by Larry EderWay back in 1999, I had made prognostications on the Sevilla 1999 WC. Someone noted that I might be “smoking too much on the crack pipe”. So, in honor of that thoughtful fan, I have found my 1999 crack pipe, hidden with my stash of posters of Rainbow, Black Sabbath and Scorpion, and made some prognositcations (actually no crack was smoked in the process of doing these prognostications, just say NO, as the late Nancy Reagan would say).
After watching Chris Dennis prognosticate on Doha DL, we sucked down a large cup of Lavazza espresso, in my kitchen in Fort Atkinson, WI, listening to Steve Earle (Copperhead Row) for more fortification! We picked All events and all winning performances! Are we crazy? That is a good question.
Now, to Mr. Dennis comments:
And my deep thoughts:
Men’s Pole Vault : Sam Kendricks, 2017 WC, Piotr Lisek, 2017 WC silver, Belgrade 2017 gold, 2018 European Outdoor 4th, and Thiago Braz, 2016 gold PV are all there! Should be a good opener. US’s Andrew Irwin has 5.80m SB, best of field so far. WL in 2019 is Mondo Duplantis, 5.94m, he is NOT in Doha. RBR picks: Kendricks, Lisek, Irwin, height: 5.96m
Women’s high jump: Airine Palysyte, Euro Champ, indoor and out, Lavern Spencer, Commonwealth Champ, lead the field. Pretty modest. RBR picks: Palysyte, 1.95m
Men’s Discus: Ehsan Hadadi, Olympic silver, World Champ bronze, 4 times Asian Champs winner, Christoph Harting, Olympic champ, Mason Finley, WC bronze medalist, Daniel Stahl, WC and Olympic silver headline the men’s discus field. A fine early season field. RBR picks: Hadadi, Stahl, Finley, 68.25m
Women’s Long Jump: Wow! Women’s LJ field is hot! Tianna Bartoletta, Olympic champ, WC champ, multi medals, Caterine Ibarguen, TJ/LJ, Olympic, WC, plus DL winner in both, Christelle Nettey, Commonwealth Champ, Pan Am Champ, WC silver, Windoor bronze, European indoor bronze, Lorraine Ugen, Comm Games winner, NCAA winner, Euro indoor silver, WC indoor bronze, hot weather means big jumps! RBR picks: Bartoletta, Ibarguen, Ugen, 7.10m, 7.07m, 7.01m,
Women’s 400m hurdles: Dalilah Muhammed, Olympic champ, 2x WC silver, Anna Ryzhkhova, Olympic bronze, European silver, Ashley Spencer, World Champ, Olympic bronze, World Indoor Champ, this could be a sleeper field. Hot weather, fit athletes, could be fun. RBR picks: Mohammed, 53.85, Spencer, 54.22,
Men’s 800m: Could be the biggest event in Doha: Donovan Brazier, US, NCAA champ, Nijel Amos, Olympic silver, Comm Games champ, Adam Kzczot, 3 time Euro Champ, inside and out, WC silver, Windoor Champ, Emmanuel Korir, NCAA champ, with rabbit Bram Som, could be a screamer! RBR picks: Brazier, Korir, Kzczot, 1;43.4
Women’s 100m hurdles: Brianna McNeal, WC gold, Olympic gold, Danielle Williams, WC gold, Sharika Nelvis, NCAA champ, could be fast. RBR picks: Big one, Sharika Nelvis, McNeal, Danielle Williams, 12.55
Men’s Steeplechase: One of weakest fields, with Soufianne El Bakalli, WC silver, it top in field, lots of Kenyans including Amos Kirui W Junior Champ.RBR picks: El Bakali, 8.15.55
Men’s 200m: Ramil Guliyev, WC gold, Jereem Richards, WC silver, Netheneel Mitchell-Blake, European silver, with Alonzo Edward, WC sillver, this is a screaming field. Just missing Mr. Lyles. RBR picks: Richards, 20.2 Guliyev, Mitchell-Blake
Men’s Shot Put: Perhaps the finest field in Doha! Ryan Crouser, Olympic champ, has 2 PBS in 2019, including 22.74m! Joe Kovacs, WC gold, Olympic silver, Tomas Walsh, WC gold, Comm gold, Windoor gold, Olympic bronze, Konrad Bukwiecki, Euro silver, Eurro indoor gold with Tomas Stanek as spoiler. Warm weather, cold beer, lots of shot putters, RBR picks: Crouser, 22.85m, Walsh, 22.81m, Kovac, 22.70m.
Women’s 800m: RBR predicts Women’s 800m: Francine Nyonsamba, WIC champ (2x), Olympic and WC silver, vs. Ajee’ Wilson, WC bronze, WC silver indoors, 2x, aster Semenya added last minute. RBR picks: Semenya, Ajee’ Wilson, Nyonsamba, 1:53.6,
Men’s 1,500m: A stellar field. Elijah and George Managoi, George is W junior and youth champ, Elijah is WC and Common Wealth Gold, plus Olympic bronze Abdelaati Iguider, lead field. Ryan Gregson, Bethwel Birgen, WC indoor bronze, and Ayanleh Souleiman, but which one will appear? RBR picks: Elijan Managoi, Iguider, Birgen, Gregson, 3:35.5
Women’s 200m: a big women’s 200m early on with Euro 100m/200m champ Dina Asher-Smith, 2 x Olympic medalist Blessing Okagbare, Phyllis Francis, Olympic 400m champ, Euro Champs Jamile Samuel. This could be fast! RBR picks: Dina Asher-Smith, Phyllis Francis, Samuel, 22.45
Women’s 3000m: The field of Doha. Hellen Obiri, fresh off her World Cross Country takes on the world. OH, yah, Genzebe Dibaba, this is WOW!
RBR picks: Hellen Obiri, Can, Klein, Dibaba, 8:21.5
Tina Bartoletta is thinking: What is going on in Fort Atkinson? Is it a lack of oxygen? Doha 2019 DL Presser, photo by Jiro Mochizuki, for IAAF Diamond League (copyright 2019 by Jiro Mochizuki)
