arnold of the United States was second in 12.90, also faster than the previous record.

"I'm very happy," Liu said, covering his face with the Chinese flag. "I'm very tired."

Liu, who also holds the world junior record of 13.12 set in July 2002 in Lausanne, ran a victory lap , shirtless and waving to the crowd, before sitting on the track clock that showed his record time.

"I felt good but you can't beat the record on cue . I have always known since the Olympic final (in Athens in 2004 when he equallled Jackson's time) that I could do better," he said.

"It's a dream: I had already beaten the world junior record (13.12) in 2002 in Lausanne.

"I can't believe it. It's historic. In Athens, in the Olympic Games, I was the only yellow athlete to beat the Americans and Europeans."