by Larry EderThe Kenyan Federation is not known for its subtlety. Kitwara and Ngatuny ran in road races AFTER the Kenyan Trials, where they went 1, 2. They have been kicked off the squads and one of their agents has been banned from representing Kenyan athletes! Read below for the details….
FIRST TWO GOLDS FOR RUSSIA AND SPAIN
KAUNAS (LTU, July 16): Russia and Spain won first two gold medals during first day of European U23 Championships. Russian Valeriy Kokoyev is the big surprise in shot put winning with huge life-time best 20.20 and destroying the rest of the field. Second Nick Petersen of Denmark achieved 18.94. Kokoyev did not had 18+ before this summer. Spanish Mohamed Elbendir (of Mauretanian origin) won the 5000 m in 13:55.10 with big favorite Turkish Selim Bayrak only 9th (14:10.10). Serbian Mihail Dudas leads the decathlon after first day with solid 4148 points. British favorite Harry Aikinees-Arryetey was the fastest in 100 m semifinals (heats were cancelled) with 10.32 (-1.3). Another Briton Nigel Levine improved to 45.86 at 400 m to be the fastest in semifinals. Universiade winner Lithuanian Lina Grincikaite was the best in women 100 m semifinals (11.47, -0.5) as all the favorites advanced. Russian Yelena Kotanova showed her class in the 800 m heats (2:00.33). Also good quality the 14.13 (+1.1) by Romanian Cristina Bujin in women triple jump qualification and 797 PB of Russian Pavel Karavayev in long jump prelim (+1.3).
KENYAN BACKGROUND
NAIROBI (KEN): Kenyan media are informing that Sammy Kitwara and Gideon Ngatuny have paid price for competing in road races after selection in the men’s 10,000m squad for Berlin World Championships. Both have officially been stripped off their places in the national team by Athletics Kenya. Kitwara and Ngatuny clinched automatic berths for August World Championships by finishing first (27:44.46) and second (27:44.77) at the Trials on June 28. After they were confirmed in the Berlin 10 000 m men squad Kitwara competed and won Peachtree 10K Road Race in United States while Ngatuny won Sapporo Half Marathon (21km) 24 hours later. Third finisher, Bernard Kiprop Kipyego (27:44.80) was named in the squad. New names added to the team for 10 000 m were Micah Kogo (olympic bronze medalist) and Moses Masai. Suspensions were also set on their managers Volker Wagner (Kitwara) and Gianni Demadonna (Ngatuny), but later after the explanation Demadonna was cleared. The final women 10,000m squad was released with Linet Masai only. Lineth Chepkurui who achieved the standard last weekend in Birmingham and was second at trials was surprisingly not named. The officials will consider to name one of the 5000 m qualifiers after the trials to double at 10 000 m. World marathon champion Luke Kibet has been forced to pull out of next weekend’s London Grand Prix set after Athletics Kenya banned his agent from representing Kenyan athletes at international events. “I had planned for London and maybe wait for Berlin World Championship or the Singapore Marathon, but this development has thrown me off course. Now I have to start afresh,†said the Eldoret-based Kibet. Also affected is former world champion Tegla Loroupe who is also managed by Wagner. Another agent Ricky Simms escaped with a warning for entering Vivian Cheruiyot in a race in Oslo.
OTHER NEWS
STOCKHOLM (SWE): Best current Swedish high jumper and 2005 world medalist Emma Green stopped her competition because of her achilles. “My new approach requires more healthy achilles,†she said. In order to be ready and healthy for World Championships in Berlin she cancelled her participation at meetings in Paris, Karlstad and Stockholm.
BERLIN (GER): German Television Channels ARD and ZDF presented their broadcasting concept for the World championships which includes 55 hours of live coverage plus a lot of other regular formats. 190 countries will receive the pictures from Berlin. The Norwegian band ‚a-ha‘ presented the official World championships song ‚Foot of the Mountain‘ and the Berlin Organising Committee announced four new partners: ARAG (sports assurance), Benz (sports equipment), Berliner Pilsner (beer and beverages) and Coca Cola. Speaking about ticketing, Marketing manager Michael Mronz explained that soon the first World championships day will be sold out.
