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With Diamond League, Organizers Hope to Encourage Marquis Match-Ups
Posted March 3rd, 2009 at 3:43 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
With yesterday’s announcement of the new IAAF Diamond League set to be launched in 2010, organizers of many of the world’s top athletics meetings hope that the new system will encourage more head-to-head competition between marquis athletes while eliminating the contrived battles between athletes who compete in completely different disciplines.
“The change is one step,” said Patrick Magyar, who directs the Weltklasse in Zürich, during a conference call with reporters yesterday. “Is change ever enough in a time like ours? Probably not. The world evolves at very high speed. It’s going to be a big change. It’s a system through which we allocate the disciplines which will allow the head-to-heads.” He added: “This is just one major step.”
Under the new Diamond League format, the current six-meeting ÅF Golden League program will be scrapped. While the Golden League offered suspense in the form of a winner-take-all Jackpot for any athlete who won their discipline in all six meetings, it failed to provide any real incentives for the top stars to compete against each other throughout the season.
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Eugene, New York Tapped for IAAF “Diamond League”
Posted March 2nd, 2009 at 5:23 PM by Adam Jacobs
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
The IAAF announced on Monday that the Nike Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore., and Reebok Grand Prix in New York City will be part of a prestigious new circuit of elite track meets known as the “IAAF Diamond League”, starting in 2010.
Replacing the current ÅF Golden League of six meets, the Diamond League will feature at least 12 globally televised meets on four continents, giving the IAAF a series that extends beyond the European confines of the current Golden League, into the United States, Asia and the Middle East.
The Diamond League also will expand the number of events contested in the IAAF’s showcase series, featuring 32 different event disciplines. All 32 events will have equal prize money, with each meet doling out $416,000. Top stars will be signed to contracts to compete in the series.
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Weekend Preview
Posted January 9th, 2009 at 8:54 PM by Jesse Squire
Section: News & Results, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field, College
Here’s a quick overview of the major track and field, cross country, and road running action coming up this weekend.
International
Tomorrow, the BUPA Great Edinburgh International cross country meet will be held in the Scottish capital. 2007 World Cross Country champion Zersenay Tadese headlines the men’s field; he will face Olympic 5000m silver medallist Eliud Kipchoge, eight-time European cross country champion Sergey Lebid, and Commonwealth 5000m champion Augustine Choge. The women’s race features Britain’s Steph Twell, who won last week’s meet in Belfast; Team USA Minnesota’s Emily Brown will also be taking part.
More from IAAF.org
Another cross country event, the 66th Cross Internacional Juan Muguerza, will be held on Sunday in Elgoibar, Spain. World Cross Country silver medalist Leonard Patrick Komon will be running.
More from IAAF.org
Also on Sunday, Haile Gebrselassie will chase his own marathon World Record (2:03:59) at the Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon. He stands to win a cool $1 million if he makes it.
More from The Standard (Kenya)
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Bolt, Isinbayeva Named 2008 IAAF Athletes of the Year
Posted November 24th, 2008 at 9:27 AM by Bob Ramsak
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
Olympic champions and world record holders Usain Bolt of Jamaica and Yelena Isinbayeva of Russia were named the 2008 IAAF World Athletes of the Year at the World Athletics Gala here tonight.
Bolt, 22, captivated the imagination of the sporting world when he captured three gold medals at the Olympic Games in Beijing in August, sweeping the 100 and 200 meters and running the third leg on the victorious 4×100m relay. His run of 9.69 seconds in the 100 and 19.30 in the 200m were both world records, as was the 37.10 performance by the Jamaican relay squad. In June, Bolt set his first world record in the 100, beating world champion Tyson Gay and running 9.72 at the Reebok Grand Prix in New York City.
Isinbayeva, 26, raised her own world record in the pole vault three times outdoors in 2008, first to 5.03m in Rome and 5.04m in Monaco in June, and again to 5.05m when she successfully defended her Olympic title in Beijing. It was the second consecutive Olympic Games in which Isinbayeva set a world record at the Olympic Games.
