by Larry Eder
Sally Pearson, photo by PhotoRun.net
Sally Pearson won the 2011 World championships in Daegu, Korea after a flawless season. Now, she is dreaming of bringing the 2018 Commonwealth games to the Gold Coast of Australia….
EME
NEWS (NOV 8, 2011)
NYC
BAND FOR GALA
MONACO
(MON): The Gala’s 600+ guests on Saturday, who will include many of the world’s
top athletics stars, past and present, will be entertained this year by
Orquesta Broadway, a salsa, charanga dance band which for virtually 50
years has been at the forefront of the Latin Music scene in New York City. The
band’s name comes from 135th Street and Broadway in Manhattan where the
founding line-up all lived. Informs IAAF.
SEVERAL
MEETINGS AROUND
MONACO
(MON): IAAF informs that a three-day meeting of the IAAF Council,
Wednesday 9 to Friday 11 November, which will conclude with the decision regarding
the host city for the 2017 IAAF World Championships (also World Indoors 2014,
World Juniors 2014, Continental Cup 2014, World Half Marathon 2014), will be
the focus of a packed schedule of meetings which will be held around the
Saturday´s World Athletics Gala. Gatherings of various IAAF Commissions, the
IAF Council, the Samsung Diamond League Assembly and meetings between the IAAF
and World Masters Athletics are among those that will be staged before, during,
and immediately following the weekend.
EA
MEETINGS APPROVED
LAUSANNE
(SUI): The EA Council approved at its session in Helsinki the calendar for the
outdoor one-day meetings in Europe. The 2012 series of European Athletics
Outdoor Premium Meetings will include 12 meetings (four more than in 2011)
while the Classic series will comprise of 11 meetings (two less than in 2011).
The Internationales Hochsprung-Meeting in Eberstadt, Germany, which is
dedicated to the high jump, has been given the status of a special Premium
Meeting. In comparison to the earlier published calendars one of the oldest
meetings in Europe, the Kusocinski Memorial will be at the end of the day in
the Premium category (held in Szczecin currently). Also Spitzenleichtathletik
meet of Luzern which had pending status will be as in 2011 in the Classic
category. No more Greek meetings in this categories, they will have Area Permit
status. The current calendar for 2012, EA Premium: Jun 2 Bydgoszcz and Nancy,
Jun 5 Montreuil, Jun 8 Torino, Jun 9 Lille, Jun 11 Prague, Jul 3 Reims, Jul 7 Heusden,
Jul 8 Strasbourg, Jul 10 Sotteville, Jul 21 Szczecin, Sep 4 Rovereto. EA
Classic: May 25 Dessau, Jun 7 Huelva, Jun 9 Istanbul, Jun 14 Velenje, Jun 17
Zhukovskiy, Jul 17 Luzern, Aug 20 Linz, Aug 26 Dubnica, Sep 1 Terra Sarda, Sep
2 Padova, Sep 5 Milano, Sep 7-9 Eberstadt.
ECP
WALKING FOR THIRD TIME TO DUDINCE
LAUSANNE
(SUI): European Athletics has awarded to the Slovakian spa town of Dudince,
which boasts a rich tradition of race walking, the 2013 edition of the
biennial European Cup Race walking. Dudince will stage this event already for
third time after 1998 and 2001. The Spanish federations’ proposal to move the
2012 European Cup 10000m from Palafrugelle to the city of Bilbao has also been
accepted by European Athletics. The annual event will now take place on 3 June
2012, while in 2013 the event will be staged in the Bulgarian city of Pravets.
VCB
IS CHANGING COACHES
KINGSTON
(JAM): Information reaching trackalerts.com is that Veronica Campbell-Brown is
changing coaches. This means Claude Grant, the man who conditioned her for the
last year, during which she won her first 200m World title, is no longer the
athlete’s coach. Grant is the third coach working with Campbell-Brown in three
years. Previously the Jamaican athlete was coached by Anthony Carpenter and
Lance Brauman.
SERBIA
PLANS ALSO FOR 2015
BEOGRAD
(SRB): Serbia continues in long term plans with athletics after Belgrade was
awarded the European CC Championships in 2013. General secretary of the
national federation and former 400 m runner Slobodan Brankovic is optimistic
about the Belgrade bid to stage European Indoor Championships in 2015. The
multifunctional hall Arena is close to the airport and offers enough space for
athletics. Brankovic hopes that the city will cover the costs of the new track
which will be needed. Other bidders are Istanbul (with the planned experience
from World Indoors 2012) and Prague (with 02 Arena where already a succesfull
one day meet was held in winter of 2009 with participation of Yelena Isinbayeva
and 2 miles world best by Meseret Defar).
OTHER NEWS
MONTREAL
(CAN): Priscilla Lopes Schliep, the Olympic Bronze Medalist and former World
Number one at 100 m hurdles, will be addressing more than 200 University
students from across Canada on November 12th at the 16th Annual John Molson
school of business Sports Marketing conference. Lopes-Schliep who will discuss
the parallels of what is needed for success in both business and in sport will
be making her first public appearance since giving birth to Nataliya Ava
Schliep in mid September. She slowly returns back to training and plans to
compete in summer 2012.
NEW YORK
(USA): Lauren Fleshman has had a bit of a traumatic pre-race
experience when she debuted at the ING New York City marathon last weekend. The
multiple US 5000m national champion had temporary tattoos of her own company
Picky Bars on her body but was forced to take them off just minutes before the
race as it is against the rules of the World Marathon Majors. Many USA athletes
have supported Fleshman and her attempt to promote her own company by speaking
up on Twitter or the internet.
LONDON
(GBR): Daley Thompson is happy to add his voice to the cause to bring the 2017
World Athletics ÂChampionships to London. The IAAF meets in Monaco this week
and will vote on Friday as to where the Championships are staged. “We have a fantastic
chance. It is going to be very difficult in Doha because it is so warm,” said
Thompson. “They are having to make adjustments like running the marathon in the
middle of the night – which is not going to be fair – and they might struggle
just to get people to come and watch it.” Thompson was quoted by the Daily
Express.
SYDNEY
(AUS): World 100m hurdles champion Sally Pearson says that winning the 2011
World Athlete of the Year award and helping the Gold Coast bring home the 2018
Commonwealth Games would be the icing on the cake to a sensational year.
The 25-year-old hurdler was this weekend named in the final three for the 2011
World Athlete of the Year, along with shot putter Valerie Adams (NZL) who was
undefeated all season and set an Oceania record at the IAAF World Championships,
and Kenya’s Vivian Cheruiyot, who added 5000m and 10,000m gold medals to the
world cross-country title she won earlier in the season. Pearson will also know
this weekend whether it has won the right to host the Commonwealth Games in
2018. As an ambassador to the bid Pearson has been actively involved throughout
the campaign and she admits a home Games will be the incentive she needs
if she is to continue competing for another seven years according to athletics
australia website.
NEW YORK
(USA): Emmanuel Mutai of Kenya and Liliya Shobukhova of Russia have been
crowned champions of the 2010-2011 World Marathon Majors series, and both were
presented $500,000 USD for their respective accomplishments on Monday
personally. „The World Marathon Majors are the best events and have the
strongest fields,” said Emmanuel Mutai. „The series includes races over a two-year
period, and to earn the most points over that time and win the series is very
difficult so I am proud of my achievement. I came to New York [this
weekend] in the lead for the series, knowing that I needed to be at least
among the top 3. When I realized that I would be second in the race,
I knew this meant that I had won in the final standings. Yes, I was
very much thinking about the World Marathon Majors during the race.” Female
winner Liliya Shobukhova: „I want to thank the World Marathon Majors for its
great idea to raise awareness of the sport and its top athletes. The series has
helped both to identify talented runners and to place attention on marathon
running. I don’t think I would have achieved such heights in
marathoning without the series, even after many years in the sport. Also, the
World Marathon Majors has helped the best marathoners to focus on the best
events, which adds to the competition and which surely will help anyone in
their preparation for the Olympics.”
