GREAT
SHOT PUT AT KANSAS RELAYS

LAWRENCE
(USA): Fresh World indoor champion Ryan Whiting, former World Champion Reese
Hoffa and Canadian record holder Dylan Armstriong with another pair of
world-class throwers, Adam Nelson and Corey Martin, have signed on to compete
in the Kansas Relays Elite Shot Put event to be held in downtown Lawrence on
April 18. Another downtown event will be women long jump on April 19 with Janay
DeLoach, the world indoor silver winner against Funmi Jimoh. Organizers are
informing on their website. For the 100 m dash in the regular Relays programme
on April 21 Ivory Williams and Rae Edwards will run in the men race and on the
women side Muna Lee and LaShauntea Moore.

FRASER-PRYCE
VS. JETER, ALSO WARINER CONFIRMED

KINGSTON
(JAM): Olympic 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is set to make her first
appearance at the adidas Grand Prix New York meet to be held at the Icahn
Stadium June 9. She will clash there with the world champion Carmelita Jeter
and bronze winner from Daegu Kelly-Ann Baptiste of Trinidad. Fraser-Pryce and
Jeter competed so far three times against each other and in all three Jeter was
the winner (Pre Classic, London DL and Worlds final, all in 2011, per
Tilastopaja). Jeremy Wariner confirmed his 400 m entry at this Samsung Diamond
League meet. Already earlier the participation of Yohan Blake at the 100 m was
announced.

OTHER NEWS

AUCKLAND
(NZL): The father of world junior shot put champion Jacko Gill says he is not
angry with Athletics New Zealand over a blunder which led his son
withdrawing from contention for the London Olympics. Walter Gill says his son
was led to believe he had qualified for the Olympics when in fact he had met
only the B standard, which meant he was not included in last week’s initial
squad announcement. Rather than face more uncertainty Gill said to Radio New
Zealand he will now focus on the world junior champs in July.

LONDON
(GBR): The British Home Office has vowed not to relax strong UK border control
rules after it emerged that Victor Conte, the man who supplied illegal drugs to
some of the world’s most famous athletes, may attempt to come to London for the
Olympics writes The Telegraph. Conte plans to come to London to help support
his national boxing champion, flyweight Marlen Esparza, in an unofficial
capacity.

LONDON
(GBR): Delano Williams, a teenage sprint prodigy from the Turks and Caicos
islands who this weekend scored the 100m and 200m double at the Jamaican Boys
and Girls Championships, is to become the latest overseas athlete to seek
selection for the British Olympic team this summer after receiving his UK
passport just four days ago. Williams has confirmed that he will be flying to
Britain for the Olympic trials in June, where he is confident of claiming one
of three available spots in the 200 meters. Aged only 18, he already has the
200m Olympic ‘A’ qualifying standard after clocking 20.53 at a low-key
meeting in Jamaica last month reports The Telegrapgh. He competed for Turks and
Caicos at World Juniors 2010 in Moncton, but was out in heats.

NATCHITOCHES
(USA): Two-time U.S. Olympic triple jumper Kenta Bell is starting off his
outdoor season on Friday at the Leon Johnson NSU Invitational track and field
meet. Bell is aiming to make a third appearance in the Olympic Games this
summer in London, after competing in the 2004 and 2008 Olympics writes
Shreveport Times.

NASSAU
(BAH): 2010 World indoor champion Bahamian Chris Brown has decided to hold off
his initial Invitational Track and Field Classic and is now expected to stage
it at the new Thomas A Robinson Stadium next year. Brown had decided to
stage the invitational, featuring some 70-plus world-class athletes, at the new
stadium on April 14 but because the stadium was not officially certified by the
IAAF, Brown was prepared to take it to the Grand Bahama Sports Complex.
However, when looking at the budget which would have exceeded the original cost
of 300 000 USD, Brown decided that it wasn’t worth going to Grand Bahama
anymore. „With this being the Olympic year and because of the cost involved in
making it to Grand Bahama, I decided to call it off this year until next
year April,” Brown was quoted by Tribune 242.

