BOLT
REVEALS EVENTS

KINGSTON
(JAM): Sprinting star Usain Bolt revealed on his website the events he will run
at three local Jamaican meetings. He is taking this competitions as part of his
training process. Bolt should run twice 400 m and once both relays. His first
competition at Camperdown Classic on February 11 will be the 400 m. Then at
Gibson Relays on February 25 Bolt will run both relays 4×100 m and 4×400 m on
behalf of Racers TC. The third date is March 17 at UWI Invitational Meet and
again the 400 m. His best at this distance is 45.27 from May 2007, his fastest
at this training meets was 45.54 in February 2009. His training partner and 100
m world champion Yohan Blake will also run the 400 m on February 11, but it is
expected they will be in separate races.

TOP
NAMES FOR SLOVAK HJ MEET

BANSKA
BYSTRICA (SVK): Next week´s 19th edition of Europa SC High Jump meet on
February 8 has completed the fields. To previously announced both Daegu world
champions Jesse Williams (one of his favorite meets) and Anna Chicherova (debut
here) later added were Daegu bronze winners Trevor Barry of Bahamas and
Antonietta Di Martino of Italy (also last year winner with superb 204). The
final addition of top names: olympic winner Tia Hellebaut and world indoor
champion and last year men´s winner Ivan Ukhov (already twice jumped 238 in the
Stiavnicky Hall). Central Slovakian city of Banska Bystrica is known for a good
surface for many top jumpers. Also coming is US record holder Chaunte Lowe. The
organizers are giving usually the chance for some up and coming names. This
year for example to Italian talent Alessia Trost who just last weekend improved
the national junior record to 191 and Danish European junior silver winner from
Tallinn Janick Klausen (last weekend 225 cm).

ROBLES
FOR DUSSELDORF

DUSSELDORF
(GER): Cuban hurdles world record holder Dayron Robles will open his European
indoor campaign in Dusseldorf on February 10. His management confirmed. He was
recently training in Martinique. Robles plans more meets (so far announced
Lievin) and wants to try also to win the World Indoor Championships in
Istanbul.

BLEASDALE
FOR BIRMINGHAM

BIRMINGHAM
(GBR): Current world leader Holly Bleasdale will step up her Olympic pole vault
preparations at the Aviva Grand Prix in Birmingham on Saturday 18 February. The
last time Bleasdale competed at the NIA she placed third in the national under
20 titles with a clearance of 3.90m. This month she will return to the
venue as the world’s leading pole vault athlete and one of Britain’s greatest
hopes for London 2012. Bleasdale, who will also compete in Bydgoszcz on
February 8 (against Yelena Isinbaeva) and at the Aviva Indoor UK Trials and
Championships in Sheffield next weekend, said: “I’ve competed at the NIA before
and I’m really excited to return to the venue and improve on my previous
performance. It’s important that I keep competing throughout the year so I have
a few milestones leading up to the Olympic Games. The field at Birmingham
should be really strong and obviously it forces me to jump higher if it’s a really
competitive field, so hopefully it will be a good meet for me.” Her main
rivals in Birmingham will be 2009 World Champion Anna Rogowska of Poland, her
team-mate Monika Pyrek and fresh German record setter Silke Spiegelburg along
with Czech Jirina Ptacnikova.

LOLO
7.96

LINZ
(AUT, Feb 2): 8th Guglindoor meet brought US World indoor champion Lolo Jones
to win the 60 m hurdles in new facility record 7.96. Second Yvette Lewis (8.00,
but 7.98 in heats) and third German Cindy Roleder 8.13 ahead of 2006 World
indoor champion Derval O´Rourke 8.18. „The time is ok, it was my first race
after the flight to Europe and I was worried to be too tired,” said Jones
who continues to Moscow for Sunday´s Russian Winter. In the Tips Arena Greek
Kostas Filippidis was the best in the pole vault (562) and Ghana´s former world
indoor champion Ignisious Gaisah in the long jump (793). US Brianna Glenn was
the on top in women´s long jump (635). Daegu finalist Serbian Asmir Kolasinac
improved in shot put not only the stadium record but also his overall career
top mark to 20.64 m. In women shot put German Christina Schwanitz achieved
18.58 m. Kenyan Benson Seurei clocked in a solo race 7:48.97 at the 3000 m
(second placed athlete had 8:17). Czech sprinter Katerina Cechova won the 60 m
in 7.38 but registered personal best and Istanbul standard in heats 7.31. In
men´s 60 m US Josh Norman got 6.63 ahead of Nigerian Ogho-Oghene Egwero 6.64.

