by Larry Eder
MERRITT WR WORTH 1291 POINTS
BRUSSELS (BEL): Aries Merritt 12.80 world record is worth of 1291 points in IAAF Scoring Tables. That is not better than current sprinting world records. It is worth of 9.76 in the 100 m or 19.56 in the 200 m or 43.31 in the 400 m. The highest quality current result in world of athletics is Usain Bolt 9.58 100 m world record with 1356 points. It is worth 12.47 at 110 m hurdles, a more than futuristic science-fiction mark. The quality of Bolt´s 100 m world record according to the scoring tables goes to sub 1:40 level in the 800 m (1:39.02) or sub 2 hours marathon (1:59:34). It is even more points than famous Jan Zelezny javelin world record 98.48 which is worth 1346 points and to equal Bolt level a 99.13 would be needed. Merritt also ran 8th sub-13 of the season, the most ever in a single season, before the 7 by Dayron Robles in 2008. Merritt needs 3 more to tie the career total high for sub-13 which is 11 by Allen Johnson. Merritt improved the WR by 0.07, largest auto-time improvement since Nehemiah improved from 13.16 to 13.00 in Westwood 1979. It was also first 110 m hurdles world record in the city of Brussels. It was also the 14th world record in the history of the meet (started in 1977), 7 of this records are still valid (most prestigious apart of Merritt hurdles men 10 000 m and steeple).
PARS AND HEIDLER REPEATED
RIETI (ITA): 3rd year of IAAF Hammer Throw Challenge ended with the same winners as last year. Hungarian olympic champion Krisztian Pars scored 242.35 m, the best overall count in the history of the challenge. He also won in 2011, the 2010 winner was Koji Murofushi. Second Pawel Fajdek with 236.47 score and due to his Rieti result Ukrainian Oleksiy Sokyrskyy ended third 233.39 ahead of Czech Lukas Melich 227.44. Men had 6 possibilities to score, 3 best results counted. German world record holder and olympic bronze winner Betty Heidler achieved the hattrick of wins, she was the best in all editions of the challenge, but this year with the best final score 230.49 m. In the same order as in 2010 Anita Wlodarczyk is second 223.13 and olympic winner Tatyana Lysenko third 222.05 ahead of Kathrin Klaas 216.60. Women had only 5 opportunities to score. The winners are getting 30 000 USD and overall prize money goes down to 12th overall position (worth of 500 USD).
LEMAITRE NOT SATISFIED
RIETI (ITA): European champion Christophe Lemaitre ended his international season with a win in Rieti but overall was not satisfied. „There is a bit of disappointment throughout the season, because I did not medal at the Games, and that was the goal. Overall there is more disappointment than joy. I was too focused on the Olympics, I put too much attention to what I was doing in my daily life. I was trying to be too perfect. For example, if I slept one hour less a night, I thought „Damn, I slept an hour less!” I would have liked a little more races this season. I would have liked more confrontation, more races. Running with people faster, it helps me run fast,” he said for French media. His fastest of the year was twice 10.04 at 100 m (has overall 7 sub 10 from 2010 and 2011) and 19.91 at 200 m (his second fastest ever).
ALEKNA FOR TOP NOC POST
VILNIUS (LTU): Lithuanian discus giant Virgilijus Alekna had most probably his last international meet of the career at Van Damme Memorial on Friday. It was 65.78 and a 3rd place. Alekna started his international career at European Championships 1994 in Helsinki where he did not qualify for the final. Since then won two olympic games (plus one bronze), achieved two golds and two silvers at World Championships and got one gold, one silver and one bronze at European Championships. Average of his ten best results is 71.299 (per Tilastopaja) and went over 70 meters at 20 competitions. Alekna is considering to bid for president of Lithuanian Olympic Committee this fall. If succeeding his career will be for sure over, if not he still left small window open for possible competitions in 2013. Informs his management.
OTHER NEWS
LONDON (GBR): Ireland’s Michael McKillop was given a prestigious Paralympics award for fair play ahead of Oscar Pistorius. McKillop, winner of the T37 800 and 1500 m, was the male winner of the Whang Youn Dai Achievement Award, chosen by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and which is awarded to the athletes who have exemplified the best spirit of the Games.
NEW YORK (USA): In response to strong feedback from runners, the New York Road Runners have changed their recently announced no-baggage policy for the ING New York City Marathon to allow runners a choice of either checking a bag, or taking a quicker exit from Central Park for those who do not. Informs RRW.
