Yohan Blake over Justin Gatlin, August 31, 2010, photo by PhotoRun.net.

The end of the season meets continue to draw attention to the sport. On Tuesday, it was
Rovieretto, Italy, where Yohan Blake finished first to Justin Gatlin’s comebacking second.
Gatlin has been running a little better each race, picking smaller, more obscure meets, because, due to his drug positive, are some of the few places he can compete. The European
meet directors will not let an athlete convicted for two or more years to compete in their meetings. Gatlin continues his comeback, quietly and race by race.
I do try to appreciate both sides. I have listened to a prominent British meet director who does not want drug cheats in his races. I do also remember being told by a prominent coach that he hoped and prayed that Ben Johnson, clean, would run a 9.85. His reasoning was that people thought that drugs made the athletes, and this coach noted, “you can not make a race horse out of a work horse.” Banned drugs do not make super humans, they allow athletes to recover faster and therefore get weeks, perhaps months more training benefit than their more human competitor in the next lane. Because so many athletes are talented, and the difference between first and seventh is perhaps, .2 of a second in the 100 meters, then an advantage like an additional month of training could make a difference in a final. That is why we have drug testing and that is the concept of an even playing field.

I do worry that, if an athlete has no way to go but out, the secrecy about illicit drugs gets harder and harder to break. Gatlin served his time, it will be interesting to see how he conducts himself, and how the sport, having observed how he served his time, determines how to bring him back into the sport.

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EME NEWS (AUG 31, 2010)

BLAKE BEATS GATLIN

ROVERETO (ITA, Aug 31):
Jamaican Yohan Blake clocked excellent 10.06 (+0.9) in cold weather to win the 100 m at 46th Palio Citta
della Quercia meet (last EA Premium of the year) in Rovereto. Also impressive
second former global gold medalist Justin Gatlin with 10.09, his fastest since
returning from doping ban. Third home Emanuele Di Gregorio posted 10.28 when
two sprinters were disqualified after false starts US Ryan Bailey and home
Fabio Cerutti. Gatlin next runs on September 3 in Padova, Italy. Another
name which is followed on the circuit, South African 800 m world champion Caster
Semenya was only 9th in the 800
m in 2:07.16. Her agent Jukka Harkonen explains: â€žShe
had very fast speed training the day before the meet and her muscles did not
work.” Her next race is in Milano on September 9. Italian Elisa Cusma won the
800 after 2:00.37 beating strong 1:58 Russian Yelena Kofanova 2:00.54.
Ethiopians produced solid steeple times as Mekdes Bekele won in 9:25.09 (meet
record) over fresh world junior record holder Almaz Ayana 9:26.96. TrinidadÂ´s
record holder Kelly-Ann Baptiste registered 11.13 to win the 100 m what would mean that
she equalled the meet record. But official results are listing strange +6.7
wind. Second Mikele Barber got 11.17. Russian Tatyana Dektyareva won the 100 m hurdles (12.95, +3.9),
menÂ´s hurdles for US Jason Richardson (13.48, +0.1) over Briton William Sharman
(13.55). Italian Barcelona semifinalist Marco Vistalli recorded a good win
at 400 m
(45.77) over US olympic medalist David Neville (45.91). In B-race Japanese
champion Yuzo Kanemaru got 46.33 and Blade Runner Oscar Pistorius finished
third (47.14). Kenyan wins in two men distances. Hillary Kipkorir at 1500 m (3:38.52) and Alex
Korio with personal best 13:17.09 at 5000 m. Paul Lonyangat as second also lifetime
race 13:19.07. Third Italian Barcelona 10k medalist Daniele Meucci celebrated
fastest of the career 13:24.38. Best result in men technical events was the 810
(+0.8) of Russian Aleksandr Menkov in long jump (with Barcelona medalist Gomis
only 4th 769, +0.3). Russian Eduard Malchenko cleared 224 in second to win high
jump over US Jesse Williams (224
in third) and New ZealandÂ´s Stuart Farquhar was the best
in javelin (79.85). German Christina Obergfoll achieved the best female
technical result in javelin with 64.38. Bulgarian Peta Dacheva won the triple
jump (14.12, +1.4) and US Lacy Janson on count-back over German Carolin Hingst
(both 441) the pole vault.

