FARAH, LAVILLENIE, HIGH JUMP TRIO

MONACO (MON): The 10th IAAF Diamond League meet of the year, the Herculis of Monaco at Louis II Stadium, is as usual expected to be held in excellent summer weather very friendly for top results. Despite the recent shake-up connected to doping news the fields are excellent. Culson, Taylor and Montsho when winning can confirm their Diamond Race 2013. Very special Mo Farah at the 1500 m. Top duels in women high jump and 100 m hurdles. World leads possible by US relay teams. And French star Renaud Lavillenie aiming for first six meters of the year.

Event by event

Men

100 m: USA sends four runners, Gatlin runs for first time since US Trials. Jamaicans with Bailey-Cole and Ashmeade, but in-shape Vicaut and Collins. Who will win? World lead is suddenly 9.86.

800 m: World leader Solomon in first European race after US Trials. Bosse with European U23 gold and Mutai with Moscow berth.

1500 m (non DL): Mo Farah (his best comes from Monaco 20093:33.98) against Asbel Kiprop. They want to attack first sub 3:30 of 2013.

5000 m: Great field, only Ethiopians missing, strong Kenyan armada (I. Koech, Longosiwa, Choge), but also Rupp, Rop who runs for Bahrain and ever young B. Lagat. They should go sub 13.

400mH: Culson with a win can confirm overall Diamond Race first place. Sanchez and in-shape Gaymon against him.

PV: Lavillenie in top shape, first 6 of the year is coming close, that is also meet record of Tarasov. German olympic medalists also in the field.

TJ: Taylor with a win can confirm overall Diamond Race first place. But World leader Pichardo should not be forgotten.

JT: Vesely is back, but also Thorkildsen, Avramenko and Tarabin are in good shape.

4×100 m (non DL): Two US teams for a fast time, world lead possible. Canada, Italy, France, Spain in the race.

Women

200 m: Fraser-Pryce leads DR. Waiting behind Ahoure, Duncan, Jeter.

400 m: Montsho can confirm with another win the Diamond. But McCorory´s shape is improving and Onuora can improve again.

1500 m: Obiri with World champ Simpson and improving Hassan.

100mH: Pearson wants to show improved shape, but Harrison with Lewis, Wells heading the US team, but also Europeans Porter and improved Billaud.

Steeple: Chemos vs. Chepkirui again, will they attack the world lead9:13.75? Meet record 9:20.16 looks to be broken for sure.

HJ: Chicherova vs. Vlasic vs. Barrett. Who will win this time? Meet record and world lead is the same 204.

LJ: Okagbare hopes for first 7 meters, Proctor is in shape and Klishina won Universiade recently.

DT: Perkovic confirmed DR winner can attack in good wind her 68.96 WL or even maybe 69.30 MR. Barrios and Muller from behind.

4×100 m (non DL): Two US teams against France and Czech Republic.

OTHER DIAMOND LEAGUE NEWS

MONACO (MON): Because he feels he needs more training French triple jump star Teddy Tamgho withdrew from the Friday Herculis IAAF Diamond League meet. From French athletes also earlier Christophe Lemaitre said he needs more training, slightly injured are Eloyse Lesueur and Myriam Soumare.

MONACO (MON): Herculis Meet Director Jean-Pierre Schoebel pointed out for L´Équipe: „Athletics should not be reduced to 100 meters. We may give up too much in the 100m, while there are plenty of exciting events in the program. For me, athletics should not be summed up in the 100m. The thing we always wanted to focus Monaco is the density.”

BARSHIM TO BE OK FOR LONDON

SPALA (POL): High jump olympic medalist and Asian record holder Mutaz Essa Barshim is ready to be back into the competition after his back injury problems. He should be ok for the next week Sainsbury Anniversary Games in London. He last time competed this summer in Opole, Poland with 233 on June 9. In London he should meet with current world leader Bohdan Bondarenko of Ukraine.

