BOLT ARRIVED TO ROME

ROMA (ITA): World´s most popular athlete Usain Bolt arrived to Rome on Monday and will
compete for first time this season on Thursday at the third leg of Samsund
Diamond League. He will have on Tuesday a press conference. On his twitter he
wrote: “Thanks for all the best wishes my fans I will make u proud on thursday.
Wish me all the best first run in like 10 month but I think I am ready.” His
Jamaican rival Asafa Powell was expected in Italy on Tuesday.

RUDISHA AND DI MARTINO OUT

ROMA (ITA): World record holder David Rudisha is still not fit and
pulled out of the Compeed Golden Gala this Thursday. He has not fully recovered
his full fitness from the slight injury he suffered from just some weeks ago at
the beginning of May, which forced him to withdraw from the opening leg of the
Samsung Diamond League in Doha.
However, the Rome’s 800 meters field are
still a world-class race which features the clash between World champion
Mbulaeni Mulaudzi from South
Africa and Kenyans Asbel Kiprop, Boaz Lalang
and David Mutua. Informs DL website. Another withdrawal is the Italian European
indoor champion Antonietta Di Martino in high jump due to a small foot injury.
The Italian record holder was to open her summer season at Olympic Stadium.
World champion Blanka Vlasic will still measure her with Russian Svetlana
Shkolina who cleared two meters indoors and Ruth Beitia with Emma Green
(returning from injury) among others.

DOMINGUEZ HAS A BOY

PALENCIA (ESP): Reigning steeple world champion Marta
Dominguez gave at the Hospital Rio Carrión de Palencia birth to her first
child, a boy named Javier. The birth was without complications and mother and
son are healthy and ok. Spanish media are informing. She plans to return to the
track in 2012 with the aim to compete at London Olympic Games.

MELAINE ADDED

SAO PAULO (BRA): Reigning world and olympic winner at 400 m hurdles Jamaican
Melaine Walker is the top star added to the
fields at last Brazilian Tour meeting, the 27th Grande Premio Brasil Caixa de
Atletismom in Olympic Stadium Joao Havelange in Rio de Janeiro (IAAF World Challenge), the
site of 2016 Olympics. She will face US Sheena Tosta and Jamaican Nickiesha
Wilson. World medalist from Berlin Alonso Edward of Panama runs the 200 m. More local stars will
be added with Fabiana Murer in pole vault and Jadel Gregorio in triple jump. In
the women 200 m
US Porscha Lucas and Shareese Woods are facing Jamaican Simone Facey. In the
high jump US Dusty Jonas comes as top favorite and in the long jump Jamaican
Alain Bailey, US Trevell Quinley and Cuban Wilfredo Martinez with Tyrone Smith of Bermudas.

MARTINA AS DUTCH

HENGELO (NED): Olympic finalist Churandy Martina will have his first
race after announcing that he will represent Netherlands in future at FBK Games
on May 29 in
Hengelo (IAAF World Challenge). In the 100 m he will face some European rivals. For
example Norway´s Jaisuma Saidy Ndure, Brits Craig Pickering and Christian
Malcolm. Also in the race former World Champion Kim Collins and olympic
medalist Richard Thompson of Trinidad. US will
be represented by Kansas Relays winner Ivory Williams and Rae Edwards. Jamaica
by Mario Forsythe, member of Racers TC.

CRAWFORD IN DAKAR

DAKAR (SEN): The Meeting de Dakar on Saturday (IAAF
World Challenge) will have 800
m world champion Caster Semenya as main headliner. Also
in the field 200 m
olympic winner Shawn Crawford of USA, African Champions Amantle Montsho from
Botswana in women 400 m
and Kabelo Kgosiemang in the high jump. Fresh world record holder Betty Heidler
of Germany
will compete in hammer throw which will be part of IAAF HT Challenge.

DHJONE OUT OF DAEGU

PARIS (FRA): French 400m athlete Leslie Dhjone severely injured himself
during his first competition of the season the French interclub championships.
The European indoor champion might have ruptured his patellar tendon while
competing in the long jump. Dhjone was immediately transferred to the hospital
where he is undergoing more examinations writes Eurosport. He will be out as it
was later confirmed for 6 months and will so miss also the World Championships
in Daegu. He will undergo a surgery on Wednesday.

OTHER NEWS

BERLIN (GER): More bad luck for German high jump star
Ariane Friedrich who got bitten by a cat and needs surgery on her hand.
Friedrich is to be released from the hospital on Monday.

LAUSANNE (SUI): The IOC has officially launched its
selection process for the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics with Rome the only city that has so far definitely
committed itself to bidding. Hiroshima has
officially abandoned its plans to try to host the 2020 Olympics and
Paralympics, leaving the way clear for Tokyo to
be officially confirmed as Japan’s
candidate. The IOC have written to 205 National Olympic Committees (NOCs)
inviting them to submit the name of an applicant city by September 1 2011. The
election of the Host City for the 2020 Olympic Games is due to take place
on September 7, 2013, during the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires reports Insidethegames.biz.

AMSTERDAM (NED): Jolanda Keizer has withdrawn from the
Hypo Meeting in Gotzis due to pain in her left foot. Keizer was hopeful to make
her long awaited return to competition but has decided she will postpone her
comeback until the IAAF combined events challenge in Kladno in June.