LONDON (GBR): London 2012 chairman Sebastian Coe said that his organisation has delivered on the promise it made to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Singapore in 2005 when it was awarded the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Coe who is also IAAF Vice-President is widely credited as the man who spearheaded the London 2012 bid team to a narrow victory over favourites Paris. With the Paralympic Closing Ceremony concluding the Games he said London 2012 has fulfilled everything it said it would. „I like to think that by the day and by the hour, we’ve delivered against what we said we wanted to do. So it’s the final day of the Paralympics and we’ve had the most extraordinary summer of sport,” said Coe. The London 2012 chairman added that it will not be easy to sustain the feel-good factor across the United Kingdom that has been seen at the Games, but that it can be done. Informs insidethegames.
ZURICH (SUI): Organisers of 2014 European Championships teamed up with the Swiss road races organizers. In total 17 top Swiss running competitions will cooperate with the Championships. For example in delivering their experienced organisers for the marathon and walks at the Championships. The official mascot Cooly will tour at the running events in the lead up to the 2014 Championships.
KOSICE (SVK): The International Peace Marathon of Kosice (October 7) announced that the participation of runners is coming to a new record and the 7000 runners barrier will most probably be broken. Honorary guest will be Australian John Farrington who won here 40 years ago in 1972 (in 2:17:34). Organizers also informed that 10 men will compete with sub 2:10 personal bests. Both last year winners should compete again (Kenyan Elijah Kemboi and Belarus Maryna Damantsevich). Another aim of the race director Brano Koniar is to go for first time in the history of the even with women result under the 2:30 barrier. Interesting half-marathon entry is the top Slovak walker Matej Toth, 8th from Olympic Games 50 km race.
BEOGRAD (SRB): Serbian 800 m record holder Slobodan Popovic was named new head-coach of Serbian Athletics Federation. He was until now federation sports director. Popovic (49) clocked 1:44.75 at the 800 m in 1988.
KINGSTON (JAM): On her return to the island just over a month after she became the second woman in history to win back-to-back Olympics 100m title, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce called on Jamaicans to support the athletes, especially the younger ones. „We represent our country and we would love our country to represent us. In the sense that we need the support, because support is a huge part of who we are,” Fraser-Pryce, who won the London Olympics 100m title in 10.75 seconds over American Carmelita Jeter and fellow Jamaican Veronica Campbell-Brown. Writes Trackalerts.
MOSCOW (RUS): The RunMoscow road race on September 16 will be one of the biggest in the country since some years. The technical capacity was reached for the third edition of the race all 24 000 places for the 10 km have been given.
BRUSSELS (BEL): In the 10 000 m race Chepkok, Kipkemoi and Demelash became 44th, 45th, and 46th runners to go under 27 minutes at the 10 000 m. Writes Ken Nakamura.
RESULTS
MOKPO (KOR, Sep 6-7): At the International throwers meet with participants from different Asian countries Korean Lee Yoon-Chul achieved 71.54 in men hammer and Chinese female javelin thrower Du Xiaowei 58.84.
DECIN (CZE, Sep 9): Ladislav Prasil this time beat clearly Antonin Zalsky in the shot put (19.81 to 18.78). Jan Kubista clocked 1:17.97 at the 600 m.
MUEL (ESP, Sep 7): Antonio Abadia (4:22) and Isabel Macias (5:28) won the 8th edition of the road mile here. Both won also the day after the road mile in Zaragoza with 4:20 (ahead of Alvaro Rodriguez 4:21) and 5:12.
SZCZECIN (POL, Sep 9): German record holder Bjorn Otto closed his season with a win at pole vault meet in Poland with 560 clearance. Second on count-back Cuban Lazaro Borges (also 560) and third Przemyslaw Czerwinski 550.
KISII (KEN, Sep 7): Teenager Emmanuel Bett upset a battery of elite runners to win the men’s category of the Safaricom Gucha 10km road race in Kisii County. He clocked 29:54 ahead of Nicholas Kipkemoi 30:02 and Leonard Langat 30:07. In the women’s category, 2011 Boston Marathon champion Caroline Kilel proved too good for local runners clocking 35:10 to win the race. Kenyan media are informing.
TOKYO (JPN, Sep 10): Day one of the 2012 Japanese National University Track & Field Championships saw a breakthrough run in the women’s 10000 m from one half of Tsukuba University’s Kyuma twins, Haruka Kyuma, who dominated the competition to take the win in a solid best mark of 32:59.64. Kenyan newcomer Enock Omwamba continued his rise up through the ranks this year in the men’s 10000 m, outgunning defending national collegiate camp Benjamin Gandu by two seconds to take the national title in 28:58.77. Writes Brett Larner on his blog.
MARINGA (BRA, Sep 9): Addition to Brazilian U23 Championships is the winning score in women heptathlon. Vanessa Chefer Spinola achieved 6105 points, what is new South American U23 record.
