Running News Daily

Ethiopian Muktar Edris went from being an underdog to being a two time world champion

Rarely had a reigning world champion been such an underdog. Rarely had an athlete so accomplished, so dangerous, been so overlooked in the pre-race predictions.

But Muktar Edris has a habit of defying expectations.

When the 25-year-old Ethiopian launched his kick to grab gold in the men’s 5000m, many at the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019 turned to each other, as they had done in London two years earlier, in surprise: Where had he come from?

Edris’s second successive title proved a much bigger shock than his first, even if two years ago he had to defeat Mo Farah on his home turf to take gold, the Briton who had won the previous three world 5000m titles.

The reason for Edris being so severely doubted was simple: injuries.

After London he developed chronic pain and inflammation in his achilles tendon, and while it wasn’t the kind that completely side-lined him, it limited his training substantially. Edris could only do longer, slower running for much of the past two years, his achilles flaring up anytime he let rip on the track with shorter reps.

“One kilometre and under, no,” he said. “Because (practising the) kick is painful. I could just do slow running, lap after lap. The injury is still sore today.”

It was the reason he failed to fire in 2018 and for much of 2019, Edris’s two outings in the IAAF Diamond League resulting in an 11th-place finish in Oslo (over 30000m) and an 18th-place finish in Lausanne (over 5000m). In May he dropped out of the 10,000m at the Ethiopian Championships, which meant the only reason he was able to compete in Doha was via his wild card entry as defending champion.

But he had shown flickers of his old self in the summer, clocking a 7:39.52 3000m to finish second in Budapest – good, but not the kind of great form needed to win a world title.

Few had expected him to repeat his 2017 feat, with teammates Selemon Barega and Telahun Haile Bekele tearing it up on the circuit, the Ingebrigtsen brothers primed to utilise their fearsome kicks if the pace was slow, and accomplished 5000m performers like Mohammed Ahmed of Canada and Paul Chelimo of USA never to be discounted.

Edris himself didn’t expect it to win. “I had such problems with injury,” he said. “My hope was to be in the medals.”

The IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha attendances were a disaster and will impact Qatar's chances of ever hosting an Olympic Games

The empty Doha stadium at the World Athletics Championships has scuppered Qatar's chances of landing an Olympic Games for at least 20 years, bidding experts believe.

The tiny Middle East nation was previously beaten by Tokyo to next summer's games, and has hinted it could launch renewed bids for either 2032 or 2036.

However, one source close to the International Olympic Committee said dismal attendances for the athletics is seen a "disaster" for any potential application.

Michael R Payne, the former marketing director of the IOC, also told the Daily Telegraph that poor local interest would be a "red line".

"In terms of the Olympics, I'd go straight back to the drawing board," he said. "Clearly the first question is going to be 'why would the hosting of our championship be any different'. It's such a fundamental red line to cross. There is an issue of respect for the athletes. How do they feel having trained all their lives for this? Clearly something has gone very wrong. For an Olympics, expectation would probably be now that you would see one or other Middle East country coming forward before Qatar."

The athletics had sent a "very negative signal as to Doha's ability to host any major event", Payne added. Qatar was controversially awarded football's 2022 World Cup, but FIFA insists there is enough local interest across the region to ensure any local allocations of tickets sell out.

On Sunday night Denise Lewis was among leading figures in athletics to criticise organisers after eventual silver medalist Dina Asher-Smith ran sprint finals in front of rows of empty seats in the 40,000-capacity stadium. Payne, who now works as a consultant strategic adviser, said the athletics had illustrated the dangers of building "empty cathedrals". 

He added. "You can build the greatest stadiums, you can have unlimited budgets to do incredible ceremonies and make it all work, but you do need to have to people in the stadium," he said. "I think it is incomprehensible for athletes in any sport to compete in their world championships in front of an empty stadium.

"It sends a terrible image and I'm sure the television ratings will be negatively impacted. At the end of the day, what's the point of building big stadiums for the people in the country - it's an empty cathedral."

Speaking on the BBC,  2000 Olympic heptathlon champion Lewis said the IAAF has "let down" the athletes competing in the Qatar capital city. "I can't deny, I walked into the stadium and thought 'is this the World Championships?'' Lewis said.

Lelisa Desisa wins the marathon at the IAAF World Athletic Championships in Doha

Lelisa Desisa added a world marathon gold to the silver he won in Moscow six years ago as he and teammate Mosinet Geremew headed an Ethiopian one-two on the Corniche in conditions that were significantly more forgiving than those that had seen a slew of women marathoners pulling out on the opening day of the championships.

Desisa clocked a season’s best of 2:10:40, with Geremew four seconds back. Bronze went to Kenya’s Amos Kipruto, who finished in 2:10:51, with Britain’s Callum Hawkins clocking 2:10:57 to repeat his fourth placing from the 2017 World Championships marathon in London.

With the temperature at about 29C (84F), and humidity at about 48%, the two Ethiopians were part of a group that caught up with early breakaway leader Derlys Ayala of Paraguay just before halfway point and maintained enough energy to push on to glory in the final kilometre.

They left in their wake Kenya’s Kipruto, who had also been a part of the long-time leading group, and Hawkins, whose massive mid-race effort brought him into the lead group of three with only a couple of kilometres to go.

The effort to get there, however, cost the Briton dearly, and he had to accept his second successive fourth place in this event following the London running two years ago.

In the interim, Hawkins hit the headlines when he collapsed in the heat of the Gold Coast when he was only a mile or so away from what looked like a runaway win at the Commonwealth Games.

On this occasion he maintained his effort to the line, although that seemed little consolation to him in the immediate aftermath.

So Desisa went one better than he had in 2013, although the action that earned him most renown that year was his gesture in donating his Boston Marathon winning medal back to the city in sympathy with the bombing that took place near the finish line nearly three hours after he had passed it.

"It was hot, but I prepared perfectly for this race," said Desisa, who won the New York City Marathon last year. "I am very tired. But after I took silver in Moscow, this time I kept my power better.”

Zersenay Tadese, Eritrea’s five-time world half-marathon champion, led the lead group for much of the second half of the race before dropping to sixth place in 2:11:29.

One place above him, in 2:11:09, was South Africa’s Stephen Mokoka, who had also taken the responsibility for the lead for long periods.

Ayala, who had run a personal best of 2:10:27 only two weeks earlier in Buenos Aires, dropped out very soon after the halfway mark – one of 18 who failed to finish from the field of 73.

Marathoners are ready to sweat it out in Doha tonight and Kenyan runners should be leading the pack

If recent history is any guide, the men’s marathon title is likely to go to an African runner with Kenya entering four runners led by defending champion Geoffrey Kirui who will be out defending the title at midnight.

Despite the race starting at midnight in an attempt to avoid the brutal heat of the day, temperatures are still expected to be 30C as marathoners take on the course along the waterfront of Doha’s famous Corniche connecting Doha Bay and Doha City Centre, set against the capital city’s towering skyline.

Unlike track and field being staged in an air-conditioned Khalifa International Stadium, marathoners have to endure the unforgiving Qatari heat as witnessed on day during the women’s race where also half the field failed to complete simply because you can’t air-condition 42km of road.

Kirui who is also the 2017 Boston Marathon winner will partner with Laban Korir who has wealth of experience on the roads having won Setúbal Half Marathon in Portugal, and another followed at the 2009 Pombal Meia Maratona.

At the 2011 Amsterdam Marathon, he finished second with his run of 2:06:05 behind his compatriot Wilson Chebet. Korir then won the 2014 Toronto Waterfront Marathon with a time of 2:08:15. He holds a personal best of 2:05.05 from Armsterdam Marathon in 2016.

Paul Lonyangata is another member of the squad that holds personal best of 2:06.1.

Amos Kipruto is the fourth member of the team, he made his marathon running at the  2016 Rome Marathon with a victory. In 2017, Kipruto won the Seoul Marathon in 2:05:54, before finishing fifth in the Amsterdam Marathon in 2:05:43. He was runner-up at the 2018 Berlin marathon.  

Away from the Kenyans Mosinet Geremew tops the entry list with a PB of 2:02:55, set as he followed home Kenya’s Olympic champion and world record-holder Eliud Kipchoge as he won the London Marathon.

Mule Wasihun was one place behind in London in a personal best of 2:03:16 that places him third in this season’s list also.

Men’s World Championship steeplechase final goes to photo finish

It was a very tight finish in the men's 3,000m steeplechase between Kenya's Kipruto and Girma of Ethiopia

he men’s 3,000m steeplechase final has been the toughest to call of any of the finishes in the World Championships thus far. The race was a battle between Conseslsus Kipruto of Kenya, Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia, Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco and Getnet Wale of Ethiopia. In the end, it was reigning World Champion Kipruto who took the title once more over Girma. They were seperated by 0.01s.

Kipruto finished in 8:01.35 which is a world lead, second place went to Girma in 8:01.36 and third to El Bakkali in 8:03.76. Canadian Matt Hughes finished 14th in the final in 8:24.78.

In contrast, Monday’s women’s steeplechase was not a close call. Beatrice Chepkoech of Kenya ran away from the field to win the World Championships and set a new championship record of 8:57.84. The Kenyan runner, who’s the world record-holder in the event (at 8:44), lost to American Emma Coburn (who finished second Monday) at the 2017 championships.

Callum Hawkins has been training in a heat chamber for Doha

The last time Callum Hawkins tried to win a marathon gold medal he went viral – with the images of him collapsing with heatstroke and dehydration at last year’s Commonwealth Games in Australia spreading around the world.

But as the 27-year-old Scot prepares to run 26.2 miles in the 32C heat and 50% humidity of Doha he has revealed a secret weapon: using a stack of heaters while on a treadmill in his shed to replicate the desert conditions at the world championships.

“I’ve been doing a bit of work in a heat chamber to prepare as well as getting the Aldi heaters,” he says. “I got it up to 39 degrees at one point. It’s a big proper shed and not a wee tiny one.”

Hawkins, who finished fourth at the 2017 world championships in London, insists he is not worried about a repeat of the Gold Coast – despite nearly half the field in the women’s marathon being forced to pull out due to the extreme conditions.

When asked what were the odds of him buying a one-way ticket back home after seeing that race, he laughed. “Never even thought of it,” he said.

“I’ve prepared well or at least I think I’ve prepared well. I learned a lot from watching it and I’ve got eight years of learning. It’s mainly about being patient – make sure I’m close enough but not doing too much or overheating.

“I’ve run well in the heat in the past – I ran decent in Rio and London in 2017 was not roasting but it was getting up there, into the 20s in the sun. Everyone is in the same boat. It’s about who prepares best and making sure your race plan matches the conditions.”

Most of the world’s top marathon runners will not be here – Eliud Kipchoge, the Olympic champion, is preparing to go under two hours in Vienna while Mo Farah will run at the Chicago marathon on Sunday week. However, Hawkins insists he is still facing a strong field.

“It’s got two Ethiopians who were second and third in London, the former world champion and the Kenyan team is always strong,” he said. “But we saw at the women’s that times don’t really matter, what you’ve done in the past doesn’t really matter. The women were 15 minutes off their best; it’s about who can get closest to their actual best. With the conditions it’s anyone’s race.”

Dina Asher-Smith wins gold in national record of 21.88, at world 200m making history for Great Britain

Not so long ago Dina Asher-Smith studied history. Now, with each thunderous stride on the track, she makes it. And on a balmy desert night she summoned up a performance of shock and awe to become the first British female sprinter to win a world championship title.

This was not so much a race as a 91-step exhibition of Asher-Smith’s staggering athletic talents. The usual rocketing start. Then a bend so geometrically perfect it could have been drawn by a compass. And, finally, grace and power right to the finish. Long before she crossed the line in 21.88 sec – a time that lowered her own national record – gold was in the bag.

Then, after a little jig of joy, the scale of her accomplishment began to hit, and her eyes began to water. “Normally I am so chatty and full of energy, but I am lost for words,” she said. “Everybody keeps saying world champion, world title, but it hasn’t sunk in and honestly I don’t think it ever will. I have dreamed of this and now it’s real.”

Such was Asher-Smith’s symphony of destruction that her nearest rivals, the US silver medallist Brittany Brown, who ran 22.22sec, and the Swiss athlete Mujinga Kambundji, who claimed bronze in 22.51, were barely in her slipstream. The champagne, however, will be put on ice until after the 4x100m relay final on Saturday.

It is 15 years since Asher-Smith was persuaded to do her first cross-country race at primary school and hated it. Halfway round she nearly stopped – only for her parents to promise her an ice cream if she kept going. She ended up finishing fifth out of 400 and a glorious track and field career was born.

After Wednesday night’s win she paid tribute to her coach, John Blackie, who has known her since she was eight – and knew, even then, that she was a little bit special. “I wasn’t the fastest when I was younger, but I worked so hard with my coach John,” she said, smiling. “That we’re champions together means so much to me.”

There were also the warmest of words for her father, Winston, and her mother, Julie, who have proudly followed her journey through windswept local athletics tracks to arenas around the world. “My mum and dad have been to every single one. English schools. National athletics league. Junior competitions. All the way through to the world championships and Olympics.”

She knows that next year’s Olympics will be tougher – especially as the world’s best 200m runner, Shaunae Miller-Uibo, was unable to compete here because of scheduling clashes with her favourite event, the 400m. But Asher-Smith’s achievements in Doha should not be played down. Her 200m time was so fast it would have won 13 of the 17 world championships.

“Obviously you want to run in front of a stacked field but at the same time a world title is a world title,” said Asher-Smith, who looked back to her first moment on the world stage when she won 200m and 4x100m relay golds at the European Junior Championships in 2013.

Olympic bronze medalist Emma Coburn, Takes Silver Medal With Personal-Best Finish In Steeplechase

Olympic bronze medalist Emma Coburn, a Crested Butte native now living and training in Boulder,  ran a personal best time in the 3,000-meter steeplechase final at the IAAF World Championships in Doha, Qatar, on Monday, but it wasn’t enough to defend her title.

Kenya’s Beatrice Chepkoech took off on her own from the start of the race, opened up a huge gap and ended up setting a world championship record to win the gold medal with a time of 8:57.84.

Coburn’s personal best time of 9:02.35 took the silver medal, two years after she became the first American woman ever to win the event at either the world championships or Olympic Games. German Gesa Felicitas Krause took bronze in 9:03.30.

As Chepkoech took off on her own, Coburn sat in the front of the chase pack with Kenya’s Hyvin Kiyeng and as the race went on they were joined by Uganda’s Peruth Chemutai. The pack of six held together until Coburn made her move, opening up her own gap and looking comfortable doing it, but Chepkoech was too far ahead to be run down and ended Coburn’s bid for a repeat as world champion. Chepkoech has now won 16 out of 18 races in 2018 and 2019.

“That’s how I thought it would go,” Coburn said. “That how (Chepkoech has) been running all the Diamond Leagues. The only race she’s lost the couple years is when she ran with the pack and got out-kicked so I expected that from her. I was really happy Kiyeng pushed the pace for the chase pack and I just vowed to do no work until I was ready to make a move and with about 800 to go, I accelerated and didn’t look back.”

Coburn has a way of running her best at the most critical moments. She ran a time of 9:07.63 at the Olympic Games Rio 2016 and then a championship and American record 9:02.58 in winning gold at the world championships two years ago.

“It’s important to bring your best at these championships and at the last two championships I brought my personal best in the final and came away with the medal,” she said. “Actually the last three, at the Olympics I (ran a personal best) in all those finals so I like how may body feels in these races and I’m really proud of tonight’s effort.”

World 10,000 meters champion Sifan Hassan says her career has been thrown into uncertainty by Salazar ban

Sifan Hassan says her career has been thrown into uncertainty after her coach Alberto Salazar was handed a four-year ban.

The 61-year-old American was banned by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for “orchestrating and facilitating prohibited doping conduct” as head coach of the Nike Oregon Project (NOP), a camp designed primarily to develop U.S. endurance athletes.

Salazar has denied wrongdoing and vowed to appeal and Nike said it will stand by the coach. There has been no suggestion of wrongdoing by Hassan.

Ethiopian-born Hassan, who joined the NOP in 2016, told Dutch broadcaster NOS that she was stunned by the news.

“I am always clean. I always want to stay clean,” said the 26-year-old, who won the 10,000 meters at the world athletics championship on Saturday and will also run the 1,500 meters later in the competition.

“I never thought something went wrong in this training group. Never.”

She was not sure what would happen next.

“Next year we have the Olympics, where do I have to go then? Do I have to find a new coach? Do I have to do an other training? Do I have to meet other people?,” she said.

Ad Roskam, technical director of the Netherlands athletics federation, said that Hassan would be guided by the Dutch head coach Charles van Commenee for the rest of the competition.

“We first of all are here for the world championships. That has to run smoothly for the whole team,” he added.

In a statement issued earlier on Tuesday, Hassan said the USADA investigation was focused on the period before she joined the NOP and “has no relation to me.”

She said she was saddened that the announcement was made during the world championships.

Ugandan Stephen Kiprotich is seeking to bounce back when he lines up on Saturday for the men’s marathon at the World Championship in Doha

The former Olympic champion, who is under the Global Sports Communications stable, has been training in Kaptagat, Elgeyo Marakwet County, for the last three months.

Nation Sport caught up with him finalising his training at Moi University Campus-Annex School of law track.

He said there is no love lost between him and his Kenyan training mates. "My training has been going on well. What remains is for me to apply what I have been working on for the last three months,” said Kiprotich.

"I’m ready to face other competitors globally. It will be a difficult task, but I will do my best and make sure I get a medal.”

Kiprotich said he drew inspiration from World record holder and Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge and his other training mate, Geoffrey Kamworor, who is fresh from breaking the half marathon record. He optimistic of performing well.

Kenya's Hellen Obiri is undecided for title defence in Doha

Defending champion, Kenya’s Hellen Obiri, is a major doubt for the first round of women’s 5000 meters race of the 2019 World Athletics Championships which goes down Wednesday evening from 6.25pm.

Obiri, who finished fifth in the final of women’s 10,000m race, indicated that she would assess her condition and consult coaches before deciding whether or not to compete in the race.

“I am yet to decide whether I will compete,” Obiri said in a brief statement on Tuesday.

On Saturday after women’s 10,000m race, Obiri said she has had a long season in which she had scaled up to the 25-lap race which had placed extra demands on her body.

“My body got a bit tired after I scaled up to 10,000m. As you know, it involves more laps than 5,000m and I think my body took a beating. It has been a long season for me and my body needs a break,” she said on Saturday.

Five Nike Oregon Project athletes will be without their coach, Alberto Salazar for the remainder of the World Championships

Donovan Brazier (800m), Clayton Murphy (800m), Yomif Kejelcha (10,000m), Konstanze Klosterhalfen (1,500m and 5,000m) and Sifan Hassan (5,000m and 10,000m) all have races to run at the World Championships and will all be without their coach heading into those events.

The Nike Oregon Project athletes are all in medal contention, with Hassan claiming the 10,000m title on Saturday.

The US Anti-Doping Agency has banned Alberto Salazar, head coach of the Nike Oregon Project, for four years following a years-long investigation and secret arbitration case.

The details appear in a BBC report by journalist Mark Daly and a statement by USADA outlining the specific charges, which include trafficking in testosterone (a banned substance), illegal methods and evidence-tampering at the NOP’s Beaverton, Oregon headquarters.

Salazar is former coach to Mo Farah and Kara Goucher and current coach of marathoner Galen Rupp and the newly-crowned 10,000m champion Sifan Hassan, among others. The ban went into effect yesterday, September 30.

All five NOP athletes have had great seasons. Hassan (outdoor) and Kejelcha (indoor) both set mile world records, Murphy and Brazier have been Diamond League standouts and Klosterhalfen is currently ranked eighth in the world for the women’s 1,500m.

The IAAF has confirmed that Salazar’s World Championship accreditation has been deactivated. He’s not allowed in the Khalifa International Stadium or to have access to any of his athletes.

Both Brazier and Murphy run the 800m final this evening. The NOP athletes will now likely defer to their federations coaching staff for assistance before their races.

Ethiopia’s Muktar Edris, Repeats As 5,000 World Champion

Ethiopia’s Muktar Edris, the man who two years ago shocked the world by knocking off Mo Farah to capture the men’s 5000-meter world title, has done it again. Edris came into the 2019 IAAF Worlds Athletics Championships as a 15/2 underdog, having done nothing this year (his SB was just 13:29), but he will leave it once again with a gold medal hanging around his neck as he used a 55.07 final lap to close out a 3:59.63 final 1600 (64.62, 60.84, 58.99, 55.07) and come from behind to win gold in 12:58.85.

Edris’ compatriot Selemon Barega, who ran 12:43 last year, nabbed silver in 12:59.70. Moh Ahmed of the Bowerman Track Club made history for in third (13:01.11), earning Canada’s first-ever world or Olympic medal in an event longer than 1500 meters, after a confident run that saw him lead from 3800 until just after the bell.

Norway’s teen sensation Jakob Ingebrigtsen, 19, the youngest sub-4 miler in history and betting favorite, ended up fifth in 13:02.29 after putting forth his best impersonation of Steve Prefontaine at the 1972 Olympics. Ingebrigtsen boldly ran for gold taking the lead with just less than 300 meters to go before totally running out of gas in the last 100, which he covered in just 17.17 seconds.

Two of Ingebrigtsen’s older brothers were also in the race. Filip Ingebrigtsen was still with the lead pack with a lap and half to go and actually still ahead of the race winner Edris when he raised the white flag and stepped into the infield with 550 meters remaining, saving himself for the 1500 meters, where he won bronze in 2017. Henrik Ingebrigtsen was dropped early in the race and finished 13th in 13:36.25.

American Paul Chelimo, who had medalled as the last two global outdoor championships in the 5000, entered the final lap in 4th but ended up 7th in 13:05.27.

Jamaica’s Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce unstoppable taking fourth world title

Jamaica’s Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce completed a quartet of 100m titles.

This very special athlete once again demonstrated her outrageous gift on another unforgettable night of athletics excellence inside the state-of-the-art Khalifa International Stadium.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce added title number four, a decade after winning her maiden crown – and coming just 13 months after giving birth to her son, it is surely her finest world title date.

The double Olympic champion made he characteristic bullet-like start and had already established a clear advantage on the seven-strong field by 30 metres.

The 32-year-old Jamaican superstar then simply accelerated from the opposition to stop the clock in 10.71 – exactly the same time she ran to win her second world title in Moscow and within 0.01 of her lifetime best.

Behind, Great Britain earned their first medal in this event in World Championship history as Dina Asher-Smith chipped 0.02 from her national record to claim silver in 10.83. Marie Josee Ta-Lou of Ivory Coast added the bronze in 10.90 to the silver medal she grabbed at the 2017 edition.

Migrant workers and children to pad out crowd for World Championships

Ticket sales for the World Athletics Championships in Doha are far more sluggish than expected, making it highly likely that large numbers of free tickets will be given away to migrant workers and children who will be bused in by organisers, informed sources have told the Guardian.

Organizers are already blanking off the top section of the 40,000-seater Khalifa International Stadium to make the event, which starts on Friday, look better on TV. However, even with a reduced capacity and reasonable ticket prices starting at 60 Qatari rial (£13), seats are still readily available.

Sources have told the Guardian that 50,000 tickets have been sold across the 10 days of action – and that migrant workers and children will be bused in to stop the stadium appearing more than half-empty on TV. That is a far cry from the optimism displayed when tickets went on sale, with organisers promising that there had been “registrations of interest from literally all corners of the world”.

An IAAF spokesperson accepted ticket sales had been “challenging” but said nobody could have foreseen the boycott of Qatar by other gulf states, making it impossible for some fans in the region to watch the championships.

When asked about the possibility of tickets being given away, the spokesperson added: “Surely it is a good thing that communities across Qatar will be getting tickets? We believe it will inspire a whole new generation of fans into the sport.”

More than 1,800 athletes from around 150 countries are expected to take part in the world championships, which will be held in the Middle East for the first time.

However, Doha is not one of the traditional hotbeds of the sport and the event takes place at a time of year when the season is usually over. Nonetheless, the IAAF president, Seb Coe, has insisted that the championships will help track and field expand into new territories.

Organisers have promised a raft of innovations for the event, including two miniature cameras in each starting block that will show the first pictures of athletes’ faces in the 100m moments before they hear the starting pistol, and capture the explosion of energy as the athletes leave the blocks.

Paul Chelimo qualifies for World Championship 5,000m final, who won without a shoe

In Friday’s World Championship 5,000m, American and Olympic 5,000m medallist Paul Chelimo lost his shoe in the heats but still managed to win his section and qualify with the leading time for the final on Monday.

Chelimo was clipped on lap seven of 12.5. He reportedly has several blisters, but should be fine to compete come Monday. After his cool down, he said he plans to go and find his shoe.

Chelimo ran a strong race and managed to remain on the pack despite multiple pace and lead changes during the 13 minute race. Canada’s Justyn Knight and Moh Ahmed are also both through to Monday’s final. Both Knight and Ahmed were 2017 World Championships 5,000m finalists and are poised to be serious contenders.

Knight has run a massive personal best this year, hitting 13:09 in the same race that Ahmed became the first Canadian to run under 13:00 minutes for the 5,000m.

After one day of track action, team Canada is has sent an athlete to the semi-final in every event with qualifiers. Gen Lalonde has qualified for the 3,000m steeplechase final on Monday, Lindsey Butterworth qualified for the 800m semi-finals, Andre De Grasse and Aaron Brown are both through to the 100m semi-final and now Ahmed and Knight are through in the 5,000m.

Tonight is the first final of the event with three Canadian women running the marathon at 4:59 p.m. EDT. Sasha Gollish, Melanie Myrand and Lyndsay Tessier are all lining up for what will likely be the hottest marathon of their lives this evening. The temperature at the start of the marathon is estimated at upwards of 40 degrees celsius.

Roberta Groner, 41, Finishes 6th at Worlds Championships in Doha Marathon

41-year-old mother of three Roberta Groner had already turned a lot of heads this year by running 2:29:09 at the Rotterdam Marathon in April and qualifying for Team USA for the World Track and Field Championships in the marathon.

Then she went out and did one better running 2:38:44 in brutally hot conditions to finish 6th at the World Championships early today in Doha (The race started at 11:59 p.m. on Friday to try to combat the heat.

Groner went out conservatively (she was 17th at 10k in 36:58) and said that her biggest focus was not on the clock, but on staying hydrated. Groner made ample use of the aid stations, saying she ran almost the entire race with a bottle in her hand, and also used ice in her headband to cool her head and neck.

“I felt like I was just constantly drinking or throwing water on me,” Groner said.

Working with Team USA teammate Carrie Dimoff, who would finish 13th, Groner gradually worked her way up the field, climbing to 12th by halfway, 8th by 30k (by which time she had dropped Dimoff) and 6th by the finish.

“Had three children, just wanted to get back out there a little bit for myself,” Groner said. “Do something for me. My kids can see something that I do passionately. We all do something passionately right? Could be play piano, whatever you want to be, do something. As long as it’s something you love to do with your heart, that’s all you gotta do.”

In the last few years, Groner began ramping up the intensity building toward the Olympic Trials and the results have followed. She ran 2:30:37 at CIM in 2017 — a PR of almost six minutes — then lowered her best to 2:29:09 in Rotterdam this April. 

When she got the opportunity to represent the US at Worlds, she jumped at it — even though she’s already signed up for the New York City Marathon in November.

“Once they asked me to do Worlds, I mean I’m 41,” Groner said “Absolutely an honor for me to come out here and represent my country.”

No doubt, Groner did her country proud today.

Top Israeli runner Chemtai Salpeter succumbs to extreme heat while in 5th place in competition in Qatar, hurting her chances of qualifying for 2020 Olympics

Israeli runner Lonah Chemtai Salpeter, one of the country’s leading athletes, collapsed Saturday during a marathon in the World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar, failing to finish the race.

Chemtai Salpeter had been considered one of the frontrunners in the race, but dropped out at around 32 kilometers (20 miles) while she was in fifth place due to excessive heat.

She was receiving medical treatment and in recovery.

Out of the 68 runners who participated in the race, 23 failed to finish, according to the International Association of Athletics Federations, which presided over the event.

On Friday, the organization told entrants that the race would be held as planned despite heat of 30-32.7 °C (86-91 °F) and humidity of 73 percent. The letter to the runners said that medical personnel were preparing for the harsh conditions. The marathon and other endurance events were being held late at night to minimize exposure to heat.

Salpeter was pushing to close a gap with the leading pack around the halfway mark of the race before she collapsed, and had closed her time difference with the leading five runners from one minute to 11 seconds.

Earlier this month, Salpeter broke a European record for the women’s 10K, finishing a race in the Netherlands in 30 minutes and 4 seconds.

The top 10 finishers in Saturday’s marathon qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Those who failed to qualify in Doha will need to achieve the qualifying time of 2 hours, 29 minutes, 30 seconds in a later race.

Last year, Chemtai won the Florence Marathon, crossing the finishing line in 2 hours, 24 minutes, 17 seconds, setting an Israeli record.

Chemtai already held the Israeli records for 1,500, 3,000, 5,000 and 10,000 meters, and the half marathon.

Born in Kenya, Chemtai moved to Israel in 2011 and fought for citizenship for years. She eventually received Israeli citizenship in March of 2016 after winning the Tel Aviv marathon, allowing her to compete for Israel in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, shortly after the birth of her son, Roy.

It was very hot even at midnight for the women’s marathon at the IAAF world championships in Doha

A first midnight marathon at a world championship saw Kenya’s Ruth Chepngetich earn her first major gold on the floodlit Corniche tonight, clocking 2:32:43 in testing heat and humidity.

It was also the first gold to be won at the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019.

The 25-year-old became the third fastest ever in the women’s lists in winning the Dubai Marathon in January in 2:17:08, but on this occasion the challenge was about endurance rather than speed as the race began in temperatures officially estimated at between 30 and 32.7 Centigrade, and humidity of 73 per cent.

Bahrain's defending champion Rose Chelimo took silver on the seven-lap circuit in 2:33:46, 63 seconds back, and bronze went to Namibia's Commonwealth champion Helalia Johannes in 2:34:15.

At the age of 39 - she turns 40 on November 15 – Kenya’s 2011 and 2013 world champion, and 2017 silver medallist Edna Kiplagat missed out on another medal by one agonising place having tracked the lead for the bulk of the race.

Her time in a race where the top 10 finishers qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Games was 2:35:36.

Volha Mazuronak of Belarus, the European champion who survived a massive nosebleed to win in Berlin, hung onto fourth place after a long solo run, clocking 2:36:21.

Forty-one-year old Roberta Groner of the United States claimed sixth place in 2:38:44, one place ahead of Japan's Mizuki Tanimoto.

North Korea's Ji Hyang Kim earned eighth place in 2:41:24, Lyndsay Tessier of Canada claimed ninth place in 2:42:03, and tenth place went to Un Ok Jo of North Korea in 2:42.23.

On an unpredictable occasion which saw 23 of the 68 starters fail to finish, the biggest surprise was the fact that all three Ethiopian runners dropped out before the race got past halfway.

Ethiopia were represented by the runners who stood third and fourth on the entry list behind Chepngetich – Ruti Aga, who has run 2:20:40 this year and has a best of 2:18:34, and Roza Dereje, who has run 2:20:51 this year and has a best of 2:19:17.

And the third Ethiopian selected, Shure Demise, has run 2:21:05 this season.

Israel’s sole entrant was also a runner to be noted – 30-year-old Lonah Salpeter, who won the European 10,000m title in Berlin last summer and has a best of 2:19:46.

She ran gallantly in fifth place for much of the race, closing a minute’s gap on the lead group, only to see them accelerate away. She pulled out between the 31st and 32nd kilometres.

Chelimo’s silver was a surprise given her relatively poor record this year.

Amidst good numbers of spectators lining the barriers, Chepngetich made an early effort to break away but was hauled back into the main group.

Any thought that she might have misjudged her effort was dismissed, however, she made a second, decisive break as she entered the last of the seven scheduled laps and was never headed.

“I am feeling good,” she said. “I am very happy and I thank God for my win.”

Asked about the conditions, she responded: “It was not bad for me!”

And on the subject of whether she could win at next year’s Tokyo Olympics, she added: “I will try my best.”

The IAAF will make extra provisions to avoid extreme heat at world championships in Qatar

The IAAF president, Sebastian Coe, says extra medical staff, ice baths and water will be brought in for the women’s marathon on Friday amid growing concerns about the extreme conditions at the World Athletics Championships in Qatar.

Despite the race starting at 11.59pm local time, temperatures in Doha are expected to be around 32C (90F) with humidity forecast at 80%, and there are concerns that the race could turn into a dangerous farce if the brutal weather forces many athletes to drop out.

But Lord Coe, who was re-elected president of athletics’ governing body on Wednesday , said there were no plans to cancel the women’s marathon or the men’s 50km walk on Saturday while insisting that protecting competitors was his first priority.

“We have to be mindful of the welfare of the athletes,” he said. “We have a medical team who will monitor conditions all the time. We’ve undertaken a lot of work on heat management. We recognise that the road events are those that need to be carefully monitored. We have more medical supervision, more water available. There’s no plan to cancel.”

Writing on social media, the British distance runner Helen Davies, who competed in the 2010 Commonwealth Games marathon in Delhi in 30C (86F) and 90% humidity, said it was “ludicrous, not to mention dangerous and potentially fatal” to run in such conditions. Writing of her experience, she said: “In the last 5km I was hallucinating and felt like I was cold, despite being the complete opposite, very scary. I would be very worried if I was heading into that marathon.”

Coe conceded that the race, in which Tish Jones and Charlotte Purdue will compete for Britain, would be tough but refused to be drawn on whether it would turn into a farce.

“I don’t want to speculate on that, but, of course, I want as many people to finish as possible,” he said. “Our medical teams are going to be very good. The heat is actually not the big issue, the issue is humidity, that is the real challenge. We have extra precautions, we do have extra things out on the course. We have more medical supervision, more water available but, yes, it is going to be tough.”

The IAAF also announced it had a budget deficit of $20m (£16m) but Coe insisted a new deal with the Wanda Sports Group in China made him optimistic about the future. “It’s has been a tough four years, there is no point being naive or coy about that,” he said. “I want the next four years to be the fun bit. We have to grow the sport.

“We know we have to reach beyond the beltway of athletics fans. We need to form partnerships at every level. We have to place the sport as a service provider for government agendas and get more people active and physically engaged.”

Richard Kilty is going to be the captain of the Great Britain and Northern Ireland team for the IAAF World Championships

World and European indoor gold medalist is keen to share his “experience and enthusiasm” with the squad at the IAAF World Championships

Sprinter Richard Kilty has been voted captain of the Great Britain & Northern Ireland team for the IAAF World Championships taking place in Doha starting September 27.

Kilty, who won the world indoor 60m title and European indoor gold medals in 2015 and 2017, received the most votes after every member of the 73-strong British team was given the chance to nominate their choice of captain.

“It feels incredible,” said Kilty, who also recently captained Team Europe at The Match in Minsk. “It’s always a huge honor to represent the British team but to be selected as captain feels amazing. It will definitely go down as a special moment in my athletics career.

“The squad is so talented with many star athletes. A lot of the athletes in the squad have leadership skills and would do an amazing job at being captain so to think that they have voted me in is a huge honor and I’m over the moon with being captain.”

A European gold medalist in the men’s 4x100m relay from 2014 and reigning Commonwealth champion in the event, Kilty won the 200m at the European Team Championships last month and this season has also come within 0.05 of his 20.34 PB set in 2013.

Selected for his fourth successive world championships as part of the world champion men’s 4x100m relay squad, Kilty is the sixth British athlete to have been voted as captain by his fellow athletes and, as part of his role, will deliver the pre-championships captain’s speech at the British team meeting.

“It makes it extra special that my fellow athletes have selected me as their captain,” Kilty added. “I have lots of experience and enthusiasm, which I be sharing with the squad.

“I will bring energy and confidence to everyone around me from the athletes to the team staff. I’ve got a great story to tell and I will try my best to inspire the team every moment from my team speech and on a daily basis over the course of the championships.”

Big Prize money awaits athletes at World Athletics Championships Doha with over 7.5 million US dollars on the line

Athletes down to compete at the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019 will share over $7.5US million in prize money.

In addition to the prize money, athletes who set a world record will be eligible for a special award of $100,000 offered by TDK and Qatar National Bank (QNB).

The winner of each event will walk away with $60,000 while relay teams will get $80,000 for the win.

All payments, however, are subject to the usual ratification process.

Prize money breakdown all in US dollars

Individual events - Gold $60,000, Silver $30,000, Bronze $20,000, fourth place $15,000, fifth place $10,000, sixth place $6,000, seventh place $5,000, eighth place $4,000.

Relays (per team).- Gold $80,000, Silver $40,000, Bronze $20,000, fourth place $16,000, fifth place $12,000, sixth place $8,000, seventh place $6,000, eighth place $4,000.

Kenyan Laban Korir is eyeing gold at debut in the World Marathon Championships

Laban Korir is hopeful to end the year with victory at the World Marathon Championships in Doha, Qatar.

The 34-year-old has thrown down the marker and hopes his persistence, perseverance and patience will pay off as he makes his debut for Kenya team in the world championships.

"After I got the message from Athletics Kenya (that I was in the team) I was very happy. It is not easy to make the Kenyan team in the marathon," he said on Tuesday.

"You dream of making the Kenyan team but you think, no, it is not possible. I was so proud to be selected. I want to represent my country well."

After a sixth place in Boston - in baking hot temperatures which soared to a high of 31 C - and a respectable 11th in the Chicago Marathon (2:09:52), Korir is ready to face the heat in Qatar.

In 2014, Korir entered the marathon winners' circle for the first time with victory in the Toronto clocking 2:08:15, and he has had impressive consistency over the past three or four seasons.

In 2016 he placed second in the Paris Marathon in 2:07:29 before running a personal best of 2:05:54 for fourth in the Amsterdam Marathon later that year.

In Doha, he will team up with defending champion Geoffrey Kirui, Amos Kipruto, Paul Lonyangata and Ernest Ngeno.

"If you are disciplined, work hard and are serious about every workout then this can lead to good results," explains Korir.

At the Barcelona Marathon in February a back injury, picked up a week prior, badly compromised his efforts to produce his best, but once again showing an indomitable spirit he battled to finish ninth.

"In my mind, I wanted to finish the race because I wanted to race at the World Championships. I have such a passion to represent my country," said Korir.

Training with two world and Olympic champions Eliud Kipchoge and Stephen Kiprotich, Korir knows he is learning from the best and will want to stand out as the best in Doha.

"The one thing I have learned is never to lose hope in your life. Anything can happen at any time and anything is possible. I'm very happy after all these years I will finally get the chance to represent my country," he said.

Two-time world champion Edna Kiplagat will lead Kenya's women team in the Doha world championship

At 39, two-time marathon World Champion Edna Kiplagat is going for gold and nothing less in the forthcoming Doha edition, having narrowly missed the title in 2017.

Kiplagat will lead a strong team that has Ruth Chepng’etich and Visiline Jepkesho in clean podium sweep mission, admitting Doha is not the best place for records but titles.

The London 2017 silver medalist and former New York marathon champion interestingly says she eyes up to 2021 world championships glory, when she will be 41.

The women marathon team will to open Kenya’s medal hunt, when they hit the road shortly after the opening ceremony at the Khalifa International Stadium, on September 27.

The 2017 Boston Marathon champion is set to make history as the first woman to win the world title three times. She is however conscious of the tough conditions expected in Doha.

“We are preparing well so far. We have done a few changes in training our training program because we are told the will be too much heat in Doha. We are therefore training hard in the day to get ready for the conditions there,” said Kiplagat.

With her personal best time of 2:19.50 set during the London Marathon in 2012, the former New York City Marathon champion is however not looking to better her time in Doha.

“In 2017 I tried my best, my target was to make history and win the third gold but fatigue derailed me in the last kilometers. This year I want to bring home the gold medal, the rest can come as a plus,” explained a confident Kiplagat.

The Daegu 2011 and Moscow 2013 marathon queen thinks she has unfinished business at the Worlds, and can do more beyond the Doha edition.

“I still believe I have energy to compete up to 2021, so Doha is not the last stop. If I make it there I can still push further in the next edition,” the decorated runner revealed.

She says a six-year wait for another gold is long enough and hopes to culminate into a glamorous end, after her dream for a third title was quashed by Kenyan born Bahrain’s Rose Chelimo in London.

“I leave it all to God, I believe in this team and with good team work we can conquer the world gain,” concluded Kiplagat, who almost quit after the 2017 loss.

The Many Woes of Track and Field’s Biggest Event

The IAAF World Championships are happening when the season should already be over.  Normally, at this point in the year, the summer track and field season would be a wrap.

Things are a little different in 2019. The biennial IAAF World Championships, which are usually held in mid-August, will this year take place in late September to early October. This is because they are happening in the runner’s paradise that is Doha, Qatar. While the small, oil and gas-rich emirate has been a fixture on the Diamond League circuit for years, the IAAF decision to stage a global championships in the country has been controversial, to put it mildly.

Here’s why.

The Heat Is Brutal

One could be forgiven for thinking that the Persian/Arabian Gulf isn’t the best place to stage an outdoor sporting event during the warmer months of the year. (The Doha Diamond League meet is always in early May.) In September, the average daily high in Doha still hits triple digits. That’s why the World Championships are taking place from September 27 to October 6. Even so, it is still likely to be quite warm, as evidenced by the fact that the marathon will start at midnight.

The Timing Is Not Ideal

“It always looked like a really strange choice for the IAAF to make,” Ed Warner, the former head of UK Athletics and chairman of the last World Championships in London, told the BBC in 2017 about the decision to bring the championships to Doha. At the time, Warner expressed concerns that postponing Worlds until the fall would mean that the event would have to compete with hugely popular broadcasts of Champions League and English Premier League soccer. By the same token, from an American perspective, one of the benefits of past IAAF championships is that they took place during a mid-to-late summer sports vacuum, before football season and baseball playoffs could hijack a potential viewership. 

Migrant Workers Have Been Exploited

The decision to stage the championships in Qatar leaves the IAAF vulnerable to criticism that the organization is turning a blind eye to human rights abuses. In 2010, Qatar was picked to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which means that the country has been getting a double dose of media scrutiny for years. As a consequence, there have been reports from Amnesty International of widespread exploitation of migrant workers, who, according to the NGO, make up 95 percent of the Qatari labor force. Khalifa Stadium, which will be also major venue for the 2022 World Cup, has been a particular focal point. Construction workers on the site have complained to Amnesty International about having their pay withheld for months, only to eventually receive far less compensation than they were originally promised. 

There Have Been Allegations of Corruption

The 2019 World Championships are also a stark reminder of a legacy that the IAAF is desperately trying to leave behind. The decision to award the championships to Doha was made back in 2014, when the IAAF was led by Lamine Diack, the Senegalese businessman who has since been accused of, among other things, accepting bribes to cover up athlete doping violations. As with Qatar’s successful bid to host the World Cup, where a number of prominent FIFA officials have since been arrested on corruption charges, there is reason to be suspicious that bribery may have also played a role in bringing the World Championships to the emirate. 

Of course, one could argue that it’s not worth dwelling on the potential downsides of a decision that was made years ago and can’t be undone. Like it or not, in just over two weeks, the World Champs will be kicking off in Doha. 

But given the public relations power of mega-events like the Olympic Games and the World Cup (and, yes, even the humble IAAF World Championships) we should be skeptical, even as we allow ourselves to be seduced by the drama of what’s happening on the track.

So I’ll still be watching the World Champs in Doha. It’s better than football in any case.

Kenyan Lilian Kasait qualified for the World Championships

African Games 5,000m champion Lilian Kasait employed an explosive kick in the last 400m to win women's 5,000m race to qualify for the World Championships due September 27 to October 6 in Doha.

Kasait timed 15 minutes and 43.55 seconds to win beating former Africa 5,000m champion Margaret Chelimo to second place in 15:.46.65.

National champion Sheila Chelagat settled third to seal the last place in the 5,000m team.

The trio will join defending World 5,000m champion Hellen Obiri in the race. Obiri, who is the Olympic 5,000m silver medallist, will double up in 10,000m.

"I wanted to test my final kick in the last 400m and it came out well," said Kasait. "We have a strong team capable of defending the title."

Kasait, the 2017 World Cross Country bronze medallist, will be making her maiden appearance at the World Championships.

Chelimo, who will be making her second appearance at the World event, promised to make the podium in Doha after finishing fifth in 2017 London event.

Kenyan Michael Kibet qualified for the World Championships in Doha

A new star was born when little-known Michael Kibet from Iten stormed to victory in men's 5,000m on Thursday to qualify for the World Championships set to run from September 27 to October 6 in Doha, Qatar.

Kibet, who has never represented Kenya at any level, stayed behind the pack before bolting out with 300m to go to triumph in 13 minutes and 26.83 seconds.

Kibet edged out National 5,000m champion Daniel Simiyu to second place in 13:27.95.

Nicholas Kimeli came in third in 13:27.99 as favourite and World Under-20 5,000m Edward Zakayo, who is still recovering from pneumonia, finished a distant ninth in 14:02.44.

"It's a great feeling beating such a strong field to get to represent Kenya for the first time ever," said the 21-year-old Kibet. "I am not surprised since i trained and planned well for the race."

"He told me to stay behind and go for the kill with two laps to go and it worked," Kibet said of his coach, William Koila.

However, there is the likelihood of Athletics Kenya doing away with the 1-2-3 selection for the World Championships.

AK director for Competition Paul Mutwii said they are likely to give a will card when they name the final team on Friday.

Africa 5,000 meters champion Edward Zakayo hopes he will have fully recovered from an injury, to battle for Worlds tickets

Africa 5,000 meters champion Edward Zakayo hopes he will have fully recovered from an illness as he prepares battle in his specialty as the trials for the IAAF World Championships get underway at the Nyayo National Stadium on Thursday.

At the same time, the 2015 world 3,000m steeplechase champion Hyvin Kiyeng, who is eager to reclaim her title, has thrown down the gauntlet for her rivals ahead of the straight final.

The men and women’s 800m semi-finals are saturated with some of the country’s top cream, with former world 800m champions Eunice Sum (2013) and Janeth Jepkosgei (2007) out to try their luck.

United States-based Emmanuel Korir and Michael Saruni, who arrived in the country two weeks ago, and 2016 Diamond League Series 800m winner Ferguson Rotich, are among the star-attractions in men’s two-lap race semi-finals.

Athletics Kenya will select a squad of 46 athletes for the World Championships slated for Sept 28 to Oct 6 in Doha, Qatar.

Zakayo, the World Under-20 Championships’ 5,000m champion, was hit by pneumonia immediately after arriving from the African Games in Rabat last week where he won silver in the 5,000m.

Three-time Diamond League champion, Timothy Cheruiyot now sets his focus on gold in Doha

Had it not been for a rookie error in his first ever international race, Timothy Cheruiyot may not be the same runner – and three-time Diamond League champion – that he is today.

He can now look back on the experience and smile, but in the aftermath of the 2015 IAAF World Relays in The Bahamas he faced backlash back home in Kenya for throwing away the chance of a world record in the distance medley relay.

Cheruiyot, aged 19 at the time and far less experienced than almost everyone else in the race, covered the first lap of his 1600m leg in a lactic-inducing 51.96, opening up a three-second lead on the USA. Over the last two laps, though, USA’s Ben Blankenship clawed back the deficit and overtook Cheruiyot in the closing stages, clocking a world record of 9:15.50.

“It was amazing but also nerve wracking,” he says. “I was young and inexperienced but I also had a lot of adrenalin. I was told by the team coaches that I’d be running the anchor leg and my goal was to bring the baton home in a world. It was a lot of pressure.

“Looking back on it now, of course I know that I went out too fast. Ben Blankenship was a great competitor that day and he and his teammates deserved the world record. I was still really pleased to get silver, but people at home blamed me for not getting gold. It was quite difficult for me.”

It wasn’t long before Cheruiyot redeemed himself. He set 1500m PBs of 3:35.24 and 3:34.86 in the months that followed and went on to finish seventh in the World Championships final in Beijing. The race in Nassau acted as the catalyst for Cheruiyot wanting to improve as a runner.

“The experience gave me a hunger for wanting more international races and to get better at 1500m running.”

Throwing away the chance of a world record wasn’t the first missed opportunity of Cheruiyot’s career, nor was it the last.

One year earlier, he finished third over 800m at Kenya’s trials for the 2014 World U20 Championships, missing a place on the team by 0.07. He finished fourth in the 1500m at Kenya’s 2016 Olympic Trials, missing a place on the team for Rio by half a second.

He also has a streak of four successive major championship silver medals, but he doesn’t count those as disappointments, especially the three that have been earned when finishing second to training partner Elijah Manangoi.

The world champion doesn’t always get the better of Cheruiyot, though, especially on the IAAF Diamond League circuit. In fact, Cheruiyot has been the more dominant in that arena, winning 11 of his 12 Diamond League races between 2018 and 2019, capped last weekend in Brussels with his third successive Diamond trophy.

Athletics fans will be closer to the action than ever before as IAAF introduces ground-breaking technology for the broadcast of the World Championships Doha 2019

The IAAF, with its technology partners and suppliers, has made a concerted push to revolutionise broadcast coverage of athletics at its flagship competition, the biggest sporting event this year, by introducing an array of new cameras that will provide innovative angles on the competition and behind-the-scenes pictures that have never been shown to the audience before.

In collaboration with the IAAF’s long-standing timing partner Seiko, IAAF Productions will launch the world-first technology of Block Cam at Khalifa International Stadium. Two miniature cameras have been installed in each starting block which will provide a new dimension to the coverage of the 100m and sprint hurdles, broadcasting the first pictures of athletes’ faces in the moment before they hear the starting pistol, and capturing the explosion of energy as the athletes leave the blocks.  

IAAF Director of Broadcast James Lord said his team had been working intensively over the past year to ensure that the coverage in Doha would be fresh and dynamic.

“Athletics is an extraordinary sport where our athletes do amazing things,’’ Lord said. “There is exceptional life, colour and movement not only in but around the competition and we wanted to showcase all of this to the world in new and exciting ways.”

The idea for Block Cam came from IAAF Productions Creative and Live Director Westbury Gillett, who felt the audience was missing a crucial moment of the drama by not being able to see the athletes’ faces at the start of sprint races.

“Traditional camera positions only showed the top or side of their heads as they took their marks,’’ Lord explained. “The new cameras within the blocks will capture that intense moment just before a race. Seiko has done a brilliant job of bringing this to life.”

Seiko will also introduce an improved Start Video System, video distance measurement for shot put and new LED sand pit event boards which will deliver more information to spectators.

The Chairman and Group CEO of Seiko Holdings Corporation, Shinji Hattori said: “We are very proud of the service that we have created for the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019.

“Our main responsibility is to deliver accurate, reliable and fast timing and measurement data and we remain 100% focussed on this, as our enhanced Start information System for sprints demonstrates. However, for Doha, we have also invested in new technologies that bring the sport closer to the fans like the ‘Block Cam’ system, and a new information board for the long and triple jumps. We hope that all of this helps bring new excitement and new fans to the great sport of athletics.”

The suite of new cameras being used by IAAF Productions will also include body cameras placed on officials (in the call room and officiating on the race walks course), drones, rail and wire cameras on the back straight, a rail camera in the tunnel between the warm-up track and stadium, a super slo-mo remote camera in the discus cage, and hand-held cameras for athletes to take on victory laps.

World long jump record-holder and two-time world champion Mike Powell has been named an ambassador for the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019

With three weeks to go to the IAAF's premiere showcase event, set for Sept 27 to Oct 6, Powell said he can't wait for action to get underway at the Qatari capital's state-of-the-art Khalifa Stadium.

"I’m very excited to be attending my 11th World Championships: three of those as an athlete and eight as an IAAF Ambassador," said Powell, whose appearance at the 1991 edition in Tokyo, his first at a World Championships, resulted in one of the most legendary long jump competitions of all time.

In Tokyo, Powell prevailed in a classic head-to-head brawl against long-time rival Carl Lewis, sailing 8.95m in the fifth round to break Bob Beamon's vaunted 8.90m world record, set nearly 23 years earlier at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City. Powell's record has now stood even longer, passing the test of time. He successfully defended his title two years later in Stuttgart and took bronze in 1995, his final appearance at the World Championships.

In the ensuing 28 years since he broke the world record, only two jumpers have come within 21 centimetres of his mark: Erick Walder in 1994 and Dwight Phillips in 2009, when they sailed 8.74m.

But over the past 15 months, Cuban sensation Juan Miguel Echevarria has electrified the event with wind-assisted jumps of 8.92m (+3.9m/s) and 8.83m (+2.1m/s), performances produced before he celebrated his 21st birthday, illustrating that he could be the jumper to finally unseat Powell as the event's standard-bearer.

"I’m obviously looking forward to the long jump as Echevarria has said that he may be going for my record after his impressive showing in Zurich of 8.65m," Powell said.

"But also, the 400m hurdles, both men and women, the 200m, the 400m. There are so many things to follow, I can’t wait!"

Powell joins multiple world and Olympic decathlon champion Ashton Eaton and Brianne Theisen-Eaton, the 2016 world indoor pentathlon champion, as an ambassador for the championships' 17th edition.

Drew Hunter is out for the IAAF World Championships due to a foot injury

Making Team USATF for the upcoming IAAF World Championships in Athletics was Drew Hunter's biggest career accomplishment. The 21 year-old adidas athlete, who trains in Boulder, Colo., with the Tinman Elite group, scrapped his way to a fifth place finish in the 5000m at the Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships in July, despite enduring searing foot pain in the weeks leading to those championships which made running almost impossible. As the third man across the finish line with the World Championships standard, Hunter was going to his first big global championships.

"I just did everything I could," Hunter told Race Results Weekly in a telephone interview last night from Boulder. "It's the hardest team to make and I made it. I earned that spot."

But over the last month, Hunter's foot woes have only gotten worse. Despite countless treatments, cross training, ice, anti-inflammatories and rest, the 2019 USA indoor two-mile champion had to accept that his track season was over. He made the decision with coach Tom Schwartz after a workout he attempted last Friday with Tinman teammate Sam Parsons who is preparing for the New Balance Fifth Avenue Mile.

"I warmed up with Sam for his last workout for Fifth Avenue," Hunter recounted. "I'm going to do a hard workout with Sam and see where my foot is at. I did one stride and my foot was on fire. I knew I was done."

Hunter informed USATF of his decision to withdraw from the team. Although the national federation hasn't named a replacement yet, the next athlete in line is Ben True who finished seventh at the USATF Championships and had the World Championships standard at the time of the meet (American athletes were not permitted to chase the standard after the national championships).

Although severely disappointed, Hunter is trying to use this setback as a learning experience. