A.
POWELL FOR BIRMINGHAM 60 M

BIRMINGHAM
(GBR): Jamaican sprint star Asafa Powell looks set to turn the Birmingham
athletics faithful into a new home crowd when he competes at the Aviva
Grand Prix in Birmingham on 18 February. The former world record holder, who
will be based in Birmingham with the Jamaican team in the lead-up to the Games,
has chosen the Aviva Grand Prix – widely considered to be the world’s premier
indoor athletics competition – to hone preparations for his tilt at Olympic
gold. Twenty-nine-year-old Powell, who has not competed anywhere on the indoor
circuit since 2004 and has never competed indoors in the UK, said the radical
shake-up of his competition programme formed part of a bold attempt to
claim his first individual Olympic medal in London in 2012. “I’m really excited
about competing indoors as I haven’t raced an indoor season in a long
time,” said Powell. Organizers are informing in a release. It will be his
first indoor race in Europe since Budapest World Indoor Championships in 2004.
In 2003 he competed in Erfurt, Stuttgart, Chemnitz and Gent.

BRITTON
FOR 5/10 KM

DUBLIN
(IRL): Fresh European CC Champion Ireland´s Fionnuala Britton was presented
with a new challenge, as outlined by her Welsh-born coach, Chris Jones,
the man who masterminded her highly impressive victory that was achieved with
true world-class running. The new Irish star has achieved the A standard
to compete in the 3,000 meters steeplechase in the London Olympics next year
but Jones said yesterday that she will not be running in this event. Instead
she will go about qualifying for the two longest events on the track, the
5,000m and 10,000m. Irish media are informing. Britton is expected to resume
competition at the big IAAF cross country challenge in Edinburgh early in the
New Year, January 6th, an event she has run well in the past.

IAAF
PRESIDENT FOR DOHA 2019

DOHA
(QAT): IAAF President Lamine Diack has lauded Qatar’s organisation of the early
stages of the Arab Games. He has been so impressed by the ongoing Arab Games in
Doha that he believes Qatar is qualified to host the 2019 World Athletics
Championships after they missed out to London in the race to stage the 2017
event. Diack, who attended the opening ceremony on Friday, said: „We are
confident that Qatar would host a successful IAAF event, whether the
Diamond League or the World Championship.” Local media are informing. Athletics
at Arab Games starts on Thursday.

SIMPSON
AND CENTROWITZ FOR BOSTON

BOSTON
(USA): The reigning World Champion at 1500 Meters, Jenny Simpson, will open her
2012 season in Boston and Matthew Centrowitz will make his professional track
debut on February 4 at the 2012 New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, organizers
announced. “2011 was a big year for me but 2012 is almost here.
Preparations for next year are going well and I am excited to return to
Boston. Track fans at Reggie Lewis have shown that they particularly appreciate
the distance races so I am looking forward to hopefully giving them a glimpse
of things to come this summer,” said Simpson. Organizers are informing in a release.

OLIVER
AND SUHR FOR US OPEN

NEW YORK
(USA): American record holders and Olympic medalists David Oliver and Jenn Suhr
have joined the parade of international stars competing at the U.S. Open Track
& Field on January 28 at Madison Square Garden. The duo join previously
announced track and field celebrities Bernard Lagat, Veronica Campbell-Brown
and Asafa Powell at the inaugural edition of the U.S. Open writes USA Track and
Field in a press release.

WIRZ
WAS SATISFIED

VELENJE
(SLO): European Athletics President Hansjörg Wirz paid tribute to the
organisation of the Velenje 2011 SPAR European Cross Country Championships and
hailed the record number of runners who competed in the Slovenian city on
Sunday. “Having the opportunity to now look back on the 18th SPAR European
Cross Country Championships, I believe that it was an excellent
championships,” said President Wirz. “The decision by European Athletics to
return to Velenje 12 years after the city first staged the Championships in
1999 proved to be justified in every respect. The local organisers can take
great pride in putting on a fantastic event, one of the best SPAR European
Cross Country Championships I have witnessed. Talking to people from some
of our 33 Member Federations that were in Velenje, at the closing banquet later
on Sunday, I can say confidently that this view is held by everybody I spoke
to, it’s not just my personal perspective on the day. Continuing on the subject
of the races, special congratulations have to go to Great Britain who were
again the best country, and on this occasion by quite a margin, in terms
of medals. With 12 places on the podium and six gold medals, it was a fair
reward for how much commitment and enthusiasm UK Athletics and British athletes
generally have for cross country running. This shows that cross country running
at international level has a European-wide appeal and many of European
Athletics’ efforts to develop this aspect of the sport across the continent in
the last decade, are definitely bearing fruit. Also, for the first time, we
broadcast the entire championships live via the internet on the European
Athletics website, and there were more than 25,000 hits during the day,” EA
President was saying.