DES
MOINES (USA): The 39-years old three time US pole vault champion Derek Miles
will make one more attempt to qualify for the Olympics before calling it a career.
Local media are informing that Miles says unless he goes out and wins an
Olympic medal, then this will be his farewell tour in the sport. He will also
most probably compete for the last time at Drake Relays special pole vault in
the mall on April 25.

MADRID
(ESP): Double European CC silver winner Ayad Lamdassem of Spain plans after
difficult marathon debut at Lake Biwa where he withdrew to attack a fast
time at the European Cup 10 000 m in Bilbao on June 3. Before that he will run
on the road against Kenenisa Bekele in Dublin in April. Lamdassem also revealed
his main objective of the summer. After European Championships in Helsinki to
try for a fast marathon time at the Berlin Marathon on September 30.

STOCKHOLM
(SWE): European Athletics informs that Tomas Riste has been elected as the
President of Swedish Athletics at the yearly congress of the organisation last
week. 60-year-old Riste, who has been a Council member of the Swedish
Athletics since 2008, replaced Lennart Karlberg. Riste has a vast
experience in the field of sports, politics and trade union. He is the Regional
Commissioner at Värmlands Regional Development Agency, Region Värmland.

TOKYO
(JPN): Brett Larner informs on his blog that the Tokyo Nogyo University
announced that 1991 Tokyo World Championships men’s marathon gold medalist
Hiromi Taniguchi, 51, has been named head coach of its track and field program
and an associate professor in the university’s Department of International
Agriculture and Food Studies.

DOHA
(QAT): Gulf Times are writing that the organizers of Samsung Diamond League
opener in Doha on May 11 are trying to get 2004 Olympic winner and 2005 World
Champion Justin Gatlin to compete in the 100 m. The fresh world indoor champion
equaled back in 2006 at that time valid world record of 9.77 here at the Doha
meet. After his doping ban this result was cancelled. “We are in talks with
Gatlin and the signs are positive. Hopefully, we can see him compete here.
However, still these are early stages and we have to wait and watch,” said
athletes coordinato Sandro Giovannelli.

PRETORIA
(RSA): South African 400m hurdles record holder, LJ van Zyl will run his first
race of the season in his special event, the 400m hurdles at the Yellow Pages
Interclub competition at the ABSA Tuks Stadium in Pretoria on 5 April. The
World Championships bronze medallist made his first appearance of the season in
Potchefstroom on 24 March in the 400m flat race where he finished 4th in
46.50sec. According to Coach Hennie Kotze the most important part of LJ’s
preparation is to stick to the training program in order to only peak later in
the year. He also added that LJ hopes to qualify for the games with 49.50 just
before the SA Championships taking place from 13-14 April. SA federation
website informs.

LONDON
(GBR): Nike has won the race to become official partners of Rio 2016 and all
Brazilian national sports teams as part of a landmark agreement that also
partially covers the London 2012 Games, it has been reported by Insidethegames.
The deal gives Nike its first official Olympic Organising Committee sponsorship
since the Sydney 2000 Games, strengthening its brand in a country that
will be the focus of the sporting world at both the 2014 World Cup and the
Olympics and Paralympics two years later. Nike will receive marketing and
licensing rights to the Rio Games and will fit out all Brazilian national
teams,except volleyball, which is sponsored by Brazilian sportswear brand
Olympikus, for both for Rio and this summer’s London Games. Rio organisers
opted to take Nike’s tier-three sponsorship offer over a tier-one proposal
from Olympikus, it is claimed.

LAUSANNE
(SUI): The March calendar included the World Indoor Championships in Istanbul,
the 12th European Cup Winter Throwing in the Montenegrin town of Bar and the
first two of the 2012 European Athletics Race Walking Permit Meetings. This
month’s European Athlete of the Month nominations naturally feature athletes
who impressed at those events. European Athletics is consequently pleased to
announce that athletes from 13 different countries have been nominated for the
March award. The voting will close on 17 April at noon CET.

