by Larry EderOne of the true sportsmen of athletics, Adam Nelson and his lovely wife just announced that Caroline Grace Nelson was born September 13, 2008! Congrats to all.
EME NEWS (SEP 13, 2008)
TOP NEWS
ATLANTA (USA): World Champion 2005 Adam Nelson is the real winner on Saturday although he did not compete in Stuttgart. His wife game birth to Caroline Grace Nelson as the Shot Put competition was going on in Stuttgart. It is his first child.
PRAHA (CZE): Javelin world record holder Jan Zelezny expressed his satisfaction that now Czech Republic owns not only men´s javelin world record, but also women´s. “It is very special at the end of the season. I always said she has big possibilities. Some years ago I said she is able to throw world record, now it is here. I want to congratulate her and want to wish to her she stays as she is. I think when she would believe to it, she can go also over 75 metres. But also need this improvement to be a motivation for young generation to believe that they can be as good as I was and as is now Barbora.”
NYAHURURU (KEN): The home of Olympic marathon champion Samuel Wanjiru was raided by robbers armed with machetes and gun who wanted money. “When they were told there was no money, they ransacked the house for over half an hour and then left” Nyahururu police boss Charles Wasike told. The athlete and his family were home at the time of the attack but no one was injured – AFP informs.
WINDHOEK (NAM): The WAF 1500m was the last race of Agnes Samaria, who officially announced her retirement. Looking on the future the 800m and 1500m record national record holder (1:59..15 and 4:05.30), aged 36, declared “I’m not sure yet what I will be focusing my energies on but as an employee of the Directorate of Sport, I surely think that this is where I will find myself and contribute to sport in Namibia. I also plan to make a success of my food shop and my development programme” – the Namibian informs.
STUTTGART FIRST DAY
Spotakova 72.28 world record
STUTTGART (GER): Nobody expected this in cold and rainy weather during first day of 6th IAAF World Athletics Final in Stuttgart. Czech world and olympic champion Barbora Spotakova achieved in first throw new javelin world record 72.28 m. She passed then her next two attempts and achieved 58.39 in last one. It is first ever world record during IAAF World Athletics Final and first ever also when we look back at IAAF Grand Prix Finals (Montgomery´s 9.78 100 m time from 2002 was cancelled). First time the award of 100 000 USD will be paid from WAF. It is also first technical world record in four attempts competition. “I was also surprised. But I like Stuttgart, I always improved here. So it is very sad for me, the stadium will go. Now I will have time to relax with my boyfriend Lukas. We hope to build a house in future. I think also 75 metres are possible,” said Spotakova.
Powell great winner
STUTTGART (GER): Asafa Powell continued his winning way after Olympic Games when easily retaining his WAF 100 m title in 9.87 taking into account the 14 degrees and post-rain time. Then Powell quickly took the opportunity to reject comments made by the legendary Carl Lewis who in a magazine interview had questioned the sudden rise to equal fame of his fellow Jamaican Usain Bolt. Lewis told Sports Illustrated: “When people ask me about Bolt I say he could be the greatest athlete of all time. “But to run 10.03 seconds one year and 9.69 the next, if you don’t question that in a sport with the reputation it has right now, you’re a fool. Period.”
Powell who saw Bolt take away his 100m world record at the end of May and then produce epic 100m and 200m victories in Beijing with further world record performances, spoke in defence of Bolt and other Jamaican athletes.
“It’s sad that someone has said that,” said Powell. “America probably can’t believe that we are doing so well because they are used to the Americans doing what the Jamaicans are doing now.” Powell insisted: “Usain is very talented and has had a great season and it’s no surprise what he did, because he’s been running so well.First, I was a little bit afraid of getting hurt today,” said Powell who now plans one more race in Poland on Wednesday (Szczecin).
WAF 1st day summary (with help of Race Results Weekly):
In the clash of the day LaShawn Merritt beat Jeremy Wariner by 0.01 (44.50-44.51) and ends the year with 4:3 head-to-head with his rival. Kerron Clement as only Olympic medalist running the 400 m Hurdles thanks to great finish after last hurdle beat vet Danny McFarlane of Jamaica (48.96-49.00). Nelson Evora dominated the triple jump so rightly for Olympic winner with three jumps enough to win (17.24, 17.21, 17.13). Poland´s Tomasz Majewski returned the loss from last weekend to Christian Cantwell in Shot Put (20.88-20.73). Gerd Kanter confirmed number one position in discus (68.38) ahead of Piotr Malachowski of Poland (66.07) with all-time hero Virgilijus Alekna only 8th (61.03). In emotional High Jump Andrey Silnov cleared meet record 235 with Stefan Holm second who went over 233 in his last competition of the career (for 132nd time over 230).
