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Lead Stories: Sunday, September 7, 2008

Pending World Record for Tune in Ostrava

Posted June 12th, 2008 at 1:15 PM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Ethiopian Dire Tune backed up her surprise Boston Marathon victory with a pending world record in the rarely contested one hour run today in Ostrava, Czech Republic.

Less than one month past her 23rd birthday, Tune made it around the track a little more than 46 times, covering 18,517 meters before the one hour time limit. That easily surpassed the 18,340 meters Kenya’s
Tegla Loroupe covered in Borgholzhausen, Germany, on August 8, 1998, the previous world record.
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Programming Note: IAAF Grand Prix in Ostrava on WCSN at 1:00 p.m. EDT

Posted June 12th, 2008 at 10:13 AM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

You can watch today’s IAAF Grand Prix. meeting in Ostrava on WCSN.com at 1:00 p.m. EDT in the United States.

The direct access link is extremely long, so I recommend using this shortened link: http://tinyurl.com/6dwdw4

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Programming Note:
Track & Field on WCSN.com

Posted June 9th, 2008 at 10:30 AM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

WCSN, the Home of World Champions, has full coverage of the 2008 IAAF indoor and outdoor season, along with numerous other highly anticipated major track and field events on the web.

Next up will be the IAAF Grand Prix meeting in Ostrava, Czech Republic, on Thursday, June 12. Go to the shortened link, below, to see the full schedule of heart pounding IAAF race action, only at WCSN.com and learn how to watch:

http://tinyurl.com/6dwdw4

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William Wynne named USATF Athlete of the Week

Posted July 17th, 2007 at 3:46 PM by Allyson Rosen

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

William Wynne has been named USA Track & Field’s Athlete of the Week after setting a world youth record in the boys’ 400 meter hurdles and earning three medals at the IAAF World Youth Championships held July 11-15 in Ostrava, Czech Republic.

Wynne (Kennesaw, Ga.) sped to a gold medal Sunday in the 400m hurdles with a time of 49.01 seconds. His performance smashed the previous record of 49.86 set by South Africa’s Marnus Kritzinger in 1999. Wynne later ran a leg of the medley relay to pick up his second gold of the meet. Team USA finished in 1 minute 51.34 seconds to edge out Japan by .08. On Thursday, Wynne raced to a silver medal behind teammate Wayne Davis II in the 100m hurdles with a time of 13.44.
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Shaheen to miss IAAF World Champs with knee injury

Posted July 10th, 2007 at 1:00 PM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Injury will force Saif Saaeed Shaheen, the two-time defending world champion in the 3000m steeplechase, from retaining his title at next month’s IAAF World Championships in Osaka.

Shaheen, 24, sustained a knee injury just prior to the Prefontaine Classic early last month, forcing him out of races in Ostrava, Czech Republic, and Athens in June. In a statement today, the Kenyan-born world record holder in the event confirmed he’s lost too much training time to compete in Osaka, where he had also planned to contest the 5000 meters.
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Webb’s 1500m win the Highlight in Paris

Posted July 8th, 2007 at 6:00 PM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

With a brilliant display of assertive racing, Alan Webb powered to a 3:30.54 victory in the 1500 this weekend to highlight the Meeting Gaz de France Paris-St. Denis; the second stop on the six-meet IAAF Golden League series.

Running aggressively from the outset, the 24-year-old three-time American champion never lost control of the race, despite the relatively brisk pace.

“I knew it was going to be hard,” Webb said, explaining his decision to run near the front from the gun despite the pre-race plan for a 2:47 split through 1200 meters. “I could have been in fifth place and it would have been hard.”
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Mottram ready to tackle role of ‘The Chased’

Posted July 1st, 2007 at 5:34 PM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results

By all indications, Craig Mottram passed the first major 5000m test of the summer with flying colors. The 27-year-old Australian out-maneuvered and ultimately out-kicked the finest field assembled yet this season to take a significant 13:04.97 victory at the 46th running of the Golden Spike Meeting on Wednesday night, a major stepping stone on this year’s road to the World Championships in Osaka.

“It’s great to be able to compete against that field, which is pretty much what I’m going to face at the World Championships, barring a few people who didn’t run tonight,” said, Mottram, the reigning world bronze medallist. “And I was able to control it from the front for the last four or five laps. I wasn’t expecting to do that, but to be able to stay relaxed over the last two laps like I did tonight is something that I’ve probably gained through a bit more experience more than anything else. I probably wouldn’t have been able to do that two years ago. That’s just one added bonus for me now.”
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One hour world record by Gebrselassie in Ostrava

Posted June 27th, 2007 at 2:49 PM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results

Haile Gebrselassie added two more world records to his illustrious collection at the Golden Spike Grand Prix tonight in Ostrava, Czech Republic.

Knocking off consistent 67 to 68 second laps, the 23-year-old Ethiopian set a new mark in the one hour run, covering 21,285 meters over the course of 60 minutes to break the previous best, 21,101m, set by Mexican Arturo Barrios in La Fléche, France, on March 30, 1991.

“Today is just a fantastic day,” said a beaming Gebrselassie, who said he knew just beyond the half-way point that the record would fall.
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Defar returns, Gebrselassie to chase hour run world record in Ostrava

Posted June 26th, 2007 at 11:10 AM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

On the track where Kenenisa Bekele succeeded Haile Gebrselassie as the 10,000m world record holder, the fabled Ethiopian and his younger compatriot Meseret Defar are poised to take center stage when the European international season resumes on Wednesday at the 46th Golden Spike Grand Prix in this sprawling eastern Czech city.

Just 12 days after her staggering 14:16.63 world record in Oslo, Defar returns to action again in the 5000. Although the 23-year-old Olympic champion hasn’t promised to take her record down even further, she hasn’t fully dismissed the possibility either.

“I’m in good condition right now,” Defar said. “I ran a very good race in Oslo and I’m hoping to perform well in Ostrava too.”

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Ostrava Preview: Defar, Haile, Isinbayeva and more

Posted June 26th, 2007 at 5:00 AM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

With an impressive slate of Olympic, World and continental champions and a handful of World record assaults, the IAAF World Athletics Tour 2007 resumes with a bang on Wednesday at the 46th edition of the Golden Spike in Ostrava.

DEFAR LOOKING FOR FAST OSLO FOLLOW-UP

While organiZers have again lured a strong collection of talent to this eastern Czech city, one of the most keenly observed will Olympic 5000m champion Meseret Defar. Hot on the heels of her staggering 14:16.63 World record in Oslo 10 days ago, Defar returns to action to try and take that 5000m mark down even further.

After breaking her own mark by almost eight seconds, the 23-year-old Ethiopian said in a quite straightforward fashion in Oslo that there’s no reason not to try again in Ostrava. Besides compatriots Gelete Burka and Meselech Melkamu, organizers have also brought in Russian Olga Komyagina to set the pace, just as she did in that unforgettable run in Oslo.
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