by Larry Eder
The Usain Bolt watch continues. One of the highlights of the coming Berlin 2009 championships will be the sprints and many sports fans are watching Usain Bolt and his recovery and Tyson Gay coming back into shape. Bolt races 150 meters tomorrow in Manchester, UK.
Photo by Photorun.net.
Usain will run the final, but before on Saturday will visit ManU game
MANCHESTER (GBR): The world’s fastest man will be on hand as Manchester United seeks to secure its third straight Premier League title. Olympic triple gold medalist Usain Bolt will appear on Manchester United’s pitch at half time Saturday as the team attempts to grab a point against Arsenal that it needs to clinch the championship. He also fulfilled a lifelong dream Friday morning to train with the Manchester United football team. The 22 year old Olympic star was introduced to the entire team by manager Sir Alex Ferguson and spent 90 mins with the team as they were put through their paces for tomorrow’s crunch match with Arsenal. After much talk in the press Bolt spent time with World Footballer of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo who showed him his unstoppable free kicks (with Wayne Rooney in goal). “It was an amazing experience and great to see the players in their own natural environment. I am a big fan and was humbled to find out that they knew a lot about me and my achievements. I am looking forward to the game tomorrow where we are going to win.†The 150 m on Sunday will be shown also live on Universal Sports. As the start list shows Bolt will run only the final and from two heats three athletes will qualify to join him. Two winners and the remaining fastest. In heat one Mario Forsythe, Simeon Williamson, Ivory Williams and Andy Turner will run and in the second Marlon Devonish, Ricky Fifton, Leevan Yearwood and Jamaican Xavier Brown. In women´s 150 m heats Donna Fraser will compete against Bahamain favorite Debbie Ferguson, Montell Douglas and Lee McConnell and in heat two Olympic winner Christine Ohuruogu against Sarax Claxton, Anyika Onuora and Shauna Thompson. Here both winners and next two fastest will advance into the finals.
http://www.iaaf.org/video/latest/vurl.html?vurl=http://www.iaaf.org/mm/Video/VideoAudio/Video/04/96/10/49610_20090306045645_httppostedfile_USAIN_BOLT_ITW_9042.flv
Nice video of Usain Bolt, courtesy of IAAF.org.
Diack satisfied
LONDON (GBR): Agencies are reporting, that television rights holders will allow London 2012 Olympics organisers to set whatever athletics schedule they wish, Olympic organising committee chairman Sebastian Coe said on Friday. Twice Olympic 1,500 metres champion Coe told a news conference there had been no pressure from the U.S. rights holders NBC to schedule events to suit primetime American audiences. “People say to me are we going to have a 100 metres at two o’clock in the morning?,” he said. “The answer is categorically no. IAAF president Lamine Diack is satisfied London’s Olympic Stadium will leave a lasting legacy for athletics – and would relish the opportunity to take the World Championships to Britain. Diack visited the site of the 2012 Games at Stratford on Friday, along with London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) chairman Lord Coe, at which the track-and-field venue will take centre stage.”I can see the athletics part of the legacy going up, which is good after the difficult situation we had a few months ago with people talking about what was planned following 2012. I am really satisfied with the way things are going on. I see that London is keeping the promise made in Singapore, that there will be a legacy of a stadium of 25,000 to be able to host national competitions and international competitions, as well as for the local community. In the future, we could say Okay, we want the World Championships to come to London,†IAAF head was quoted. Lord Coe firmly believes London can play its part in the IAAF calendar post-2012, hosting the likes of the Diamond League, and also leave a more general sporting legacy on what has been a neglected area of east London.
Without Wanjiru
NAIROBI (KEN): Athletics Kenya (AK) on Friday released the names of 15 athletes for the marathon races during theWorld Championships to be held in Berlin in August. Writes The Nation. It is without Olympic winner and recent London number one Samuel Wanjiru who will run a fall marathon, but it will not be in Berlin in September. Also many other top names form the circuit are not included. For example two fastest Duncan Kibet and James Kwambai who are leading the years lists with 2:04:27 from Rotterdam The team, seven men and eight women, consists of recent winners of marathon races across Europe and the United States. 2009 Boston marathon winner Salina Kosgei was named in the team alongside title defender Catherine Ndereba, Helen Kiprop (2:25:35, third in Dubai and fifth in Boston), Martha Komu (dnf in London), Rita Jeptoo (no marathon this year), Risper Kimaiyo (2:29:16 fourth in Rome), Irene Limika (2:30:00 second Nagano) and Edith Masai (no marathon this year). Robert Cheruiyot, who did not finish this year’s Boston marathon due to injury, will lead compatriots Martin Lel (without spring marathon), world champion Luke Kibet (dnf in London), Benjamin Kiptoo (2:07:17 Rome winner), Abel Kirui (2:05:04 third in Rotterdam), Emmanuel Mutai (2:06:54 fourth in London) and Daniel Rono (2:09:32 second in Boston). “The selected athletes have been advised not to run any marathon races until they participate in the IAAF World Championships but can participate in any shorter distances upto 21 kms as part of training and build up towards Berlin and must report any injury incurred in good time to allow for replacements also in good time.” AK Secretary General David Okeyo said in a press statement.
