ISI FIRST START CONFIRMED

HEUSDEN (BEL): First competition in the summer for multiple world record
holder Yelena Isinbayeva is confirmed. She will jump on July 16 at the KBC
Nacht in Heusden-Zolder at the EA Premium Meeting. “I am looking forward to
begin of my season in Belgium.
It’s the first time I will be there. I know that the KBC Night has a good name
for middle and long distances and I would like the public to enjoy the pole
vault competition too!” After passing the summer season 2010 she competed twice
during the indoor season and won with 481 and 485 in Moscow
and Donetsk.

LEMAITRE VS. CHAMBERS

MONTREUIL (FRA): The
third edition of Montreuil
meeting (home CA 93 Montreuil is the top club in France)
will also start the Pro Athle Tour Series in France. At Jean Delbert
Stadium top
French stars will compete on June 7. Teddy Tamgho in triple jump, Renaud
Lavillenie in pole vault, Veronique Mang in the 100 m and Antoinette
Nana
Djimou at the 100 m
Hurdles. But very special will be the 100 m race where triple European
champion
Christophe Lemaitre will clash with World Indoor Champion Dwain Chambers
for
the number one spot in Europe. In current
lists Lemaitre has 10.00 and Chambers 10.01. In direct clashes they met
so far
only twice last year. Chambers was better at European Team Championships
in Norway (9.99 to 10.02) and Lemaitre in Barcelona finals (10.11
to 10.18). Added to the field are top Caribbean
sprinters with sub 10 bests. Jamaican Yohan Blake and Daniel Bailey of
Antigua. Very interesting also women 100 m where fastest Europeans
from indoor season, Ukrainians Olesya Povh and Mariya Ryemyen will be
running
for first time this summer internationally.

TOP MINI 10K FIELD

NEW YORK (USA): The New York Road Runners
have decided to celebrate the gala 40th running of the NYRR Mini 10-K in high
style. Race director Mary Wittenberg has assembled an international field of
superstars for the June 11 race so strong that it could pass for a World
Championships final, and perhaps even an Olympic final. She did it, at least in
part, to honor the memory of Grete Waitz, the Norwegian running icon who died
after a long struggle with cancer on April 19. With 11 Olympians (including two
medallists), 11 women with global or continental championships medals
(including six gold medallists), and a total of 14 women who have broken 32
minutes for 10
kilometers on either the track or road (including five
who have gone sub-31:00), the field boasts a rare depth of talent seen in an
American road race. But the marquis match-up should be the reigning world
10,000m and Mini champion Linet Masai of Kenya against the reigning World
Marathon Majors champion Lidiya Shobukhova of Russia. Both women said they are
up to the challenge. Also in the field Edna Kiplagat, Lornah Kiplagat, Jo
Pavey, Emily Chebet, from other Europeans Italian Anna Incerti. Informs RRW.

FARAH AND SOLINSKY TO 10K

EUGENE (USA):
European 5000 m
and 10 000 m
Champion Mo Farah will compete in the Prefontaine Classic 10 000 m on Friday night
in Hayward Field, Eugene.
The 28 year old was originally entered for the 2 miles but, after
discussing it with his coach Alberto Salazar, asked to switch to the 10,000m.
The Portland based runner made a quick visit
back to the UK
last Monday to win the BUPA London 10,000 in 29:15. Farah has a personal best of
27:28.86 set in the European 10,000m Challenge in Marseille last year. Also
switched to 10k is US
record holder Chris Solinsky who wanted initially running the 2 miles.

GATLIN NEWS

LONDON (GBR): Olympic and world sprint gold medalist Justin Gatlin will
remain barred from major European races despite being invited to this weekend’s
Diamond League meeting in the United States in Eugene said Euromeetings. The
organization representing Europe’s top
athletics meetings, will continue to recommend that members do not invite
athletes who they believe cause disrepute to the meetings and the sport.
“Euromeetings, the organization representing Europe’s top athletics meetings,
will continue to recommend that members do not invite athletes who we believe
causes disrepute to our meetings and our sport,” Rajne Soderberg, the group’s
president and organiser of the Stockholm Diamond League meeting, said in an
email to Reuters. Also Patrick Magyar, the organizer of the Zurich meet, offered a similar view. “Eugene can invite who
they want and we will do the same,” Magyar, vice chairman of the Diamond
League, told Reuters via email. Eugene
meet director Tom Jordan explained to Reuters: “We have a philosophy in this
country that if you have paid your debt to society, then you are given a second
chance and he will have a second chance at the Prefontaine Classic.”