VLASIC HOPES FOR TWO METERS

ZAGREB (CRO): Home biggest star
before IAAF World Challenge Zagreb 2010 meet Blanka Vlasic said that most
important thing on Wednesday will be to win. She warned the spectators that it
will be hard to think about her last years result here the 208 national record.
â€žWe will see the situation only after I will be able to clear two meters,”
said Vlasic. Another interesting information from Vlasic background is her
boyfriend, one of the top handball players Nikola Karabatic. Another Croatian
European Champion from Barcelona discus thrower Sandra Perkovic said that if
good conditions she can attack the 67 meters, that would mean more than her
national record from last Friday in Brussels. Long jump world champion Dwight
Phillips promised an attack on his season best of 846 cm. â€žI want to achieve
a world lead, I do not like to be second in the lists,” he said about
the fact that German Christian Reif leads the year with 847. No longer in start
list is triple jump world champion Yargelis Savigne of Cuba, but interesting addition
in the menÂ´s 400 m
is Brussels winner Nery Brenes of Costa-Rica.

BOLT IN UK

LONDON (GBR): Usain Bolt has
kicked off his book tour in London with a stop on The One Show. Bolt will
also pay visits to all radio and TV stations of the BBC and will pay
a visit to the Olympic stadium for the 2012 Olympic Games. The world
record holder also will go to The Sun’s headquarters and to a two hours
public signing at Waterstone’s Piccadilly facilities. The book is called Usain
Bolt My Story 9.58 and is an illustrated biography about his three world
records at the Beijing Olympics writes trackalerts.com.

LINET AND VIVIAN FOR INDIA

LONDON (GBR): Kenyan top
runners who dominated the 5000
m race in Brussels on Friday are planning for
Commonwealth Games. Linet Masai wants to run the 10 000 m and Vivian
Cheruiyot the 5000 m.
Both are world champions in their events. For both it would be debut at the
Games. Masai runs next in London on Sunday at adidas Women’s 5k Challenge on
the road. Cheruiyot competes for Africa at IAAF Continental Cup in Split at 5000 m against Tirunesh
Dibaba.

BAILEY AND EDWARDS FOR AMERICAS

SPLIT (CRO): Americas Team for
IAAF Continental Cup is named strictly in line with the agreed criterias which
are best results as at July 31 and participation at national championships.
Based on entry lists published by IAAF at 100 m running will be Antiguan Daniel Bailey
and US Rae Edwards. At 200 m
Churandy Martina of Netherland Antilles with Diamond Race winner Wallace
Spearmon of USA will be fighting for points. All four sprinters have been named
also for 4×100 m relay along with two other big names Tyson Gay and Jamaican
Yohan Blake. In the 100 m
the strongest opponents for American sprinters will be Europeans Christophe
Lemaitre of France and Briton Mark Lewis-Francis. Africa will be represented by
Ben Meite of Ivory Coast and Aziz Zakari of Ghana. The Asia-Pacific selection
named Australian Aaron Rouge-Serret and Chinese Yi Lao.

CHINESE SPONSOR FOR IAAF

MONTE CARLO (MON): The IAAF
announced a sponsorship deal with the China Petroleum and Chemical
Corporation (Sinopec). In a deal brokered by Dentsu, the IAAF Marketing
Agency, Sinopec becomes the first international Chinese corporation to be
involved with the IAAF at an international level. Writes IAAF. The addition of
Sinopec as an IAAF partner, although currently for only a limited number
of competitions, is the latest step in the international diversification of the
IAAF’s portfolio of sponsors following the integration of Korea’s Samsung and
Russian bank VTB in recent years. Under the terms of the agreement Sinopec will
become an Official Sponsor of the IAAF/VTB Continental Cup that will take place
on 4 & 5 September 2010,
in Split, Croatia. Sinopec has acquired a full
sponsorship package comprising 6 advertising boards and an array of additional
rights. Sinopec will join title sponsor VTB Bank and Official Sponsors Adidas,
TDK and Seiko, as well as Official Supplier Mondo, and a group of National
Suppliers/Public Institutions. Sinopec has also acquired title sponsorship
rights for the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships that will take place on
16 October 2010 in
Nanning, China. The event has therefore been rebranded the IAAF/Sinopec World
Half Marathon Championships.

OTHER NEWS

NEW DELHI (IND): The Athletics
Federation of India (AFI) announced a 90 member Indian athletics team for
the Commonwealth Games, to be held at New Delhi from October 3 to 14. The team
consists of 46 male and 44 female athletes. The athletes for walking events are
yet to be nominated, as well as the final composition of relay team members,
and is expected to announce it after September 15. Indian athletes will take
part in as much as 45 events at the Games. The AFI did not name anyone for
women’s pole vault due to dismal show by athletes in the recent selection
meets. The Indian federation also fields a whooping 23 coaches, 7
supporting staff and 3 team officials (managers) to assist the national squad
for the above Games to be played at the Indian capital for the first time in its
80-year-old history. Writes Murali Krishnan.