BOCHUM-WATTENSCHEID (GER): At the DAK Athletics Gala on August 2nd in Bochum-Wattenscheid the audience will enjoy a thrilling 100m duell between Tobias Unger and Mark Jelks from the United States. Alexander Kosenkow will face Kim Collins in the 200m event. Great opponents also for sprinters Verena Sailer and Marion Wagner: Indoors World champion Angela Williams, Stephanie Durst and Mechelle Lewis will compete in the 100m race. The German 4x100m relay will race against those of Nigeria, the Czech Republic and Portugal and the women‘s relay will test against the USA, Portugal and the Czech Republic.
ROMA (ITA): The Italian Athletics Federation (FIDAL) announced the team for the U20 European championships. 54 Italian athletes (36 men and 18 women) will leave for Novi Sad.
VIENNA (AUT): Austrian top runners Gunther Weidlinger and Andrea Mayr will not compete at World Championships in Berlin. Both qualified in marathon but will pass the global event mainly because of health problems and subsequent missing training. Mayr who won last weekend bronze medal at Mountain Running European Championships will continue to run mountain races and some track meetings. Weidlinger wants to be ready for Frankfurt Marathon in October.
MONTE CARLO (MON): The IAAF is delighted to announce that a broadcasting deal has been concluded with British Eurosport to show TV coverage in the UK of the remaining three fixtures – Paris, Zürich and Brussels – of the six meeting ĹF Golden League 2009. This agreement follows the news last month that the Irish broadcaster Setanta Sports, who held the broadcasting rights for the ĹF Golden League for the UK, had stopped broadcasting in Britain after going into administration. Immediately following that announcement negotiations began between British Eurosport and IMG, the IAAF’s marketing partner for ĹF Golden League broadcasting rights, which secured coverage of Oslo (3 July) and Rome (10 July), and now a deal has been concluded to cover the second half of the ĹF Golden League 2009 season.
RIED (AUT): Fourth and last Austrian Top 4 meet will have on Friday in Ried some high quality international athletes competing. Korean record holder Soon Ok Jung competes in women long jump, Russian Tatyana Dektyareva at 100 m hurdles, US pole vaulters Jillian Schwartz with improved Becky Holliday (456 on Wednesday), hammer throwers Lori Smith of USA and Andras Haklits of Croatia and high jump duel of best Slovak and Berlin bound Peter Horak (228 this year) and 230 jumper Samson Oni of Great Britain who was second last weekend at UK World Trials.
RESULTS
CONEGLIANO (ITA, July 15): Christian Obrist clocked 1:46.55 at the 55th edition of the Toni Fallai meeting. Lukas Rifesser came second after 1:46.61.
SAVONA (ITA, July 15): At the 8th Throwers Grand Prix Hannes Kirchler achieved 62.62m in the discus. Silvia Salis won the women‘s hammer competition with 69.33m. Assunta Legnante came first in the shot put (17.70m) and Janus Robberts from South Africa was the winner in the men‘s shot put (18.92m).
VOORTHUIZEN (NED, July 16): Kenyan Geoffrey Mutai defended his title and set a course record at Fortis Loopfestijn Voorthuizen in the Netherlands with 10 km time of 27:39. Mutai won last year‘s Marathon Eindhoven in a course record and personal best 2:07:50, clocked 27:39 in Voorthuizen today. That mark was well under his winning time and previous course record of 28:05 from last year, and was Mutai‘s first sub-28:00 performance on the road (he‘s run 27:52.09 on the track). Compatriot Wilson Kipsang followed Mutai over the finish line in 27:48, also a personal best. Kenyan Gilbert Kirwa was a distant third in 28:28. Belgian Veerle Dejaeghere won the women‘s race in 33:28. Informs Race Results Weekly.
Special thanks to Alfons Juck, EME News.
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