NEWS (APR 28, 2012)

CHAMBERS
WILL KNOW BY MONDAY

LONDON
(GBR): British sprinter Dwain Chambers and others will find out on Monday
whether they will be eligible for selection at London 2012 after the Court of
Arbitration for Sport confirmed it will announce whether the British Olympic
Association’s lifetime ban for drug cheats still stands after the weekend.
Widespread reports have claimed the BOA stands to lose in its battle to retain
a bylaw that sees doping offenders banned from competing at the Olympics
for life. Agencies are informing. „In the arbitration between the British
Olympic Association [BOA] and the World Anti-Doping Agency [WADA], the CAS will
issue its decision on Monday, April 30, 2012 at 4 pm [Swiss time],” the
statement says.

HOPES
FOR COURSE RECORDS

DUSSELDORF
(GER): Organisers of the Sunday´s METRO GROUP Marathon Dusseldorf hope that
both course records will be broken (2:08:32 and 2:26:44) , when they start the
10th edition of their race. The men’s field has never been as strong before in
the history of the event with Ethiopians Seboka Diriba Tola and Kebebush Haile
Lema on the women side the favourites. A group of strong African runners
will be challenged by Japan’s Yuki Kawauchi. Kenyan top names are Joseph Ngeny
(2:08:10), Evans Ruto (2:08:36), Duncan Koech (2:08:38) and Abraham Chelanga
(2:08:43). Additionally the defending champion Nahashon Kimaiyo will also
return. Fellow-Ethiopians Gishu Mindaye (2:28:30), Melkam Gisaw (2:29:12) and
Fantu Eticha Jimma (2:30:25) could do well as well. Kenya’s Agnes Jeruto plans
to run a very fast debut marathon. While her half marathon best of 72:03
does not sugggest something spectacular she targets a 2:25 time. Two
German runners hope to beat the national qualifying time for the Olympics in
Duesseldorf: Jan Fitschen, the 10,000 m European Champion from 2006, will have
to improve from 2:15:40 to 2:12:00 to book a place in London, while Anna
Hahner will have to reach 2:30:00 in her debut marathon. Unfortunately André
Pollmächer and Melanie Kraus had both had to cancel their starts due to
injuries. Adding all running events staged on Sunday the Dusseldorf Marathon
will feature around 14,000 athletes. The marathon is an IAAF Bronze Label Road
Race. Organizers are informing in a release.

RACE WALKING WORLD CUP TEAMS

IRELAND:
Robert Heffernan and Olive Loughnane are the headliners along with world youth
champion Kate Veale (junior women). Heffernan is targeting the 50km Race Walk
at this summer’s Olympic Games in London and will use the 20km race in Russia
to sharpen up and gauge his competitive progress. Heffernan will be joined in
the 20km event by Brendan Boyce who has already achieved the 50km qualification
standard for the Olympics. Boyce has been in great form lately setting a personal
best of 3:57:53 for 50km in the Dudince. In the 50 km Jamie Costin, Colin
Griffin and Michael Doyle will compete. In the women 20 km with Loughnane it is
Laura Reynolds.

POLAND:
21 walkers have been selected. Full teams into all five races. Men 20 km will
have Dawid Tomala, Jakub Jelonek, Rafal Fedaczynski, Dawid Wolski and Patryk
Ragowski. In the even stronger 50 km selection four out of five have sub 3:50
personal bests: Rafal Augustyn, Rafal Sikora, Grzegorz Sudol, Lukasz Nowak and
Artur Brzozowski also impressive PB 3:50:07. Recently improved women will be
also a good team with Paulina Buziak, Agnieszka Szwarnog, Agnieszky
Dygacz, Katarzyna Kwoka and Monika Kapera. Lukasz Kostka and Joanna Bermowska
are junior headliners.

ITALY:
Italy is sending 18 walkers. Missing is olympic winner Alex Schwazer who did
not plan for Saransk. But otherwise Beijing medalist Elisa Rigaudo leads the
women team along with Sibilla Di Vincenzo, Federica Ferraro, Eleonora Anna
Giorgi and Antonella Palmisano (junior winner at last World Cup). Men 20 km
will have Vito Di Bari, Matteo Giupponi, Riccardo Macchia and Giorgio Rubino.
Men 50 km is composed by Tedorico Caporaso, Marco De Luca, Lorenzo Dessi, Jean
Jacques Nkouloukidi and Federico Tontodonati. Youth Olympic Games winner Anna
Clemente will compete in the junior girls 10 km with Elena Poli. Two junior
boys are Francesco Fortunato and Podebrady winner Vito Minei.

BRAZIL:
Nine walkers will travel from Brazil to Saransk. The biggest number in men´s 20
km with Caio Bonfim, Moacir Zimmermann, Daniel Voigt and Jonathan Riekmann. In
women 20 km Erica Rocha de Sena, in the 50 km Mario Jose dos Santos Junior. In
the junior races Bruno Marques Fidelis in the boys competition and two girls
are Elysle da Silva Albino and Larissa Aparecida Bueno.