Sanya Richards warmed-up greatly for 400 m clash on Sunday with 200 m in 22.50 beating Olympic medalist Kerron Stewart (only third 22.72). Spanish Josephine Oniya found her shape at the end of the year with 12.54 win over full Beijing podium and Lolo Jones. In wake of ill Yelena Isinbayeva the surprise winner in Pole Vault was home Silke Spiegelburg with new PB clearance of 470. World indoor champion Naide Gomes got another revenge victory after Olympic disaster in Long Jump (671). Cuban Yipsi Moreno was the clear hammer winner (74.09) as Belarus olympic winner Oksana Miankova did not had competitions before to qualify.
Tactical victories by Meseret Defar and Bernard Lagat were the key performances on the middle & long distance program.
Defar bounced back from a pair of stinging defeats to take the 5000m in 14:53.82 to edge Kenyan Vivian Cheruiyot (14:54.60), to avenge her loss of a week ago in Brussels over the same distance. After a dawdling pace through 2600m, Lagat broke from the pack with about 250m to go to kick to a decisive victory in the 3000, the first track final of the unseasonably cool, damp and somewhat gloomy day at Mercedes Benz stadium. The 1500 and 5000m winner at last year’s World Championships, Lagat reached the finish in 8:02.97.
Gulnara Samitova-Galkina continued her stellar steeplechase season with another solid front-running effort with a meet record 9:21.73.
Maryam Yusuf Jamal of Bahrain took her third straight World Athletics title in the 1500m, clocking 4:06.59. Unlike her early burst for the lead in Beijing, where she was a disappointing fifth, Jamal didn’t make her move past long-time leader Gelete Burka until about 180m remained. Burka, who didn’t reach the Olympic final, held on for second (4:07.45), fighting off quick-finishing Irina Lishchynska, the Olympic silver medallist (4:07.65). Briton Lisa Dobriksey (4:07.72) repeated her fourth place finish from Beijing with American Shannon Rowbury (4:08.16) fifth.
In another tactical race, World champion and Olympic bronze medallist Alfred Kirwa Yego kicked to victory in the 800 in 1:49.05, the slowest winning time in the six-year history of this meet.
RESULTS
TALENCE (FRA, Sep 13): British Kelly Sotherton leads the Decastar combined events meeting with 3942 score after first day (13.29-182-14.46-23.46 +3.5) ahead of olympic medalists Hyleas Fountain (USA, 12.90-185-12.10-23.55) and Natalya Dobrynska of Ukraine (13.74-179-16.35-24.86). The third Olympic medalist Tatyana Chernova of Russia is only 12th (3542). World medalist Maurice Smith of Jamaica leads the decathlon with 4328 score (10.93-731-16.37-203-49.04) ahead of Olympic medalist Andrey Kravchenko of Belarus (4307) and always first day strong Ukrainian Oleksiy Kasyanov (4252).
KARLSRUHE (GER, Sep 13): At German 10 km road championships London marathon winner Irina Mikitenko who missed Olympics clocked new national record 30:57. Second Sabrina Mockenhaupt 31:50 and third Susanne Hahn 32:53. Men title for Falk Cierpinski (29:14).
PRAHA (CZE, Sep 13): Hungarian Aniko Kalovics won for 6th time the Prague Road Race Grand Prix after 15:27 at 5 km. Ukrainian Vitaliy Rybak won the men´s 10 km in 29:27.
MINSK (BLR, Sep 13): The International Marathon in Minsk winner was home Andrey Gordeyev (2:23:27) and Zhang Shujing of China as best woman (2:48:06). She is winner of Seoul Marathon this year with 2:26:11. Winners took 2000 USD each.
VILNIUS (LTU, Sep 13): Diana Lobacevske clocked new course record at 5th Vilnius Marathon clocking 2:45:31. Men winner Kestutis Jankunas (2:28:42).
ESKILSTUNA (SWE, Sep 13): Tadas Shushkevicius won the 20 km walk during a four-nations match clocking 1:23:29.
Used with permission of Alfons Juck, EME News publisher.