COLORADO SPRINGS (USA):
Sprinter Mark Jelks has been suspended for two years confirms the USADA. Jelks
failed to comply with the whereabouts system and had three whereabout failures
within 18 months (two filing failures and one missed test). Jelks suspension
started on August 23rd 2010. He raced last time early April and this marks will
not be discounted.

NANJING (CHN): IOC President
Jacques Rogge has warned Nanjing, the host city of the 2014 Youth Olympic Games,
for giantism. Rogge is currently visiting the Chinese city and said: â€žThe
Games, definitely, will further the development of the city, but it has to be
sustainable. If you build a sports venue, you should not build it too big,
you can always fit it at the occasion of the Olympic Games, but then the needs
for such a big building might not be necessary for the citizens of the
city.”

PAPENDAL (NED): The Dutch
Olympic Committee has announced an extensive plan to become a top 10
sports nation in the world. Athletics should be one of the key sports in which
The Netherlands hopes to win medals which means its budget will increase from
2,4 million euro to 9,3 million euro in 2012 and 21,6 million euro in 2020.

LOS ANGELES (USA): Organizers
announced that the finish line for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Los Angeles Half Marathon
will be at L.A. LIVE in downtown Los Angeles. The race is scheduled for October
24 and 15 000 runners are expected. Keeping with the rock ‘n’ roll theme, Los
Angeles runners and spectators will be treated to a post-race concert at
L.A. LIVE.

KOLN (GER): European Champion
2006 at 10 000 m
Jan Fitschen announced he will run a half-marathon in Koln on October 3.
That is first step towards marathon and confirmed plans to change from track to
road. Fitschen who was 12th in Barcelona 10 000 m plans his first
marathon for 2011.

FRANKFURT (GER): Double olympic
gold medalist Heike Drechsler will be married for second time. As
leichtathletik.de writes the ceremony still needs to be held, but her new
husband will be Steffen Fichtner. In time span 1984-1997 she was married with
Andreas Drechsler with whom she is having a 20 years old son.

RESULTS

SLOVYANSK (UKR, Aug 28):
National road 10 km
champion was Oleksandr Sitkovskiy with 30:22 ahead of Ivan Babaryka (30:35) and
Oleksandr Matviychuk (30:36). Among non-finishers also former world indoor
champion Ivan Heshko who is trying for a comeback. Women champion Iryna
Syerhyeyeva clocked 33:19 beating former European CC Champ Tetyana Holovchenko
(33:54) and marathon runners Tatyana Vilisova (34:10) with Olena Shurhno
(35:04).

BUDAPEST (HUN, Aug 31): US
Derek Miles won the square Pole Vault meet here in strong rain after clearing 510 cm.

SAD NEWS

ADDIS ABABA (ETH): Peter
Matthews writes in latest Athletics International that Dejene Berhanu died on
August 29 in
Ethiopia at the age of 29. He first appeared on the world scene in 2000, when
he was 2nd in the African 10,000m, and in 2001 he was Ethiopian cross-country
champion. In 2003 he was 3rd in the African Games at 10,000m and ranked tenth
in the world with 27:14.61 when 8th in Brussels. He took 20 seconds off his
5000m best to rank fourth on the 2004 world lists with 12:54.15 (3rd in Rome)
and he followed that with 5th at the Olympic Games. He was then a brilliant
winner of the Great North Run half marathon in 59:37. In 2005 he was 6th (12k)
and 7th (4k) at the World Cross-country, 8th at the World Champs and with
a best of 12:56.24 for 5000m, and he ran his 10,000m pb of 27:12.22. His
best marathon came in 2006 with 2:08:46 for 4th at Rotterdam, but he was only
31st in the 2007 Worlds.

Author

Larry Eder
Larry Eder has had a 52-year involvement in the sport of athletics. Larry has experienced the sport as an athlete, coach, magazine publisher, and now, journalist and blogger. His first article, on Don Bowden, America's first sub-4 minute miler, was published in RW in 1983. Larry has published several magazines on athletics, from American Athletics to the U.S. version of Spikes magazine. He currently manages the content and marketing development of the RunningNetwork, The Shoe Addicts, and RunBlogRun. Of RunBlogRun, his daily pilgrimage with the sport, Larry says: "I have to admit, I love traveling to far away meets, writing about the sport I love, and the athletes I respect, for my readers at runblogrun.com, the most of anything I have ever done, except, maybe running itself." Also does some updates for BBC Sports at key events, which he truly enjoys. Theme song: Greg Allman, " I'm no Angel."
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