WEEKEND MEETS

MONDEVILLE
(FRA): Another international fixture in France in Mondeville on Saturday will
see following highlights. Former olympic and world winner Felix Sanchez will
again try in the unusual 400 m hurdles indoors, his world best is 49.73. In the
60 m home European medalist Martial Mbandjock is facing Italian Simone Collio,
in women´60 m season opener for world finalist Ivet Lalova of Bulgaria. Fast
Ethiopian Abiyot Abinet runs again the 3000 m. Romain Mesnil is competing in
the pole vault. Top names for hurdles Briton Lawrence Clarke and US Nichole
Denby.

ARNSTADT
(GER): 36th edition of Hochsprung mit Musik of Arnstadt has on Saturday top
fields. World leaders are very possible. In women competition World champion
Anna Chicherova against Daegu bronze medalist Antonietta Di Martino (season
opener), home star Ariane Friedrich on her come-back path, olympic winner Tia
Hellebaut and US record holder Chaunte Lowe as returning mothers, Russian top
duo Svetlana Shkolina and Irina Gordeyeva and another duo from Sweden Emma
Green Tregaro and Ebba Jungmark. World champion Jesse Williams is the headliner
against World indoor champion Ivan Ukhov, silver winner from Daegu and co world
leader Aleksey Dmitrik. In the field also top German Raul Spank and Czech
European indoor silver medalist Jaroslav Baba. Current women world class is
completely there, some male jumpers gave preference to Moscow.

TAMPERE
(FIN): The traditional Tampere indoor meet Tahtien Kisat will boost on men´s
pole vault and three top Germans Malte Mohr, Fabian Schulze and Tim Lobinger.
World medalist 2005 Tommi Evila is the star of men´s long jump (against
Ukrainian Andriy Makarchev and Tyrone Smith of Bermuda). St. Kitts sprinters
Antoine Adams and Tameka Williams will be favorites of their events.

MOSCOW
(RUS): Russian Winter in Moscow (IAAF Permit) is the top meet of the weekend.
In the men´s 60 m Dwain Chambers opens the season against double world medalist
Kim Collins and with Josh Norman, Rakieem Salaam and fast Ramil Guliyev.
Another top clash the 600 m with Yuriy Borzakovskiy against Adam Kszczot and
Kenyans. US hurdlers Kevin Craddock and Joel Brown will face in-shape
Konstantin Shabanov. Title defender Aleksander Menkov will compete in the long
jump with Ignisious Gaisah of Ghana, Godfrey Mokoena and Greek record holder
Luis Tsatoumas. Co-world leader Andrey Silnov will face in the high jump
European Champion Aleksandr Shustov and world medalist Trevor Barry of Bahamas.
Cuban Daegu silver winner Lazaro Borges is the star of pole vault in duel with
Ukrainian Maksim Mazuryk, German Bjorn Otto and Russians are headed by in-shape
Dmitriy Starodubtsev and olympic medalist Yevgeniy Lukyanenko. European U23
Champion Darya Klishina is the star of women long jump, US hurdles Lolo Jones
and Kellie Wells in their event, Bulgarian world leader Vania Stambolova
competes in the 400 m. Fast times are expected in women 1000 m. Special
attention for walking events. In women world and olympic winner Olga Kaniskina
is the main name, in men´s Valeriy Borchin and Sergey Bakulin, the winners from
Daegu. French European champion Yohan Diniz makes solid foreign opposition.

BOSTON
(USA): The top US pro fixture of the weekend, New Balance Indoor Grand Prix
will see Kirani James in his season opener at 400 m, Mo Farah in the mile
against Galen Rupp and Silas Kiplagat, Ethiopians and Matt Centrowitz in the
3000 m. Top last years miler Morgan Uceny runs the 1000 m, David Oliver 60 m
hurdles, Jenn Suhr is in the pole vault. Meseret Defar and Jenny Simpson in the
3000 m and Tirunesh Dibaba over two miles.

OTHER NEWS

NAGOYA
(JPN): Brett Larner informs that with her ultimate target of making the London
Olympics in mind, Daegu World Championships marathon 5th placer Yukiko Akaba
announced that she will run the final domestic Olympic selection race, the Mar.
11 Nagoya Women’s Marathon (formerly the Nagoya International Women’s Marathon),
abandoning her plans to run the Feb. 26 Tokyo Marathon where she was last week
named as an invited elite. On the strength of her World Championships
performance Akaba had a good chance to be picked for the Olympic team
without running one of the selection races, but, explained her husband and
coach Shuhei Akaba on the couple’s blog, „Not wanting to choose an alternative
that might end up unhappily, Yukiko made this decision herself.”

