Nice to see the USOC getting back in the sponsor game. BMW is a high end auto brand, and Olympic movement is perfect demographics for the German auto company…

TOP NEWS

LONDON (GBR): Website www.sportcal.com specialized in sports
business writes that IAAF Diamond League title sponsor announcement is due „in
very near future’. Negotiations for a title sponsor for the series which
continues on Friday in Oslo are still continuing.

LONDON (GBR): Agent Ricky Simms
confirmed for Reuters that the next race planned for Usain Bolt will be
Athletissima 200 m
race on July 8 in
Lausanne (IAAF Diamond League). That means he will miss the Jamaican
Championships held end of June. It is all due to his sore achilles and as
precautionary measure.

MONTREUIL (FRA): International
meet in Montreuil, France on June 8 confirmed that world indoor champion Briton
Dwain Chambers will run there the 100
m. He was running there also last year and won in 10.17.
The meeting is not member of Euromeetings Group.

ZAGREB (CRO): Croatian hammer
record holder Ivana Brkljacic officially confirmed that she will not return to
competitive sport. Her last meet was on September 13, 2008 at IAAF World
Athletics Final in Stuttgart. After that she provisionally stopped her career.
Started to work more in sports administration and became meeting director of
Zagreb Grand Prix. Her national record remained 75.08 from 2007, she achieved
finals at Olympic Games and World Championships.

BRUSSELS (BEL): Olympic high
jump champion Tia Hellebaut will make her return to competition on July 2nd in
Madrid (IAAF World Challenge) she revealed during a press conference. The
Belgian, who returns after giving birth to daughter Lotte, aims clearing at
least 195. She has also for the first time confirmed she will participate in
Barcelona to defend her European title from four years ago in Goteborg.

LONDON (GBR): Fresh Gotzis
winner Jessica Ennis would be happy to double at London Olympic Games. That
means compete not only in heptathlon but also in the 100 m hurdles. The only
condition in the time-table would be three days between end of heptathlon and
hurdles heats. She could be also considered for 4×100 m relay.

BAD LANGENSALZA (GER): World
long jump champion Irving Saladino of Panama has been confirmed for the long
jump meeting in Bad Langensalza in Germany on June 5th. Saladino has
a season best of 819 and will be taking on British Chris Tomlinson and
Greg Rutherford as well as finish Tommi Evila and Germans Christian Reif and
Nils Winter. In the women’s competition British Jade Johnson will take on
Turkish Karin Mey Melis, Ukrainian Viktoryia Rybalko and Germans Bianca Kappler
and Nadja Käther confirms leichtathletik.de.

OTHER NEWS

MONACO (MON): IAAF Diamond
League ambassadors Andreas Torkildsen and Tero Pitkamaki will participate in
a live web chat on Wednesday June 2nd. Both Javelin throwers will take part
in the Diamond League meeting in Oslo on Friday. Pitkamaki currently holds 26
victories over double Olympic champion Torkilsen.

LAUSANNE (SUI): The month of
May has traditionally signalled the start of the outdoor track & field
season in Europe. Following major competitions such as the European Champion
Clubs Cups and the start of the European Athletics Outdoor Classic Meetings
series, European Athletics is pleased to announce the nominations for the
European Athlete of the Month for May representing 12 countries. The voting
will close on Tuesday 15 June at noon.

BARCELONA (ESP): Spanish long
jumper Concha Montaner believes she can come close to 7m when jumping in the
European Championships later this summer.The former world junior champion gave
birth to a daughter in 2009 and so far jumped 643 in her comeback.
Montaner will jump in the IberoAmericano Championships before revealing the
rest of her competition schedule.

WASHINGTON (USA): The U.S.
Olympic Committee has signed an agreement of a sponsorship deal with BMW,
worth about $24 million. The deal has not been publicly announced yet, the
contract will run through the 2016 Games. Informs sports.espn.go.com.

NAIROBI (KEN): A total of
1100 athletes have been confirmed from 43 countries for the African athletics
Championships at the Nyayo National Stadium, from July 27 to August 1, informs
nation.co.ke. Hosts Kenya will enter the highest number of athletes (144),
Nigeria (127), Ethiopia (85), South Africa (56), Morocco (46) and Egypt (35).
Ten countries, Burundi, Central Africa Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of
Congo, Djibouti, Guinea, Mauritania, Niger, Sao Tome and Sierra Leone, have not
made any commitment yet. The most popular events are the 100 m and 200 m sprints.

CANBERRA (AUS): Athletics Australia
with the Australian Sports Commission launched the new Level 1 Beginning Coach
program during a two-day workshop. The workshop included the piloting of
the practical activities and assessment tasks that are delivered as part of the
program. Informs athletics.com.au.

