Jessica Ennis, AVIVA Gateshead, July 2010, photo by PhotoRun.net.

Congrats are in order for Jessica Ennis, who twittered an engagement announcement. She is engaged to her long time boyfriend, Andy Hill, who asked her on Christmas Eve. Ennis and Hill will marry after London 2012. Ennis opens 2011 at Glasgow, running the 60 m hurdles. 

Christian Cantwell, Osaka, May 2010, photo by PhotoRun.net.

And the fans at the PSD Bank Meeting in Dusseldorf, on February 11 will be treated to a battle royale between Ralf Bartels, former European Champ and WC bronze medalist in 2009, and Christian Cantwell, 2009 WC, and global shot put icon. Should be a fun competition! For fans based in Chicago, remember, direct flight on Lufthansa to Dusseldorf, and you get your own
DVD player!

EME NEWS (JAN 5,
2011)

WLODARCZYK
WR IS MARK OF THE YEAR

MOUNTAIN VIEW (USA):
Hammer world record 78.30 of Anita Wlodarczyk was voted women´s performance of
the year 2010 by Track and Field News. Second place for Olga Rypakova and her
15.25 triple jump Continental Cup win. Also from Split
third placed 205 by Blanka Vlasic in High jump ahead of 6823 Euro win in
heptathlon by Jessica Ennis and 10.78 of Veronica Campbell-Brown at 100 m in Eugene at Pre Classic Samsung Diamond League.
TrackAlerts named as CAC performance of the year the 19.56 by Usain Bolt at
Jamaica Invitational in Kingston.

CANTWELL
VS. BARTELS

DUSSELDORF (GER): The 6th PSD Bank Meeting of
Dusseldorf (Feb 11, EA Indoor Permit) announced two interesting clashes. In
women´s 60 m
hurdles world indoor champion and US record holder Lolo Jones will meet with
best German Carolin Nytra and Doha World Indoor silver winner Perdita Felicien
from Canada.
In men´s shot put world champion Christian Cantwell hopes to have a good fight
with top German and former European Champion Ralf Bartels.

LEMAITRE
FOR KARLSRUHE

KARLSRUHE
(GER): Another top German indoor fixture, the BW-Bank-Meeting in Karlsruhe (Feb 13, IAAF
Indoor Permit) is happy to have the fastest European competing. French triple
gold medalist from Barcelona Christophe Lemaitre will run the 60 m. His countryman Ronald
Pognon is meet record holder with 6.45 from 2005. Already earlier both home
European champions Christian Reif and Verena Sailer were announced to compete.

ENNIS
ENGAGED

LONDON (GBR): Telegraph informs
that European gold medalist Jessica Ennis is looking forward to a gold ring as
well as a gold medal after announcing plans to marry her long-term boyfriend –
but not until after her Olympic campaign. Ennis said on her twitter about the engagement
to Andy Hill, a 26-year-old construction site manager, after he popped the
question on Christmas Eve. The couple, who first met at King
Ecgbert School
in Sheffield, have been dating for six years,
writes Telegraph. The world indoor champion opens her season in Glasgow on January 29 at 60 m and 60 m hurdles.

BAILEY
FOR GLASGOW

EUGENE
(USA): Trackfocus.com says
that improved sprinter Ryan Bailey will compete for USA in both sprints (60 m and 200 m) at the Glasgow Match
on January 29. Bailey who trains in Oregon
improved last summer to sub 10 class with 9.88 in Rieti. His indoor 60 m best is solid 6.58 from
last US Indoor Nationals in Albuquerque.
He will represent USA for
first time since 2008 World Junior Championships in Bydgoszcz (he ran there 4×400 m relay).
Another US entry from Oregon will be high
jumper Jesse Williams who was recently ranked number two in the world in 2010
by Track and Field News. The 236 jumper will open his indoor campaign at first
leg of Moravia High Jump Tour in Trinec, Czech Republic on January 26 and then will head
to Glasgow.

OTHER NEWS

YEKATERINBURG (RUS): The
Russian Indoor season starts on Friday with 20th Christmas Meet with some top
entries. Olympic winner Andrey Silnov will clash with Euro winner Aleksandr Shustov
in high jump. Olympic relay winner Aleksandra Fedoriva is scheduled for 60 m, Kseniya Vdovina for 300 m, Natalya Nazarova and
Olesya Krasnomovets for 500 m,
Euro winner Mariya Savinova is scheduled for 1000 m and

BUDAPEST (HUN): All-Athletics.com in ist
detailed 2010 review informs that  United
States of America were the number one country in sprints in 2010. They
lead
both the men’s and the women’s 100+200+400m combined sprints ranking.
Jamaica though was the number one in both 100 m. USA was also the
undisputed number one country in the hurdling events in 2010. Kenyan men
and US
women retained their last year’s Nr.1 rankings in running events. Like a
year
ago, US men and British women are in the runner up positions. Russian
women
retained the number one position they had last year in the
All-Athletics.com
Countries Rankings in walking events, while China is the 2010 leader on
the
men’s side.

LONDON (GBR): Both Jenny Meadows and Marilyn
Okoro look forward to the upcoming indoor season. Meadows will start her indoor
campaign at the Aviva international match and takes on the Aviva Grand Prix as
her major fixture ahead of the European indoor Championships in Paris. Marilyn Okoro, who
lost most of the 2010 season because of injury, is ready for her comeback
during the indoor season. Okoro has prepared for the 2011 season at the UKA
endurance camp in Kenya.

WOUDENBERG (NED) : Adrienne
Herzog will compete in the Florijnloop in Woudenberg on January 8th. Herzog
withdrew from recent competitions following the Spanish doping scandal in which
she is mentioned. Herzog denies all allegations and will run the 5 im this
weekend.

AMSTERDAM
(NED): Dutch talented shot putter Melissa Boekelman aims at reaching the finals
of the European indoor Championships in Paris.
Boekelman is currently preparing for the indoor season in South-Africa where
she puts her focus on gaining strenght writes losseveter.nl.

MUMBAI (IND):
The IAAF plans to set up a training centre and academy in India reports sportspower.com. The
IAAF reportedly inked a 10-year licensing deal with an Indian real estate firm
that will set up regional training centers in different parts of the country
and one big IAAF academy in the western part of the country. The deal is part
of the IAAF’s plans to expand to emerging markets.

LOS ANGELES (USA): Hollywood
film studio Universal has bought the rights to turn the best-selling novel
‘unbroken’ by Lauren Hillenbrand into a movie. Unbroken describes the life of
1936 Olympian Louis Zamperini who saw his career cut short because of the
second World War reports Reuters.

LAUSANNE
(SUI):  The International Sports Press
Association AIPS will for the first time in its 86-year history inaugurate a
special award, the AIPS Power of Sport Award, at a gala ceremony set for
January 27 in
Lausanne, Switzerland. Inspired by the words
of Nelson Mandela, the AIPS Power of Sport Award will recognise three very
special people who through sport have made an impact on the world, their
countries and their immediate communities.

FRANKFURT (GER): Horizont.net
informs that former swimmer and olympic medalist Mark Pinger (40) becomes
Nike’s new leader in Germany.
He is replacing Carl Grebert who moves as Vice President and General Manager to
Japan.
Pinger works for Nike since 2003 and was recently Merchandising Director for China.