LONDON
(GBR) : British prince Harry will make his first official foreign visit to
Jamaica and is scheduled to meet Usain Bolt in practice. Prince Harry already
officially claimed he would love to race against Usain Bolt writes The
Telegrapgh.

BERLIN
(GER): German sprinter Marion Wagner suffered a setback in what will be
her last season on the track. Wagner managed a decent 7.45 over 60m in her
first indoor competition but now has to cancel the remaining indoor
competitions on her schedule. The 34-year-old sustained an injury in training
and has to rest for at least 10 days reports leichathletik.de.

BERLIN
(GER): The German Athletics Association (DLV) has announced a partnership
with social security service BAMER GEK. DLV will help the company to promote a healthy
lifestyle. The contract runs until the end of 2014.

LONDON
(GBR): London 2012 revealed that the Olympic Flame will arrive in Britain at a military
base in Cornwall on a gold liveried British Airways aeroplane on May 18.
The flame will have been lit by the sun’s rays in Olympia a week earlier
writes Insidethegames.

LONDON
(GBR): Switzerland’s Denis Oswald has announced his resignation as President of
the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) in a formal
letter to the organisation’s 28 member federations. The 64-year-old finishes
his eight-year term on the Board this summer at the Olympics reports
Insidethegames.

PORTLAND
(USA): Olympian Amy Yoder Begley has joined Oregon Track Club Elite/Eugene.
Yoder Begley, who competed in the 10,000 in 2008 in Beijing, moved to Eugene
from Portland early last month. After two years of struggling with lower leg
problems, she wanted to train on the softer surfaces of the Eugene running
trails she said to oregonlive.com.

PORTLAND
(USA): Dathan Ritzenhein could be on the starting line of next week’s US Cross
country championships in St. Louis. It’s been less than a month since the
2008 Olympian ran a personal record of 2:09.55 at the U.S. Olympic
Marathon Trials in Houston, but finished fourth. Ritzenhein is stating that he
has recovered very quickly from his marathon outing according to
oregonlive.com.

LAUSANNE
(SUI): European Athletics announced that athletes from nine countries have been
nominated for the January award. At the end of each month, a panel of
experts produces a shortlist of the outstanding athletes and performances
achieved by European athletes during that month, which is then mailed to the
European athletics media and thousands of fans who have signed up to receive
news from European Athletics. The voting will close on 17 February at noon CET.

INDIANAPOLIS
(USA): The USA Track & Field Foundation announced the 2012 recipients of
the John W. James Endowment grant. The seventeen outstanding men and women
receiving a 4000 USD grant include Gwendolyn Berry (hammer throw), Lance
Brooks (discus throw), Noah Bryant (shot put), Mike Hazle (javelin throw),
Britney Henry (hammer throw), Cyrus Hostetler (javelin throw), Kibwe Johnson
(hammer throw), A.G. Kruger (hammer throw), Cory Martin (shot put), Suzy Powell
(discus throw), Aretha Thurmond (discus throw), Sarah Walker (shot put/hammer
throw), Ian Waltz (discus throw), Corey White (javelin throw), Russ Winger
(discus throw/shot put), Jason Young (discus throw) and Rachel Yurkovich
(javelin throw). USATF informs.

VIENNA
(AUT): Austrian Athletics Awards Gala celebrated on Wednesday the Athletes of
the Year miler Andreas Vojta and hurdler Beate Schrott. Special guest was
European Athletics President Hansjorg Wirz. Austrian Athletics Federation also
announced it will bid to stage the European Indoor Championships 2017 in
Vienna. Austrian Athletics Milestone award was given to Olympic high jump
bronze medalist from 1972 and former world record holder (192 in 1971) Ilona
Gusenbauer. Athletics Ambassador of the Year Award went to main organizer of
Vienna City Marathon and former top runner Wolfgang Konrad.

PANAMA
CITY (PAN): Reigning olympic long jump winner Irving Saladino had a small
treatment and has to take back in training for the next six weeks. „He is
careful but the injury is not too serious and we expect no problems in his
preparation for the Olympic Games,” his management company Global Sports
Communication said.

BUDAPEST
(HUN): Website All-Athletics.com comes up with yet another world premiere, the
All-Marathon World Lists. It’s the first time that anyone has published such
extra deep marathon world lists. The men’s list includes all received and
processed results down to 3:30:00 while the standard for the women’s list is
4:00:00.

RESULTS

MALABAR
(TRI, Jan 28): 400 m hurdles world class runner Jehue Gordon won two events at
local meet, 14.51 (110 m Hurdles) and 1:58.37 (800 m).