CZECH AND BOSNIAN WINS

RIETI (ITA, Jul 18): European Junior Championships started in Italy with Czech and Bosnian wins. In the morning Czech Drahotova twins dominated the 10 000 m walk as Anezka won in 44:15.87 senior national record and Eliska was third 44:45.27. Top Russian Oksana Golyatkina was in-between second 44:21.03 and second Russian Nadezhda Leontyeva medalist from last year in Barcelona fourth 45:23.95. Interestingly Anezka Draho
tova in the evening also qualified for the steeple final. Bosnian shot put success after European Indoor Championships continues as Mesud Pezer won the event here with 20.44 national mark (6 kg), also silver for a Balkan country by Filip Mihaljevic from Croatia 20.23 and bronze for Poland´s Andrzej Regin 20.07 PB. Excellent heptathlon started and Belgian talent Nafi Thiam is the overnight leader with 3774 points (13.87 hurdles PB, best in high jump 189, shot put PB 14.26 and 25.15 in the 200 m) ahead of Sofia Linde of Sweden (3700 (14.46 shot PB) and Dutch Nadine Visser 3664 (superb national hurdles junior record 13.21 +1.5, 177 high jump PB, 12.58 shot PB and 24.53 200 m PB). Faster times in 100 m heats then semis as the wind changed. In the girls heats French Stella Akakpo clocked lifetime best 11.26 (+1.0) and was the fastest also in semis 11.39 (-1.0). Briton Chijindu Ujah topped the first round with 10.32 (+0.5), in semis Bulgarian Denis Dimitrov was the fastest 10.47 (-1.5). In the 400 m heats Russian Pavel Ivashko improved to 46.24, in semis Poland´s Patryk Dobek 46.44 was the best. Iceland super talent Anita Hinriksdottir who won World Youth gold last week topped the 800 m heats 2:02.61, Romanian Bianca Razor the 400 m heats 52.60. Swedish Maria Larsson as the only one clocked sub 10 in steeple heats (9:56.90) and Suleyman Bekmezci of Turkey topped the boys 1500 m first round3:43.75. Best results from technical events qualifications, 75.61 by Hungarian Bence Pasztor in hammer, 77.27 by Ukrainian Maksym Bohdan in javelin and 769 (+0.7) for Denmark´s Benjamin Gabrielsen in long jump.

OTHER NEWS

LISBON (POR): Portuguese federation suspended for two years runners Rui Teixeira (EPO) and Marco Morgado (EPO) and also two years for José Rocha (biological passport). Rocha lost all his performances from 11 December 2010, including a bronze from European CC Championships 2011 in Velenje.

VALMIERA (LAT): Baltic Athletics Challenge on Friday andSaturday in Valmiera, Latvia will see some top perfomers from the participating countries. Estonia headliner will be 2008 Olympic discus winner Gerd Kanter. On the women side Grit Sadeiko at 100 m hurdles and after long break return to competition for former European Indoor champion in long jump Ksenija Balta who will compete in 100 m and 200 m sprints.

BERLIN (GER): The 41-years old runner top German female marathon runner Irina Mikitenko will have her second marathon of the year on September 29 in Berlin. She wants to attack there the World Masters Record in the category over 40 years, the 2:25:43 by Russian Lyudmila Petrova from New York 2008. Her first marathon of 2013 was in February in Tokyo as third 2:26:41.

NEUWIED (GER): Reigning decathlon world champion Trey Hardee will prepare for the World Championships in Moscow in Neuwied, Germany. He will have good company in German Kai Kazmirek who won recently the European U23 title. Both will also compete on July 27at the „Deichmeeing” in a triathlon (110 m hurdles, discus, pole vault for men and 100 m hurdles, shot and high jump for women). Also in the field other top Germans Rico Freimuth, Michael Schrader, on the women side Julia Mächtig, Kira Biesenbach and Claudia Rath.

FONT ROMEU (FRA): French 1500 m record holder Mehdi Baala was a victim of twitter. Somebody hacked his twitter account and announced his retirement. But he is currently in Font Romeu at training camp and preparing for races in the second part of the season. And he also wants to run in 2014.

LUZERN (SUI): In the back flash from Spitzenleichtathletik in Luzern to note the last international race of 2005 100 m World champion Lauryn Williams. She was also Olympic 2004 silver winner and 2007 World Championships also second. In Luzern she clocked 11.68 as 8th in the A-race. The Jackpot of 20 000 USD was divided among Brianna Rollins, Valerie Adams, Yarisley Silva, Silke Spiegelburg and Linda Stahl.

