by Larry Eder
photo by PhotoRun.net
Jaouad Gharib, 2010 Virgin London Marathon, photo by PhotoRun.net
photo by PhotoRun.net
On the women’s side, most of the excitement is about Mary Keitany’s potential to destroy the course record. I would also suggest serious consideration be given to Kim Smith. Kim is a serious contender!
Kebede waiting behind Kenyans
NEW YORK (USA): Sunday´s ING NYC Marathon is one of the top events
on the road scene. Very interesting is that there will be no pacemakers
in the race. Ken Nakamurs is asking following questions, also the male
winner of World Marathon Majors 2011 will be decided. Kenyan Matthew
Kisorio, who is making marathon debut, could be the
sixth runner to dip under 27 for 10 000m, 60 minutes for half
marathon and
2:07 for the marathon. The fastest marathon in November is 2:07:43
by Tesfaye Tola in
2001 New York Marathon. Can 39 years old Gharib be the oldest to
crack 2:08 for the
marathon? Lopes is the oldest to go under 2:08 at 38 years of age.
Sub-2:08 by Gharib will be his 8th; Haile has record 10 sub-2:08
times. If Emmanuel Mutai run sub-2:08, it will be his 7th, if her run
sub-2:07, it will be his 6th. RRW points out also that with all the
talk about Kenya’s recent dominance in the marathon and how Emmanuel
Mutai will be taking on Geoffrey Mutai at the ING New York City Marathon
on Sunday, one competitor may be getting overlooked: Ethiopia’s
Tsegaye Kebede. After all, the 24-year-old did win the 2010 London
Marathon, is a two-time Fukuoka Marathon champion, and owns bronze
medals from both the 2008 Olympic Games and 2009 World Championships.
Amsterdam promises championships like never before
HELSINKI (FIN): It will be the first time that the Championships,
which started in
1934, will be held in the Netherlands. That is after Amsterdam was
awarded the European Championships 2015. The event is due to be held at
the Olympisch Stadion, which was
built to host the 1928 Olympics. Dutch officials hope that a
successful event could be the launchpad
for a bid to host the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics to mark the
centenary of those Games, a point acknowledged by Eric van der Burg,
Amsterdam’s Vice-Mayor. Ellen van Langen, the 1992 Olympic 800
metres champion and currently
Head of Elite sport for the Royal Dutch Federation, was part of the
delegation that presented the bid. “We are proud to have been
selected among such strong competitors
and we thank the EA Council Members for their trust,” she said. “We
promise to deliver a European Championships like never before,” van
Langen was quoted as saying. But the decision is a blow to Istanbul, who
were hoping that they
would be selected to give their current campaign to host the 2020
Olympics and Paralympics a boost. Informs insidethegames.
Amsterdam’s campaign was managed by TSE Consultants, the Swiss-based
firm who are undertaking the same role for Doha who are bidding for
2017 World Championships.
Golden Spike awards
BYDGOSZCZ (POL): The traditional Golden Spikes awards evening Gala was
held in Bydgoszcz. There were winners announced in numerous categories.
Pole Vault world champion Pawel Wojciechowski was the winner in the
category Surprise of the Year. His coach Wlodzimierz Michalski is coach
of the year. Judge of the year is Czeslaw Lubarski and Golden Coach
Kazimierz Koszewski. Personality Award was given to legendary walker
Robert Korzeniowski. Event of the year was the European Cup Combined
Events in Bydgoszcz and National Junior Championships in Szczecin.
Special honour in memoriam to Bronislaw Malinowski. Club of the year in
the national league was AZS AWF Krakow. Also categories veteran of the
year and sponsors of the year were awarded.
OTHER NEWS
LONDON (GBR): People across the United Kingdom will wake to the sound of
bells being rung, at 8:00 BST next year on July 27, the day of the
Opening Ceremony of London 2012, as loudly as possible for three
minutes, it was officially announced.
BUDAPEST (HUN): It should be noted that the 2012 European CC
Championships will be held not exactly in Budapest, but in the city
called Szentendre. This town can be found north from Budapest at the
bank of Danube.
FRANKFURT (GER): Former long distance runner Wolf-Dieter Poschmann
got the German federation DLV 2011 Media Award for his work. He was
former Chief of Sports of ZDF station and is currently Chief Sports
reporter in the same station.
CARDIFF (GBR): Wales media are reporting that 400 m hurdles Dai Greene has no problem with his ‘favourite’ tag ahead of
the 2012 Olympic Games – and even says the public expectation can
provide the fuel to fire him to glory next summer. “I love competing in major championships and I’ve got a lot of
confidence in myself, mainly from how got on in the last few I’ve
raced in,” said the Carmarthenshire athlete. Greene was speaking to promote The National Lottery Olympic Park
Run, a five-mile race around the Olympic Park which will see 5000
members of the public have the opportunity to become the first
people to cross the finish line at the Olympic Stadium in March next
year. Wales media are reporting.