OTHER NEWS

LAUSANNE
(SUI): In an interview with European Athletics Former 400m hurdles great Sally
Gunnell said she believes the new European Athletics Championship could be very
beneficial to many competitors. „I think having the European Athletics
Championships every two years does give athletes, and particularly the next
tier of developing athletes, a chance to experience more regularly what a big
championship is all about. And many of the European events are bloody tough. It’s
the next stage up from the Commonwealth Games, and not far off the Worlds and
the Olympics.” She was quoted.

LONDON
(GBR): World-leading body casting sculptor Louise Giblin is set to launch a special
exhibition in London, entitled „Body Casting Olympians”, next month. It will
showcase five British current and former athletes, including Olympic champions
Dame Kelly Holmes and Sally Gunnell, and triple Olympic medallist Kriss Akabusi
reports insidethegames.

RESULTS

WUHAN
(CHN, Apr 28): The two days National Grand Prix meeting saw another women
javelin improvement. This time by Beijing Olympic finalist Zhang Li by more
than two meters to 64.74. Second Asian record holder Lu Huihui 63.57. Li Yanxi
won men´s triple jump (16.84, +0.6). From Tilastopaja.

JOHANNESBURG
(RSA, Apr 27): Simon Magakwe after setting his South African national 100 m
mark 10.06 (+1.8) in the semifinals of University Championships won the finals
in 10.16 (-0.9). Second Hannes Dreyer posted 10.34 but faster with 10.23 (+0.4)
in his semifinal. Zarck Visser leaped to long jump personal best 811 (0.0),
Willem de Beer won the 400 m (45.73) and world medalist Sunette Viljoen got
60.79 in the javelin.

MERU
(KEN, Apr 27): Steeple specialist Mercy Njoroge won the 1500 m in 4:28.2 at the
7th AK Meet first day. Anna Wabera was the best in the 10 000 m (35:35.3).
Peter Mwololo topped the men´s field in 29:13.1.

PHILADELPHIA
(USA, Apr 27): At Penn Relays on Friday Puertorican sub 50 runner Jamele Mason
won the 400 m hurdles in 50.72 and Daegu participant Marquise Goodwin won the
long jump (786w). Barbados Latoya Griffith was the best in the women 400 m hurdles
57.88. Jamaican Andrew Riley was the fastest in the 110 m hurdles heats 13.63
(-0.1) and 18-years old junior Aaron Ernest was the best in 100 m college heats
10.26 (+0.8) PB. Texas AM won the women college 4×100 m in 43.87.

DES
MOINES (USA, Apr 27): NCAA Indoor champion Tia Brooks won the shot put at Drake
Relays achieving new outdoor personal best 18.47 m.

CHULA
VISTA (USA, Apr 26): In addition to the already published results the wind
speed for Greg Rutherford´s 820 was +1.2. Korean Kim Yoo Suk was the best in
the pole vault with 560 cm. His national record is 566 cm.

FUJAIRAH
(UAE, Apr 27): Kenyan Evans Kiplagat won the men category at Fujairah
Halfmarathon in United Arab Emirates in 1:05:12. It started at 6.30 am and
still had 27 degrees temperature and 54 percent humidity. Second Ryadh Al
Moustafa of Bahrein 1:07:20. Moroccan Laila Hmatou won the women race in
1:23:49.

DUBAI
(UAE, Apr 27): At International Asian Permit meet (Olympic qualifier) at the
Police Stadium fast 1500 m dominated by Ethiopians. Dawit Wolde 3:37.44 ahead
of Baisa Moleta 3:37.55 and Shiferaw Wole 3:37.60 PB. Mohamed Ahmed Hamada
improved his own Egyptian 800 m record with 1:46.31. In women races Feyna
Gudato of Ethiopia achieved 4:09.81 PB in the 1500 m. Olympic A standard and
second fastest of the year in the 5000 m by Kenyan Beatrice Chepokoech
15:17.41. Second Veronica Wanjiru 15:28.27 ahead of Tiblet Hayu of Ethiopia
15:29.62.

NICOSIA
(CYP, Apr 27): National record holder Kostas Douvalidis at the end of this
training camp in Cyprus clocked at a local meet good 13.58 (+2.0) at the
110 m hurdles. He also achieved 10.69 (+1.0) in the 100 m. Stella Iro-Ledaki of
Greece cleared good 435 cm in the pole vault.

BERLIN
(GER, Apr 25): Personal best in women discus for Anna Ruh with 60.43 m. She is
European junior silver winner from last year.

SAO
PAULO (BRA, Apr 27): At Brazilian distances national championships Silvano Lima
Pinto won the 30 000 m in 1:38:47.0.

STATS

LONDON
(GBR): Ken Nakamura points out that the fastest last 2.195 km in a marathon
was 6:36 by Lilya Shobukhova in Chicago 2009. Last Sunday Mary Keitany covered
this distance in London with 6:51. Tiki Gelana was timed this year in Rotterdam
with 6:52. Keitany still set two records says Nakamura: 15:45 5 km split
between 35 and 40 and 22:36 from 35 to the finish.