KINGSTON (JAM): The Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission (JADCo) has confirmed that all five athletes have been officially notified of their Adverse Analytical Findings (AAFs), but up to Wednesday, only one had requested an analysis of the ‚B’ sample. The JADCo in a release to the media said it „continues its Results Management Process in accordance with its Anti-Doping Rules, 2008″. The agency noted that following receipt of the five AAFs from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Accredited Laboratory in Montreal, Canada, its Anti-Doping Rules Violation Review Panel conducted its initial review to confirm the integrity of the doping control procedures employed. The athletes were also given the mandatory seven days in which to indicate an explanation for the findings, and a request for an analysis of the ‚B’ sample. JADCo maintains its robust Anti-Doping Programme and conducted 17 tests at the National Junior Championships, June 15-16, 2013, and 70 tests at the National Senior Championships, June 20-23, 2013. Informs Jamaica Observer.

MONTEGO BAY (JAM): The chance of other athletes in the MVP camp sharing and thus testing positive for the banned substance from the allegedly tainted supplement given to Asafa Powell and Sherone Simpson is almost nil, says the club President Bruce James. Nonetheless, there were fear that the supplements could have been shared by other members of the club, but James said that possibility was almost non-existent. Points out Jamaica Observer.

AMSTERDAM (NED): Top Dutch runners Koen Raymeakers and Abdi Nageeye will run on October 20 the TCS Amsterdam Marathon. Raymaekers has 2:10:35 best from last year Rotterdam and Nageeye will debut at the distance. In the women field also Miranda Boonstra, the top Dutch female marathon runner.

STOCKHOLM (SWE): Eritrean 1500 m runner Merah Bafta hopes for Swedish citizenship on time for the World Championships in Moscow. She improved last weekend in Heusden to 4:05.13, actually national record for Eritrea. She lives since 2009 in Sweden. Last time competed internationally for Eritrea at World CC Championships in 2008.

SAO PAULO (BRA): Brazil selected 32 athletes for the World Championships in Moscow, 20 men and 12 women. Headliner is the title defender in the pole vault Fabiana Murer. The team – men – 200 m: Barros, Gomes, 400 m: Henriques, 800 m: Davide, 400mH: Suguimati, PV: Braz, Dutra, Souza, LJ: Vinicius, TJ: Sabino, DT: Odair, dec: Chinin, marathon: Rocha, Paula, 20 km walk: Bonfim, 50 km walk: Junior, 4×400 m: Balduino, Burmann, Cardoso, Henrique. Women – 100 m: Claudia, Krasucki, 400 m: Sousa, TJ: Costa, PV: Murer, Rosa, SP: Arcanjo, DT: Borges, JT: Sales, 4×100 m: Rosangela, Evelyn Carolina, Gomes.

AUCKLAND (NZL): The Athletics New Zealand selectors have added African based Zane Robertson to the team for the Moscow World Championships in August. He will join his twin brother Jake who was earlier named in the 10 000 m. The New Zealand team for Moscow is now ten-strong.

DOHA (QAT): Recently newly elected Asian Athletics Association President Dahlan Al Hamad of Qatar who is also IAAF Vice President said „we should present ourselves as a lucrative business proposition where sponsors will also benefit. The business sector won’t invest in something it feels is doomed. It’s our responsibility to convince companies that they’ll get great mileage by associating with our competitions and programmes. But at the same time, we won’t allow investors to take undue advantage of us. The AAA will be careful to decide which companies to associate with. Before searching for sponsors, we’ll also review our calendar and fix its shortcomings.” He also mentioned as one of the first goals to establish Asian Youth Championships which are currently missed in the continental competition programme. Informs dohastadiumplusqatar.com.

RESULTS

UTRECHT (NED, Jul 18): Hungarian Bence Halasz won also discus after hammer with 61.13. Netherlands topped boys 4×100 m in 42.19. In girls finals Russian Alyona Bugakova the silver winner from World Youth Championships in Donetsk achieved new meet record in shot put 17.60 m.

CORRECTION

UTRECHT (NED): The winning mark of Bence Halasz at EYOF in boys hammer was 74.63 and not 77.65 m.