DALLAS (USA): Star-telegram.com informs about former world and olympic
400m winner Jeremy Wariner. He had his last competition of 2011 in July
and withdrew from World Championships in Daegu due to an injury. “For
many years, I ran as a favorite with a target on my back, so I
know both situations,” Wariner said Thursday morning after a Team
USA flag-raising ceremony at the Citi headquarters in Irving. “It’s
fun no matter what: Having people chase after you or trying to
chase after people is always fun. To me it doesn’t matter. I think
I’m still one of the favorites just because of who I am and my
history.” Wariner is getting married Saturday and feels at 27 he’s
just entering his prime. He doesn’t plan on
London being his last Olympics. “I have a few years; sprinters
usually peak around 30 or 31,” he
said. “I’m hoping to go to 2016 in Brazil. I was hoping it would
have come to the States in Chicago, but unfortunately it didn’t. I’m
not looking ahead to that. I have these Olympics next and that’s my
goal. I’ve got to keep training hard and prepare for it,” he said
for Star-telegram.com.
DOHA (QAT): The Asian Athletics Association, on behalf of its 44 members, has
expressed its support for the Doha 2017 bid to host the IAAF World
Championships. The bid is in line with the long-term development
plans of Asian Athletics as it promises to develop new solutions
that would help Athletics to further develop throughout the region,
and around the world, reads a statement from the Asian body. Qatar media are informing.
LONDON (GBR): World champion at 100 m Carmelita Jeter and Kenyan double
world winner Vivian Cheruiyot are the latest official ambassadors for
London’s bid to host the 2017 IAAF World
Athletics Championships.
LAUSANNE (SUI): The International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s 2020
Applicant City
Seminar wrapped up in Lausanne, with representatives from all
six cities bidding for the 2020 Olympic Games in attendance.
Delegates from the 2020 Applicant Cities of Baku (Azerbaijan), Doha
(Qatar), Istanbul (Turkey), Madrid (Spain), Rome (Italy) and Tokyo
(Japan) took part in the two-day meeting, which was led by Olympic
Games Executive Director Gilbert Felli and Head of Bid City
Relations Jacqueline Barrett. The host city of the 2020 Games will
be chosen at the IOC Session in
Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 7 September 2013. Following the
Applicant City Seminar, the Bid Committees of the six
cities will apply what they have learnt to their respective bids,
with their Application Files and guarantee letters due by 15
February 2012. The Files will then be analysed by an IOC working
group that will report to the IOC Executive Board (EB). Upon the
basis of its report, the EB will select the Candidate Cities in May
2012, thereby bringing a close to Phase 1 of the IOC’s two-step
procedure (also known as the Candidature Acceptance Procedure). IOC informs.
ATHENS (GRE): Good news from Greece. The Athens Classic Marathon will be
held as planned on Sunday, November 13. Organizers confirmed for Greek
media that they expect in total 18 000 runners from 84 countries in all
races. OPAP (betting and lottery games company) confirmed its commitment
to support the marathon until 2016.
GLASGOW (GBR): BBC reports that former Scotland rugby star Thom Evans has set his sights on a switch
to athletics and a place at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in
2014. The 26-year-old was forced to retire from rugby following a serious
neck injury in February 2010. Evans has been training with Margot Wells, wife of 1980 100 m Olympic
winner Allan, and is concentrating on the 200 m and 400 m. He plans to compete during the coming indoor season.
RESULTS
KITAKYUSHU (JPN, Nov 3): 2009 world javelin medalist Yukifumi Murakami
is still having solid shape with 83.24 mark at a local meet.
WOLLONGONG (AUS, Nov 5): Youth sprinter Jarrod Geddes clocked here windy
10.36 (+5.6) at the 100 m just beating Jake Hammond (also 10.36).
SAD NEWS
MONTE CARLO (MON): IAAF informs that Carl-Gustav Tollemar, the Honorary
Chairman of the
IAAF Technical Committee had passed away on November 3. Carl-Gustav
Tollemar (born 28 January 1924), who was a recipient of
the IAAF Veteran Pin in 1993, was an Honorary Member of the Board of
Directors of Svenska Friidrottsförbundet. He was elected to IAAF
Technical Committee in 1984 and held the Chairman position from 1987
until 1999. During Tollemar stewardship of the IAAF Technical Committee
there
were major steps made in the development of guidelines for the
planning of track and field facilities, setting international
standards for the various products used in athletics from equipment
to track surfaces, a resource of knowledge which today is
represented by the fourth edition of the IAAF Track and Field
Facilities Manual which was published in 2008. Informs IAAF.
For more on the sport,
