by Larry Eder
Meseret Defar versus Tirunesh Dibaba will be closely watched. (Picture of Defar from PhotoRun.net).
DEFAR vs. DIBABA VS. CHERUIYOT vs. MELKAMU
OSLO (NOR): Great 5000 m duel is expected on Friday at Bislett Games, the second stop of AF Golden League. Ethiopian superstars will run as per meet website for first time against each other since Beijing Olympic Games where Tirunesh Dibaba won and Meseret Defar was third. Interestingly Defar achieved 5000 m world record at famous Bislett track in 2007 and Dibaba last year. Their career head to head at 5000 m as per tilastopaja is 12:11 in favor of Defar. But except Beijing race their last meeting clash was back in 2006 at World Athletics Final in Stuttgart where Dibaba won by 0.01. Back in 2003 they even raced together at Bislett, Dibaba was third (14:39.94) and Defar fourth (14:43.46). What will happen this year is the question of the evening. Spice is added by the presence of improved Meselech Melkamu (sub 30 minutes recently at 10k and important win in Ostrava at 5k) and Kenyan world medalist Vivian Cheruiyot.
GEBREMARIAM SEEKS FAST 10k
LILLE (FRA): European Athletics Premium meet Lille Metropole offers on Tuesday variety of interesting events. For example World CC Champion Gebre Gebremariam of Ethiopia with strong group ot team-mates is running the 10 000 m. Home top 400 m runner Leslie Dhjone competes against African record holder Gary Kikaya. Top steeple-chase runners Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabaad and Boubdallah Tahri are running the 1500 m. 2005 World Champion Ladji Doucoure will test his shape, the same for best French walker Yohan Diniz in 5000 m on the track. French long jump record holder Salim Sdiri is the star of his event against Senegal´s olympic finalist Kaba Badji. Latvian olympic medalist Ainars Kovals is the top name in javelin. As usual strong sprints. At 100 m Briton Craig Pickering runs against Antigua´s Brendan Christian. In the 200 m Zimbabwe´s olympic finalist Brian Dzingai will clash in African duel against Stephane Buckland of Mauritius. British world indoor silver medalist Jeannette Kwakye runs the 100 m, French former European champion Muriel Hurtis-Houairi the 200 m. In interesting high jump best French Melanie Skotnik jumps against Russian Viktoriya Klyugina and Bulgarian Venelina Veneva. In pole vault Russian duel is expected, Tatyana Polnova against Aleksandra Kiryashova. In discus best French Melina Robert-Michon will have it tough against Romanian Nicoleta Grasu and improved Zaneta Glanc of Poland.
OTHER NEWS
TOKYO (JPN): Japan selected the first wave of athletes for World Championships in Berlin after the national event. Olympic winner 2004 Koji Murofushi is selected in hammer, Daichi Sawano in pole vault is another head-liner. Top sprinters Masashi Eriguchi, Shintaro Kimura, Naoki Tsukahara and Shinji Takahira will build also a very powerful 4×100 m team. In this selection are 21 men and 18 women. In women section the sprint record holder Chisato Fukushima, in long distances Yurika Nakamura, Yuriko Kobayashi, Yukari Sahaku and Kayoko Fukushi.
MADRID (ESP): Russian triple jump world indoor record holder Tatyana Lebedeva is entered into Madrid Grand Prix meeting next Saturday. That should be her first international meet since September last year. Also coming are US athletes who are competing last year on the circuit, jumpers Stacy Dragila and Amy Acuff. Home Ruth Beitia will be the star of women high jump.
LOUGHBOROUGH (GBR): UK Athletics has returned to Canada for the third time to recruit a coach to help it prepare for London 2012 by poaching Derek Evely to run the High Performance Centre at Loughborough University. Writes insidethegames.com. He joins Kevin Tyler and Peter Eriksson, who have joined UK Athletics as strategic head of coaching and development and head coach of the Paralympic team respectively. Evely is currently the sports science manager at the Canadian Athletics Coaching Centre. He also guides a talented group of athletes that includes Adam Kunkel, the Canadian record-holder in the 400-metre hurdles, and Carline Muir, one of Canada‘s top female 400 runners.
BEOGRAD (SRB): New chairman of Serbian Athletics Federation is Veselin Jevrosimovic. He is replacing Velimir Ilic who earlier resigned. Former succesfull high jumper Stevan Zoric is one of the vice-chairmen.
EUGENE (USA): 400 m hurdler James Carter announced his retirement. At 31 the three-time U.S. national champion said this after failing to complete his event at the USA Championships. Carter stopped at the eighth barrier, then said, „This is for me, the end.“
RESULTS
BOTTNARYD (SWE, June 27): Joanna Wisniewska of Poland achieved 61.53 in discus at throwing meet.
BAKU (AZE, June 27-28): Ruslan Abbasov won the 100 m at national championships with 10.36. Talented Ramil Guliyev is already in preparation for European Junior Championships and his big goal is to achieve finals in Berlin in August. Ethiopian imports clocked 13:53.60 in men´s 5000 m (Hayle Ibrahimov) and 9:16.94 in women´s 3000 m (Mare Ibrahimova).
VILNIUS (LTU, June 29): Former olympic winner Virgilijus Alekna achieved in discus at city championships 66.30. Raivydas Stanys cleared 225 in high jump.
TULLAMORE (IRL, June 28): Visually impaired Irish sprinter Jason Smyth improved national U23 record to 10.42 (+1.4) at National Championships of that category.
RHEINAU (GER, June 28): At Hanauland Games surprise improvement by Nigerian sprinter Ego-Ohene Egwero to 10.25 (+1.5) at 100 m. He had 10.26 but from home in Nigeria in February. Now he competes for Heidelberg, Germany.
ZARAGOZA (ESP, June 27): New Spanish youth record by Alberto Gavalda who clocked at 200 m 21.28 (+1.7).
GOTEBORG (SWE, June 27-28): Michel Torneus improved here in long jump to excellent 811 (+0.2). Eivind Henriksen of Norway improved his own national hammer junior record (6 kg) to 77.64 m.
APPINGEDAM (NED, June 27): Wilson Kipsang of Kenya clocked new course record at 13th 10 km road race with 27:44.1. Informs Race Results Weekly. European CC Champion Hilda Kibet won the women race in 31:58.1.
KUALA LUMPUR (MAS, June 28): Kenyan wins at Standard Chartered marathon here. Julius Nderitu clocked 2:17:03 and Frida Jepkorir 2:40:14.
ST. PETERBURG (RUS, June 28): Russian wins at White Nights Marathon. Sergey Lukin achieved 2:18:24 and Liliya Yidzhak 2:41:52.
RIO DE JANEIRO (BRA, June 28): Home wins at Rio Marathon with 15 400 participants. Marcos Antonio Pereira achieved 2:17:11 and Marizete de Paula 2:42:46.
BRCKO (BIH, June 28): At 13th 10 km road race in Bosnia Kenyan win for Musai Mwanzia in 29:32 and Lucy Kimani who is a Kenyan representing Bosnia with 33:27. Here second Hungarian Krisztina Papp (33:38).
Special thanks to Alfons Juck, EME News.
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