BEKELE IN TRAINING

ADDIS ABEBA (ETH): Olympic and world champion Kenenisa Bekele reports
that he is training very well in the hills around Addis Abeba and aims to start
doing faster work outs in about a month. Bekele confirmed he still believes he
can defend his 5000m and 10.000m world titles at the IAAF World championships
in Daegu in August but didn’t speak of any upcoming international competitions.
Late July competitions would be the first possibility.

2013 EUROPEAN TEAM CHAMPS WILL BE
AWARDED

LAUSANNE (SUI):
European Athletics will decide Monday
which of four bidding cities will host the 2013 European Team
Championships
Super League. Braunschweig (Germany),
Bydgoszcz (Poland),
Gateshead (Great Britain & N.I.), and Ostrava
(Czech Republic),
will make their final presentations to the European Athletics Council in
Frankfurt during its 129th meeting. It is the first time
that four cities have made it to the final stage of the bidding process
for a
European Athletics event. European Athletics Director General Christian
Milz
said, “The cities are nearing the finish line and all of them have
impressive
credentials to show our newly elected Council. We can be assured from
our
robust and healthy bidding process – an integral part our long-term
planning
strategy – that the selected candidate will be able to deliver one of
our
flagship events to the highest of standards.” In November, the European
Athletics Council will award the right to host the 2016 European
Athletics
Championships. Amsterdam (Netherlands), Bydgoszcz,
Istanbul (Turkey),
and Split (Croatia) have all submitted
official bids to host European Athletics’ flagship event. The 2013 SPAR
European Cross Country Championships hosts will also be decided in
November,
with Antalya (Turkey),
Dudince (Slovakia) and Belgrade (Serbia)
in the running.

OTHER NEWS

BIRMINGHAM (GBR): Former world champion Kim Collins and
World Championships relay bronze medallist Simeon Williamson are the latest
names to be added to star studded 100m line-ups at the Aviva Birmingham Grand
Prix and Aviva London Grand Prix this summer. Both athletes will compete at
Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium on 10 July while Williamson will go on to
compete at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre on 5-6 August, the only
two-day meet in the Samsung Diamond League calendar. Already on the bill for
both events is Tyson Gay, the fastest man on the planet in 2010, former world
record holder Asafa Powell and Birmingham-based European silver medallist Mark
Lewis-Francis. Organizers are informing in a release.

FORMIA (ITA): British triple jumper Nathan Douglas (28) will be out of
action until next year after sustaining two ligament ruptures during a training
session in Italy.
Informs Athletics Weekly and the athlete on his facebook. Douglas, the European
silver medallist outdoors in 2006 and indoors in 2007, had been hoping to make
a strong return to form in 2011 after battling several niggling injuries in
recent years, and was due to open his outdoor campaign in Bydgoszcz. The Birmingham-based athlete had
been doing a plyometrics session at the warm-weather training camp, which
involved hopping on wooden boxes. But the box gave way and Douglas’s
foot went straight through, resulting in two ligament ruptures. “Trust me, I
will be doing everything within my power to get fit and healthy as quickly and
efficiently as possible while aiming to compete in the 2012 indoor season,” he
added. His best is 17.64 from 2005.

ATHENS (GRE): Greek Athletics Federation SEGAS
informs that the city of Trikala
submitted guarantees and will organise this years National Championships on
July 16-17. Another information from behind the scenes of Greek athletics is
that triple jumper Athanasia Perra injured on Wednesday at the Filothei meet
and is out from Oslo Diamond League.

JOHANNESBURG (RSA): South Africa are planning to launch a campaign to
host the 2022 Commonweatlh Games after the disappointment of being forced to
drop plans to bid for the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics because of lack of
Government support writes Insidethegames. The event has been never staged in
Africa and a bid from South
Africa will be welcomed by the Commonwealth
Games Federation (CGF) to take it to new markets.

INDIANAPOLIS (USA): The 2011 USA Outdoor Track
& Field Championships will have more television exposure than ever before
with the help of a partnership with Universal Sports. Two 90-minute broadcasts
will air on Universal Sports on Saturday and Sunday, in addition to the
previously scheduled shows on ESPN 2 and NBC. With the multi-platform approach,
the championships will boast seven hours of television coverage. Universal
Sports Television Network is available to more than 63 million U.S. homes in
51 markets reports USATF.