IAAF
CENTENARY

MONTE
CARLO (MON): The IAAF, which was founded in Stockholm, Sweden just two days
after the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games, will celebrate 100 years of
existence on 17 July 2012. Planning has been underway at IAAF HQ in Monaco
since February 2010 when an IAAF Centenary Working Group was established by
President Lamine Diack headed by IAAF Council Member Helmut Digel (GER). Their
mission has been to seek out imaginative and creative ways to commemorate 100
years of active life without excessive expenditure. Major items will be IAAF
Centenary Logo and “look”, promotion at IAAF WAS and permit competitions, with
a launch event at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Istanbul (9-11
March 2012), IAAF Centenary Book, IAAF Centenary Exhibition, IAAF Centenary TV
Series, IAAF World Congress on School and Youth Athletics, IAAF PR campaign,
special IAAF Centenary section of the IAAF website and Facebook site, IAAF
Centenary Gala and Opening of the IAAF Hall of Fame. The IAAF Centenary date of
17 July 2012, falls just two days after the end of the IAAF World Junior
Championships in Barcelona, Spain (10-15 July 2012), and to mark the occasion a temporary
IAAF Centenary Historic Exhibition composed of audio-visual displays and
physical exhibits, will be staged during two periods of 2012 in the ‘Museu Olímpic
i de l’Esport Joan Antoni Samaranch’, the city’s Olympic and Sports
Museum. During the weekend of 24-25th November 2012, Barcelona will also host a special
edition of the annual International Athletics Foundation Gala, which usually
takes place in Monaco. The IAAF Centenary Gala Show and Dinner will be the
focus of a weekend of activities in the Catalan capital, following an IAAF
Council Meeting, Demonstration athletics events and the presentation of the
2012 Athletes of the Year Awards. An IAAF Hall of Fame is also being created
which will celebrate the legends of our sport, with the first names unveiled
during the launch event at the World Indoors in Istanbul.

BOLT
AND PEARSON BY AI READERS

LONDON
(GBR): Usain Bolt is the Athlete of the Year 2011 by the readers of the very
informative results and news bulletin Athletics International (edited by Peter
Matthews and Mel Watman). He achieved 422 points ahead of David Rudisha (390)
and Yohan Blake (361). Also in top ten Mo Farah as 4th (323) ahead of Kirani
James (253) and discus thrower Robert Harting (183). Seventh place for marathon
world record holder Patrick Makau (173) ahead of his team-mate Geoffrey Mutai
(119). Top ten is rounded by US jumpers Christian Taylor (79) and Jesse
Williams (74). In women poll Sally Pearson got 470 points ahead of Vivian
Cheruiyot (444) and Valerie Adams (326). Fourth place for Carmelita Jeter (262)
ahead of Amantle Montsho (173), Mariya Savinova (169), Anna Chicherova (121),
Lashinda Demus (104), Mariya Abakumova (102) and Yulia Zaripova (101).

OTHER NEWS

MADRID
(ESP): Spanish athlete of the year is Daegu bronze winner at 1500 m Natalia
Rodriguez. She was awarded with the Jose Luis Alonso Trophy. It should be noted
that this is not the official Spanish Federation poll which will be announced
later. Rodriguez got in the vote of 130 athletes, coaches, journalists,
statisticians in total 1566 points ahead of middle distance runner Manuel
Olmedo (1456) and long distance runner Jesus Espana (1388). Fourth is high
jumper Ruth Beitia (1219) and fifth discus thrower Mario Pestano (1144).

STOCKHOLM
(SW): Swedish head coach Stefan Olsson already selected for athletes for World
Indoor Championships in Istanbul. Two female high jumpers Emma Green Tregaro
and Ebba Jungmark with long jumpers Michel Torneus and Carolina Kluft. For
Kluft it will be only her third World Indoors after winning the pentathlon in
2003 and being third in long jump 2004.

BRUSSELS
(BEL): Athletics could have a dominant night at the Belgian Sportsgala
2011 on Sunday December 18th. Both Borlée brothers Kevin and Jonathan are
nominated for the Belgian athlete of the year award and will take on cyclist
Philippe Gilbert, while also their father Jacques Borlée could go home winning
the award for ‘coach of the year’. The Borlée family could go home with even
more awards as the 4x400m relay team is nominated for the ‘team of the year’
award. European U23 decathlon champion Thomas Van der Plaetsen is among the
nominees for most promising athlete of the year reports demorgen.be.