NEW YORK (USA): The adidas
Grand Prix, the nation’s premier outdoor track & field invitational meet,
announced that JetBlue Airways has signed on to serve as the Official Airline.
The partnership presents an opportunity for JetBlue to introduce its
award-winning JetBlue experience and superior customer service to the
international event’s diverse spectator base.With one of the most impressive
lineups of global stars ever assembled in the United States, the adidas Grand
Prix promises to be one of the most exciting events of the summer. So far
tickets have been purchased by thousands of spectators traveling from 36 states
and 14 countries. The event is expected to sell out. Organizers are informing.

NAIROBI (KEN): Berlin 5000 m world champion Vivian
Cheruiyot will not compete at the Kenya Police National Track and Field
Championships that will start on Wednesday at Nyayo National Stadium. The
reason is her quadricep injury. Steeplechase world silver medallist and Olympic
bronze winner, Richard Mateelong, who finished fourth in Hengelo, is among top
draws for the two-day meet that ends Thursday. The Administration Police
championships are set for Friday and Saturday. The event will be used to
assemble the Police squad for the June 24 to 26 New KCC/AK National Athletics
Championships that will double as Trials for the Africa Athletics Championships
in Nairobi a month later. Writes East Standard.

NEW YORK (USA): Sports
Illustrated website writes, that an official announcement that Haile Gebrselassie
will make his U.S. marathon debut in New York on Nov. 7 is coming close.
Legendary Gebrselassie already competed twice in New York half-marathon. His
autumn marathon was not yet confirmed and it was expected it will be either
Berlin or one of US top marathons New York or Chicago.

RESULTS

PUNE (IND, June 1): Asian Grand
Prix meetings series started with a taste of first monsoon rain which
disrupted the schedule for an hour. More than 150 athletes from 21 Asian
countries competed. After heavy shower and gusty wind events resumed in cool
and pleasant atmosphere. Sajad Moradi of Iran set new AGP record in the men’s
800m with 1:47.7 (hand time).  In the
women’s Shot put Chinese Liu Xiangrong achieved 18.43 despite tough conditions
after rain. India’s Renjith Maheshwary won the men’s triple jump with 16.84
(+0.2). Chinese Zhang Jun won men´s shot put (19.71). Shehan Abeypitiyage of
Srilanka who had won his first gold medal in the Commonwealth Youth Games in
2008 at the same track, zoomed past everyone at the finish to win his first
Asian Grand Prix fastest man title in 10.47 (0.0). Oman record holder Barakat
Al-Harti was close second (also 10.47). Margarita Matsko of Kazakhstan
delivered the biggest upset of the day by winning her 4th in a row AGP
800m run by beating local favorite and current Asian leader Tintu Luka in
2:02.85 over 2:03.14. Also to note 191 high jump clearance by Svetlana Radzivil
of Uzbekistan. In men events Chinese Ji Wei clocked 13.67 (0.0) at 110 m hurdles. Close second
Fawaz Al-Shammari of Kuweit achieved national record 13.68. Chinese Su
Xiongfeng won the long jump (794, +0.9). The circuit continues on June 5 in Bangalore. With help of
Asian Athletics.

AREZZO (ITA, May 30): Ethiopian
Jakob Yarso won the 10 km
on the road with 28:28 clearly over Ukrainian Sergiy Lebid. The multiple
European CC Champion just came from sub 7:50 on the track at National Cup meet.
He clocked 29:20.

EUGENE (USA, May 29): Kenyan
Sally Kipyego achieved 4:07.82 at 1500 m during Oregon State HS Championships in
a guest race. Second Shalane Flanagan (4:08:03) who will make her fall
marathon announcement later this month. Writes RRW.

VIENNA (AUT, June 1): Rain
damaged the Pole Vault event in Vienna at a square near the well-known
amusement Prater-Park. US Jeremy Scott beat on count-back his team-mate Mark
Hollis, both 540. German favorite Tim Lobinger cleared 515 as third.

TARTU (EST, June 1): 46th
Gustav Sule Memorial was next meet of Estonian BIG Kuldliiga series. European
champion Stanislav Olijars clocked 13.76 (+2.6) 110 m hurdles win. Another
Latvian Maris Urtans achieved 20.02
in shot put. And Ainars Kovals 75.75 in javelin throw.
Two best women results came also from foreign guests. Latvian Ieva Zunda posted
56.87 at 400 m
hurdles and Belarussian Veronika Shutkova leaped to 651 (+0.1) in long jump.

CORRECTIONS

SPRINGVALE (AUS, May 29, that
means the event was already held): The Skins Sandown Classic 10 km road was won by Mark
Tucker in 30:13 from Chris Hartley 30:18. Steve Moneghetti finished 8th in
30:36. In the women’s race (run with the men) Cassie Fien won in 32:27 from
Kathryn Ewels 34:50. Former Irish great Sonia O’Sullivan was 13th in 36:59.

YALTA (UKR, May 29): The
correct mark of Viktor Kuznyetsov winning the triple jump was 17.23 (+1.4) instead
of 17.32.