VIENNA
(AUT): Since 1993 the men’s race of the Vienna City Marathon has produced 19
different winners. One of those hoping that the recent tradition of no second
time winners will continue and play in his favour is Gilbert Yegon. With a personal
best of 2:06:18 the Kenyan will be the second fastest in the field on 15th
April. He hopes to be winner number 20 since 1993. Former Kenyan winners
Gilbert Kirwa, John Kiprotich, Henry Sugut and 2007 World Champion Luke Kibet,
whose starts had been announced earlier, hope to become Vienna’s first double
winner since Karel David in 1991 and 1992. Another new entry is John Komen who
has 2:07:13 PB. Having missed a Vienna City Marathon victory by only
twelve seconds last year, Patrick Ivuti wants to go one better now. The Kenyan,
who had won the Chicago Marathon in very warm weather conditions in 2007, had
placed second with 2:08:41 in 2011. Three more Kenyans will also be in with a chance
of taking the 29th edition of the Vienna City Marathon: Wilson Kigen, Geoffrey
Ndungu and Lusapho April. Two of the fastest European runners of recent years
will hope to achieve good placings too. Moldova´s Iaroslav Musinschi (2:08:32)
and Russian Dmitriy Safronov (2:09:35). A Russian could also play a role
in the women’s race, for which defending champion Fate Tola of Ethiopia and two
time winner Luminita Talpos from Romania had already been announced. Olga Glok
won the Prague Marathon in 2009 with a personal best of 2:28:27. Other
additions are Ethiopian Aberesh Bedasa, Helaria Yohannes of Namibia and Kenyan
debutant Pauline Njeri with fast half PB of 1:07.55.

ROMA
(ITA): Happy news for current best walker on the planet. Alex Schwazer who
leads now yearly lists at 20 km and 50 km and wants to defend his title from
Beijing also in London saw over the weekend in Nice his girlfriend Carolina
Kostner after winning the European title earlier in the year also being the
best at the figure skating World Championships.

LAUSANNE
(SUI): Communication managers and staff from 47 Member Federations took part in
a Communication Seminar hosted by European Athletics in Geneva,
Switzerland, at the weekend. The 29-30 March seminar organised by the European
Athletics Communication Department comprised two days of presentations and
workshops with focus on the Helsinki 2012 European Athletics Championships that
is to be held from 27 June to 1 July in the Finnish capital. The main aim of
the seminar was to analyse, plan and position the 2012 European Athletics
Championships as a key to the international athletics calendar. The
representatives from the Member Federations took part in a workshop and
came out with ways to promote the championships in their own countries and at a pan-European
level as a stepping stone for the 2012 London Olympic Games and for future
Olympics and World Championships for athletes. European Athletics informs.

BERLIN
(GER): Difficult times for discus legend Lars Riedel (44). In the special
boxing fight during the TV Programme „ProSieben Promiboxen” he lost against
Bloodhound Gang group member „Evil” Jared Hasselhoff. In the cabin Riedel
suffered a dizzy spell and was not able to train for the Let´s Dance show.
He is competing in this TV Show with professional dancer Marta Arndt and hopes
to be back on Wednesday.

LONDON
(GBR): Latest Pat Butcher blog at: http://www.globerunner.org/index.php/04/half-full-or-half-empty/.

RESULTS

PONCE
(PUR, Mar 31): Hurdles world medalist Javier Culson improved at local meet his
flat personal best to 45.99.

EUGENE
(USA, Apr 1): Trevor Barron in his first senior year won the 20 km walk US
World Cup Trials in 1:22:13. Junior 10 km winner is Alejandro Chavez in 46:06.
In the women’s 20 km, Maria Michta grabbed the win in a time of 1:35:57.
But overall winners were guests. In the men 20 km Eider Arevalo of Colombia
(debuting at the distance) still a junior getting fast 1:21:49 ahead of
Mauricio Arteaga of Ecuador in 1:21:56 PB. Colombian junior Manuel Soto was the
fastest in the junior 10 km in 41:57. Arevalo also improved South American
junior record with his result, the previous belonging to Ecuador hero Jefferson
Perez 1:24:31 in 1993.

SANTA
BARBARA (USA, Apr 2): During first day of Sam Adams Multis superb shape of
world indoor record holder Ashton Eaton was displayed. He competed in selected
events and registered two personal bests. In the shot put 14.62 but mainly the
high quality 45.68 in the 400 m. Eaton also got 10.45 in the 100 m.