AMSTERDAM
(NED) : Dutch very talented Dafne Schippers has won the ‘young talent award
2011’ at the nationally televised Dutch Sportsgala. Schippers won European
junior title and broke the Dutch national 200m record at the IAAF World
Championships in Daegu, a feat with which she just narrowly missed out on
a spot in the 200m final.

LONDON
(GBR): The IOC has unveiled its „Show Your Best” campaign, which gives people
across the world the chance to be part of a global Olympic television
advertisement and win a trip to the London 2012 Olympic Games. The
campaign seeks to encourage people to create, share and discuss video footage
which shows them at their best – whether it is performing a great sporting
feat or creating a piece of art reports Insidethegames.

LONDON
(GBR): British Golden girl Jessica Ennis believes she will have to break the
British heptathlon record to stand a chance of winning Olympic gold at
next year’s London Games. The 25-year old won the 2010 European championships
with a personal best of 6823, eight points short of the British record
held by Denise Lewis. „I think it could take 6,900 points to win and that’s
going to be really, really tough.” Ennis was quoted by the BBC. Ennis also
revealed she will strictly limit her media work in 2012.

MONACO
(MON): Retiring IAAF General Secretary Pierre Weiss said goodbye to colleagues
last week. At the Fairmont Hotel Monaco on 7 December at an IAAF party held in
his honour, Pierre Weiss, the recently retired General Secretary received gifts
and best wishes from his colleagues and made his goodbyes to all at IAAF HQ.

MONACO
(MON): IAAF confirmed positive test for British Virgin Islands sprints national
record holder Tahesia Harrigan-Scott at Brazilian meet in Rio de Janeiro on May
26 (IAAF World Challenge) in her season best of 11.14 (as winner). She was
banned for 6 months until January 7, 2012. She is 2009 World Championships
semifinalist and her national record holder from 2006 is 11.13.

RESULTS

OUDTSHOORN
(RSA, Dec 12): In the second Yellow Pages Summer Series meet Shaun de Jager
clocked 46.24 in the 400 m. Elroy Gelant won the mile (4:01.69). In sprinters
duel Brent Stevens clocked 10.59 ahead of Leigh Julius (10.70).

BARQUISIMETO
(VEN, Dec 12): New national javelin record 57.58 by Yusbelis Parra during the
National Games of Venezuela. In good quality 400 m Alberto Bravo clocked 46.04
ahead of Alberto Aguilar in 46.07, for both personal records.

ADDIS
ABABA (ETH, Dec 11): IAAF informs that young hopefuls Feyse Tadesse (8 km,
26:53) and Belete Assefa (12 km, 35:12) were the winners of the women’s and
men’s titles at the 2nd Ethiopian Clubs Cross Country Championships at the Jan
Meda racecourse. Second and third respected marathon runners Koreni Jelila
(26:57) and Tiki Gelana (27:04) with Aberu Kebede 6th (27:23) in women race.

Junior
winners were Yebrgual Melese in girls 6 km (20:09) and Hagos Gebrehiwot in boys
8 km (23:24).

CORRECTIONS

KENT
(USA): The improved shot putter Justin Rodhe now throws for Canada. He married
Canadian hammer thrower Megann Rodhe (2010 Commonwealth Games participant) in
September 2009. He was granted Canadian citizenship this fall, informs Martin
Bissinger. Rodhe plans to compete for Canada in Istanbul for world indoors.

KARLSRUHE
(GER): In the title of the item it should be Strutz and Spiegelburg (not
Hildebrand).

SAD NEWS

LAGOS
(NGR): Nigeria’s former Olympic silver medallist, Sunday Bada is dead. Bada,
who until his death was the technical director of the Athletics Federation of
Nigeria (AFN), slumped and died at the National Stadium, Lagos Monday evening.
The quarter miler, who would have clocked 42 on June 22 next year, won three
medals at World Indoor Championships, including a gold medal in 1997 at
the Paris event. He also won silver medals at the 1993 (Toronto) and 1995
(Barcelona) competitions Additionally, he was a part of the Nigerian team
that won the silver medal in 4 x 400 meters relay at the 2000 Olympics. Nigeria
established a national record time of 2:58.68 minutes in that race. He set
his personal best of 44.63 seconds at the 1993 World Championships where he
finished fifth. This is the second fastest time by a Nigerian sprinter,
after Innocent Egbunike. Nigerian media are informing.