DUBLIN (IRE): Legendary miler and “Chairman of the
Boards” at the Millrose Games Eamonn Coghlan has been nominated by Irish
Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Enda Kenny for a seat in Ireland’s upper parliamentary
chamber, the Seanad. The former 5000 meters world champion and three-time
Olympian was appointed for his work as Director of the Crumlin Children’s
Medical & Research Foundation reports The Irish Times.

LONDON (GBR): Jo Pavey will take on Paula Radcliffe
at the Bupa London 10,000m on May 30th. Fresh from her promising marathon debut
in London last month, the 37-year-old Pavey will challenge the world record
holder in a race that incorporates the first UK national 10km road
championships. Pavey finished 19th at the Virgin London Marathon on 17 April in
2:28.24. Mo Farah faces a formidable challenge as he defends the men’s title at
this annual road race held on the route of the London 2012 Olympic marathons
writes run247.com. The race will be held on the central loop of the 2012
Olympic Marathon, starting and finishing in St. James’s Park.

SUNDERLAND (GBR): Sunderland
City prepares an elite
mile race on June 26. The start at Fawcett
Street and finish at the Stadium of Light. Men and
women will run for 1500 GBP first price. The Elite Mile Races will provide a
curtain raiser for the redspottedhanky.com Sunderland City
10K starting at 10:30am.

DAEGU (ROK): The Daegu organizing committee said that they are
“confident” of hosting a successful World Championships this summer. “We’re
striving to make it one of the greatest athletics games in history,” said Moon
Dong-hoo, the vice president of Daegu Organizing Committee. There are now less
than 100 days to go until the World Championships, and the newly upgraded Daegu
Stadium is “fully ready” to host the global event, according to Moon. The vice
president, however, admitted that ticket sales need to be improved. He noted
that about 47 percent of the total tickets are still up for sale. Samsung
Electronics, the country’s biggest company, is stepping up to help boost ticket
sales by offering their promotional campaign writes The Korea Herald.

MADRID (ESP): Ramil Guliyev, one of Europe’s top sprinters, is set to
miss this summer’s World Championships and next year’s Olympics Games in London
after a nasty little tug-of-war contest has broken out between Turkey and his
native Azerbaijan. Guliyev ran a European junior 200m record of 20.04, when
winning at the 2009 World University Games in an Azerbaijan vest, and was also
the continent’s fastest man over the distance that year. He spent several
months training in Turkey
last summer after signing a deal to compete for the Istanbul-based club
Fenerbahce. At the end of last year Guliyev decided to fly a different flag and
he became a citizen of his adopted country on April 5. Potentially, the next
major championship where you could see Guliyev on his blocks will be the 2014
European Outdoor Championships.

MONTE CARLO (MON): IAAF approved the 50 000 m track walk record
3:35:27.2 of Yohan Diniz from Reims (March
12). Also world junior record 84.47
in javelin throw by Zigismunds Sirmais of Latvia at European Cup Winter Throwing in March
in Sofia was
ratified. The superb jumping evening of Sweden´s Angelica Bengtsson is also ok
for record purposes and her jumps 452, 453, 458 and 463 all were improvements
of world junior record in Stockholm
on February 20 at the XL Galan.

SYDNEY (AUS): Australian 10.000m
record holder Ben St Lawrence
struggles to believe the transformation he has undergone in the past
five
years. In that time he has turned from an overweight party boy who could
barely
run 10 kilometers,
into the fastest Australian ever over the distance. St Lawrence returned
to Sydney this week from a successful US tour during which he smashed
the national
10.000m record by five seconds, clocking 27:24.95 at Stanford University
and prompting him to dream of an Olympic final. The Australian athlete
also
added he thinks he can still perform well at the Rio Olympic Games in
2016
where he could do the marathon.

MELBOURNE (AUS): Australian coach John Bell has accused former marathon
runner and dual Commonwealth champion Robert de Castella, a former Australian
of the Year, of not paying for his “full time” work at the sporting legend’s
charity. John Bell, who now works with Paralympic athletes, claimed he and de
Castella had a “handshake agreement” that his work would lead to full-time
employment, which was not honoured. Robert de Castella has also announced he
will be the ambassador for the Chervron
City to Surf event on
August 28th which includes a marathon and half marathon.

RESULTS

IZMIR (TUR, May 22): Adding to Turkish Clubs League
is top female high jump mark by Bulgarian European 2006 medalist Venelina
Veneva. She cleared 195 cm
what is the best mark in the world in the outdoor season.

SAO PAULO (BRA, May 20): New South American 5000 m record by Brazilian
Simone Alves 15:18.85 at a local meet.

GERMISTON (RSA, May 22): South African road 10 km titles for Lucky Mohale
(29:00) ahead of Stephen Mokoka (29:16). Irvette Van Blerk was more clear women
race winner (34:03).

BONDOUFLE (FRA, May 22): European indoor pole vault champion Renaud
Lavillenie tested his shape before Rome DL meet at Clubs meet with 11.04 in the 100 m and 720 in the long jump.

KINGSTON (JAM, May 21): Additions to JAAA All-Comers
meet are fast 100 m
race won by Oshane Bailey in 10.21 (+1.3) ahead of Nicholas Watson who clocked
PB 10.23 and Sheldon Mitchell 10.24. In the 200 m Michael Mason achieved
20.41 (+0.8) and in the 400 m
Edino Steele 46.09. Young talent Ristannana Tracey improved to 51.95 in the 400 m.

BREMEN (GER, May 22): High jumper Eike Onnen is back
in good shape. At national meet he was able to went over solid 228 cm.