US male marathon team
INDIANAPOLIS (USA): USA Track & Field announced the Team USA men’s marathon squad for the World Championships. 2004 Olympian Dan Browne and Nate Jenkins qualified for the men’s team based on their respective performances at the Olympic Trials Marathon in New York in November 2007. Browne finished sixth in 2:13:23 while Jenkins finished seventh in 2:14:56. Justin Young was also selected for the team based on his 2:13:54 performance at the 2008 Rotterdam Marathon last April. Fernando Cabada and Matt Gabrielson round out the Berlin team based on their respective first and second place finishes at the USA Marathon Championships in Minneapolis last October.
OTHER NEWS
SOCHI (RUS): Olympic High jump bronze winner Anna Chicherova is back in full training after winter surgery. She is in training camp in Sochi and plans to return to competition in July. In June she plans a control visit in Finland where her foot surgery was done in January. If totally healthy she plans to compete also at Russian Nationals end of July to qualify for Berlin.
BERLIN (GER): Klaus Wowereit, Mayor of Berlin, presented the cultural programme of the World championships which is sponsored by the German state with two million Euros. There will be an open-air photo exposition on the boulevard ‘Unter den Linden’ as well as on ‘Pariser Platz’ (60 excellent shots of 125 years of athletics photography), the kick-off event around the Brandenburg Gate and the KulturStadion (a smaller edition of the Berlin Olympic stadion where the motto will be ‘body – art of movement’ during nine days – an international meeting place for culture and sports) on ‘Pariser Platz’.
MINSK (BLR): On Friday another athletics marriage happened in Botanic Garden of Minsk. Runner Ilona Usovich (relay world indoor medalist and national record holder at 400 m 50.31 in 2007) married with Russian pole vaulter Igor Alekseyev (PBB 565).
NEW YORK (USA): The New York Road Runners have released the final start list for Saturday´s Healthy Kidney 10-K. Not included is two-time ING ew York City Marathon champion Marilson Gomes dos Santos who had intended to run the race. Unfortunately for dos Santos, a Brazilian, his passport was not returned to him in time from the U.S. Consultate in Sao Paulo with his required visa stamp. Athletes will be competing for a $7500 first prize plus a $20,000 bonus for breaking Dathan Ritzenhein’s Central Park record of 28:08 set at the Healthy Kidney race in 2007. The list is headed by Patrick Makau of Kenya and Tadese Tola of Ethiopia.
RESULTS
ROSTOCK (GER, May 15): Mark Frank from Germany achieved 81.04 m with the javelin at the local evening meeting. As the meeting is not an official qualification meeting, the result will not count for World Championships (German standard is 81,00m).
YULIN (CHN, May 15): Fast 100 m 10.28 for Su Bingtian (-0.4) what is his life-time best during first day of Chinese Men Championships. In the long jump qualification Li Jinzhe leaped to PB of 796 (0.0). Informs Tilastopaja.
ATHENS (USA, May 15): During first day of Georgia Tech Invitational Kristi Castlin posted 12.90 (+1.5) at 100 m Hurdles in heats, Murielle Ahoure clocked 11.37 (+0.8) at 100 m, Canadian Pierre Browne was the fastest in men 100 m heats (10.41, +1.6) and Jermaine Cooper with 13.70 (0.0) at 110 m Hurdles.
MOMBASA (KEN, May 15): The hot and humid conditions in Mombasa deprived athletes of an opportunity to record good times during Friday’s first day of the Sixth New KCC/Athletics Kenya weekend meeting at the Mombasa Municipal Stadium. In the only track final held on Friday, Yunis Mumbua of Posta clocked a slow time of 36:52.1 to win the 10 000 metres women’s race.
ELDORET (KEN, May 15): Little-known Philemon Rono of Marakwet District upstaged Peter Kimeli, a member of Kenya’s team to last year’s World Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh, to win the 10,000 metres final at the North Rift Secondary Schools Championships in Eldoret on Friday. About 400 athletes from all the 20 districts of the North Rift region braved the windy day and the slippery track at the Kipchoge Stadium in the chase for places in the team for Rift Valley secondary Schools scheduled next week at the same venue. Rono, produced a stunning burst of speed in the second lap as he tore the field into shreds that included pre-race favourite Peter Kimeli Kisorio of Nandi Central, to win in an amazing time of 32:13.7. National cross country junior champion, John Kemboi, employed an electric pace to win the 1,500m race first heat in 3:57.1 as a guest runner, as he waits the 5,000m action on Saturday against Kimeli Kisorio. Writes The Nation.
US CONFERENCES (Friday action)
LUBBOCK: Lithuanian Mantas Silkauskas achieved fast 10.34 (+2.6) 100 m in the decathlon at Big 12 Conference.
GAINESVILLE: Solid heat times at SEC meet. Junior Marcus Rowland got 20.69 (+1.1) at 200 m, Jamaican Samantha Henry 23.06 (+0.5) in women race and Justin Gaymon 49.82 in 400 m Hurdles.
COLUMBUS: 20 years old pole vaulter Alicia Rue cleared 435 at Big 10 meet. It is her outdoor career best.
TULSA: Nigerian olympic bronze medalist Blessing Okagbare showed great shape at Conference USA event. She clocked in heats of 100 m new PB 11.25 (+1.9) and won the long jump with windy 690 (+4.2, had another windy marks 683 and 665 in the series).
Special thanks to Alfons Juck, EME News.
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