WATTENSCHEID
(GER): Pole vaulter and Daegu fifth placer Malte Mohr is changing his clubs and
says he wants to compete indoors and outdoors in full mood and quality for the
top events in Istanbul, Helsinki and London. Another goal for him is to clear
six meters. His best is 590 on the square, 586 indoors and 585 in classic
stadiums outdoors. In 2012 he will compete for TV Wattenscheid and is leaving
his current club LG Stadtwerke Munich. Chauncey Johnson remains his coach.
VILNIUS
(LTU): Legendary discus thrower Virgilijus Alekna will be an adviser for
Lithuanian interior ministry. Local media are informing. The multiple olympic
and world winner will be next year 40 but still plans to compete at London
Games.
LONDON
(GBR): Dailymail.co.uk writes that London fears its bid to host the world
athletics championships in its new Olympic Stadium in 2017 is threatened this
week by a GBP 5 million inducement from rivals Doha. Dailymail says that
Doha is expected to offer to pay the IAAF’s entire bill for prize money. London
has not tried to match it, offering only to organise coaching and competitive
opportunities for women officials from developing nations. Writes the paper. Ed
Warner, chairman of UK Athletics, said: „It would not be possible for us to
find a sponsor to pay the prize money because there is nothing to offer
them in return. The IAAF already has major corporate sponsors whose names are
displayed on athletes’ bibs.”
CHIBA (JPN):
The organizers of the 2011 International Chiba Ekiden held a press
conference to announce the teams for the Nov. 23 event. Teams from ten
countries including Japan, Kenya and the United States will face off against
the defending champion Japanese University Select Team and a team made up
of top runners from hosts Chiba Prefecture over the six-stage, 42.195 km race.
Each team includes three men and three women who will alternate stages in
handing off the tasuki. Informs Brett Larner on his blog.
RESULTS
SYDNEY
(AUS, Nov 6): Discus world champion Dani Samuels achieved 59.40 at a local
meet.
ALGERS
(ALG, Nov 1): Athletics International informs that the Algers Marathon on
November 1 was held on a short course. That means also the Algerian record
2:09:11 by Slimane Moulay will not be approved.
KOSCIAN
(POL, Nov 7): Arkadiusz Gardzielewski clocked 1:03:28 PB to win the 7th Half
Marathon here. He was better than strong Ukrainian group headed by Vitaliy
Shafar (1:04:06). But Olga Kotowska recorded the women win for Ukraine in
1:13:58 ahead of Svitlana Stanko (1:14:38).
MARATHON
STATS
NEW YORK
(USA): Ken Nakamura offers thoughts about who is the best current marathon
runner in the world. In a year which is the best for the quality of
marathon results ever. Also all WMM events improved their men´s course records
and interestingly no women course record was improved at this five marathons in
2011. Fresh NY winner Geoffrey Mutai has fastest “2011 Average” and second
fastest “2010-2011Average.” Both Geoffrey Mutai and Wilson Chebet won two
marathon races in a row (won both races this year), while Wilson Kipsang
won three marathon races in a row. Moses Mosop has second fastest “2011
Average.” Largest “Average winning margin” is recorded by Wilson Kipsang. In
the last two years Abel Kirui has not run very fast nor won any marathon except
for the 2011 World Championships. However, Kirui, twice World Champion, is a supreme
championships runner. Fast times means much more when recorded on the slower
course. So 2:05:06 by Mutai is much more meaningful because it was recorded in
New York, where top 10 average for the race is 2:07:32, more than two minutes
slower than Berlin, Rotterdam or London.
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