PREVIEWS

KALAMATA (GRE): EA Classic circuit continues on Saturday in Kalamata
with the Papaflessia meet. National record holder Luis Tsatoumas begins his
long jump season at the place of his top mark (866 in 2007). Another
interesting outing is the come-back of 2004 Olympic hurdles winner Fani Halkia
who will run the flat 400 m.
Her first race since 2008, her doping ban ended last September. Bulgarian
European Champion Vania Stambolova is scheduled for both 400 m and 400 m hurdles. Her team-mate
Venelina Veneva is the top name for high jump. Russian Dakar long jump winner
Aleksander Menkov will the main foreign challenger in the long jump.

RABAT (MAR): Fourth edition of Meeting International
Mohammed VI (IAAF World Challenge) will present two world stars of current
athletics. Jamaican Asafa Powell will run the 100 m and world champion
Blanka Vlasic competes in women high jump. The sporting complex Prince Moulay
Abdellah will witness in total 16 events in the international programme. Home
spectators will specially follow the 1000 m with Continental Cup winner Amine Laalou
trying to achieve a fast time, the national record of Mahjoub Haida is 2:14.69
from 1995. He will face European Champion Marcin Lewandowski of Poland who will have a shot at the national
record just improved by Adam Kszczot in Ostrava
to 2:16.99. In the women high jump Vlasic will face current world leader Ana
Chicherova of Russia,
Powell will have as main rivals Jamaican Marvin Anderson, European indoor
champion Francis Obikwelu and Moroccan record holder Aziz Ouhadi. As usual top
fields are expected in running events. For example in women 1500 m Doha and Daegu winner
Anna Mishchenko against national record holder Btissam Lakhouad. The 800 m has home stars like
Halima Hachlaf and Hasna Benhassi against in-shape Jenny Meadows, Yulia Krevsun
and European Champion Yvonne Hak. Kenyan affair is expected in women 3000 m (Jepleting, S. Kibet,
V. Kibiwot). Hengelo winner Mohamed Shahween of Saudi Arabia runs the 1500 m with not only other
Africans but also interesting European entries from Barcelona
medalist Carsten Schlangen of Germany
and steeple specialist French Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabaad. Loaded fields with
home, Kenyan and Ethiopian runners are in men´s 5000 m and steeple. Another
event for which the home fans will wait is long jump with Moroccan star Yahya
Berrabah. He will face Briton Greg Rutherford and Ghana´s Ignisious Gaisah.
Belgian Jonathan Borlee runs the 200
m against Ostrava
winner Marvin Anderson. Hurdles specialist Dai Greene and Martyn Rooney are the
British favorites for the 400
m against US Jordan Boase. Bulgarian European silver
medalist Vanya Stambolova is in the list (and also in Kalamata list the day
before) at 400 m
hurdles with US talent Queen Harrison. In remaining technical events are
European favorites. Men´s discus has Spanish Frank Casanas and Dutch Eric
Cadee, women triple jump Belgian record holder Svetlana Bolshakova with Slovak
Dana Veldakova and Slovenian duo Marija Sestak and Snezana Rodic. Women javelin
Ukrainian Vira Rebryk and Spain´s Mercedes Chilla.

REGENSBURG (GER): German stars Tobias Unger, Lisa Ryzih
and Claudia Hoffmann are highlighting the Sparkassen Gala in Regensburg on June 4th. In the 100m field are
Mark Lewis-Francis, Craig Pickering, James Ellington and Austria’s Ryan
Moseley while Christian Malcolm and Sebastian Ernst are featured in the 200m.
Yasmin Kwadwo and Laura Turner go head to head in the women’s 100m as European
champion Verena Sailer had to withdraw from the race. Cindy Roleder and Nadine
Hildebrand are aiming to run the Daegu qualifying standard at 100 m hurdles.

LAUSANNE (SUI): European Athletics has confirmed the
final entries for the European Cup 10.000m in Oslo on June 4th. In the men’s race France (with Driss El Himer and Abdellatif
Meftah), Portugal (with Rui
Silva) and Spain
(with José Manuel Martinez) are best represented. The women’s race features
Helena Clitheroe and Charlotte Perdue on the British team, Christelle Daunay on
the French team and Sabrina Mockenhaupt on the German team. Also in the race
are Irish Mary Cullen and Portugese Jessica Augusto and Ana Dulcé Félix.