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Industry and Events News Wrap-Up
Posted November 19th, 2008 at 12:00 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Marathons, Track & Field, Olympics, Road Racing
CLAY, BROWN TRAFTON WIN 2008 JESSE OWENS AWARDS:
Olympic gold medalists Bryan Clay (decathlon) and Stephanie Brown Trafton (discus) on Tuesday were named winners of the 2008 Jesse Owens Award by USA Track & Field. Established in 1981, the Jesse Owens Award is USA Track & Field’s highest accolade, presented annually to the outstanding U.S. male and female track and field performers. Clay was the favorite to win Olympic gold, while Brown Trafton’s medal was one of the biggest surprises in Beijing. “All of us at USA Track & Field take great pride in saluting Bryan and Stephanie for their accomplishments during the 2008 season,” said USATF CEO Doug Logan.
IAAF WORLD ATHLETICS GALA TO BE STREAMED
LIVE ON IAAF.ORG:
For the first time in the history of the annual World Athletics Gala, the show will be shown via a video stream on the IAAF website, as well as the live worldwide TV broadcast. The event, which includes the announcements of the Male and the Female World Athlete of the Year 2008, will be hosted on Sunday 23 November at the Salle des Etoiles of the Sporting Club d’Eté, Monte-Carlo by International Athletic Foundation (IAF) Honorary President HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco and IAF & IAAF President Lamine Diack. More details available at IAAF.org.
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Note on the News: Ramsak Looks at Winning Streaks
Posted November 19th, 2008 at 9:30 AM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
Bob Ramsak, assistant editor at our partner service Race Results Weekly, takes a look at some of athletics’ key winning streaks, both those which ended and grew in 2008, in a new article published today at iaaf.org.
The direct link for viewing the published story is here:
http://www.iaaf.org/news/kind=100/newsid=48346.html
Suspensions for Russian Women in Doping Case
Posted October 20th, 2008 at 5:18 PM by Bob Ramsak
Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Olympics, Drugs In Sports
Russian middle distance runners Yelena Soboleva and Tatyana Tomashova were among seven athletes who were handed two-year bans by the All Russia Athletics Federation (ARAF) today, agencies are reporting.
The pair, along with middle distance runners Yulia Fomenko, Svetlana Cherkasova, and Olga Yegorova, and throwers Daria Pishchalnikova and Gulfiya Khanafeyeva, were provisionally suspended by the IAAF on the eve of the Olympic Games after a targeted investigation using DNA evidence found that they had tampered with the doping control process after fraudulently substituting urine.
Their bans are retroactive beginning on the dates that their samples were collected, according to the ARAF decision.
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With Dominating Performances, Tadese and Kiplagat Threepeat in Rio
Posted October 12th, 2008 at 10:10 AM by Bob Ramsak
Section: News & Results, Marathons
Producing a pair of runaway victories, Zersenay Tadese and Lornah Kiplagat each collected their third consecutive victories at the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships today in Rio de Janeiro.
Running in warm conditions, Tadese won handily in 59:56, nearly two minutes ahead of Kenyan Patrick Makau Musyoki (1:01:54), who also finished second a year ago in Udine, Italy.
In full control of the race from the gun, the Kenyan-born Dutchwoman Kiplagat won in 1:08:37, well ahead of Ethiopian Aselefech Mergia (1:09:57).
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Universal Sports Offering Live (and Free) Coverage of World Half Marathon Championships
Posted October 12th, 2008 at 6:42 AM by Adam Jacobs
Section: News & Results, Marathons, Columns, What To Watch
The exclusive webcast by Universal Sports of the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil will begin this morning at 7:45 a.m. EST.
To tune in and watch the online broadcast, please visit: www.universalsports.com
What To Watch: Running & Track Events on TV, Webcast
Posted October 10th, 2008 at 12:29 PM by Jesse Squire
Section: News & Results, Marathons, Columns, What To Watch, Road Racing
Action is beginning to pick back up as we head into marathon season. Headlining the coming week’s action are the Chicago Marathon and the IAAF World Half-Marathon Championships. As always, all times are Eastern; check your local listings.
Bank of America Chicago Marathon
Universal Sports TV, 9:00 AM Sunday
UniversalSports.com, 8:45 AM Sunday
Surprise Olympic marathon champion Constantina Tomescu-Dita leads the field in the penultimate stop on the World Marathon Majors tour. For more, go to Chicagomarathon.com.
IAAF World Half-Marathon Championships
UniversalSports.com, 7:30 AM Sunday
The free webcast coverage of the IAAF’s World Championships will be live. The men’s race, featuring defending New York City marathon champ Marilson dos Santos, begins at 7:45 a.m. The women’s race, featuring ‘07 World Cross Country champ Lornah Kiplagat, begins at 8:15 a.m. For more on the race, go to the IAAF’s website.
Who had the more impressive Boston Marathon debut?
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- What To Watch: Running & Track Events on TV, Webcast
Here are the track & running-related events coming your way for the next week. As always, all times are EDT; if you know of anything I’ve missed, please add it in the comments section.
A brief programming note: Olympic sprint champion Maurice Greene will be among the contestants on the seventh season of ABC’s “Dancing […] - IAAF Annuls Men’s 4×400m World Record
The IAAF — track & field’s international governing body — announced today that it has annulled the men’s 4×400m world record following Antonio Pettigrew’s recent admission of doping.
Pettigrew, along with Jerome Young, Tyree Washington and Michael Johnson clocked 2:54.20 at the 1998 Goodwill Games, breaking the previous mark by 0.09 seconds.
The record will now revert […] - After Year-Long Investigation, Russians Soboleva, Tomashova, Five Others Hit With Doping Suspensions
In a scandal that will likely leave the Russian women’s middle distance Olympic team in tatters, middle distance stars Yelena Soboleva and Tatyana Tomashova, along with five others, have been provisionally suspended for “tampering with the doping control process,” the IAAF announced today.
According to a statement issued by the IAAF, the athletes have been charged […] - IAAF Meet Preview: Herculis Monaco Super Grand Prix
On Tuesday, the IAAF World Athletics Tour comes to Monaco for the Herculis Meeting, a Super Grand Prix event in Stade Louis II. It is the final major meet before the Olympic Games.
Coverage: Universal Sports and WCSN.com, live from 2-5 p.m. EDT
Meet Website (in French)
IAAF previewEvent-by-event Previews
The meet begins with two women’s field events, […] - World Points Standings:
Men’s Running EventsThese standings are a numerical summary of race results for each athlete, and are based on an athlete’s six best races (two of which can be in another event). Since the last update of the men’s running events on July 9, the major competitions have been the Golden League meets in Rome and Paris […]
- World Points Standings:
What Are They?No doubt you’ve seen the World Points Standings that I regularly post here. But you might be wondering what they are and where they come from.
They are a numerical summary of each athlete’s accomplishments in the 2008 season. Wins and losses in big meets and small and times run under various conditions are […] - What To Watch: Running & Track Events on TV, Webcast
Here are the upcoming running and track & field events on television and the internet. All times EDT; as always, check your local listings. If I’ve missed anything, put it in the comments section.
Aviva London Grand Prix
Universal Sports and WCSN.com, 1-4 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday
The IAAF World Athletics Tour comes to London’s […] - IAAF Meet Preview: Aviva London Super Grand Prix
The IAAF’s World Athletics Tour comes to London’s Crystal Palace for a Super Grand Prix meet on Friday and Saturday.
TV coverage: Universal Sports, 1-4 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday
Web coverage: WCSN.com, 1-4 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday (subscription required)
Note: free coverage will likely be available at BBC.co.uk; watch the comments section […] - IAAF Super Grand Prix Preview: DN Galan
The IAAF’s World Athletics Tour comes to Sweden on Monday and Tuesday for the second of its five Super Grand Prix meets, the DN Galan, in the Stockholms Olympiastadion.
Meet Website
Web coverage: WCSN.com, Tuesday at 1 p.m. (EDT)
IAAF PreviewEvent-by-Event Previews:
The men’s and women’s shot put competitions will be held Monday evening in downtown Stockholm. A […] - World Points Standings:
Men’s Field EventsThe current points standings in men’s field events (best five competitions totaled)…
High Jump
1. Stefan Holm, SWE, 73
2. Yaroslav Rybakov, RUS, 64.5
3. Andrey Silnov, RUS, 62.5
4. Ivan Ukhov, RUS, 51
4. Jesse Williams, USA, 51
6. Andra Manson, USA, 48
7. Dusty Jonas, USA, 38
8. Jamie Nieto, USA, 37.5
9. Kyriakos Ioannou, CYP, 30
9. Linus Thörnblad, SWE, 30
With four in the top ten, the biggest recent competition was […]
The Final Sprint
On February 9, 2010
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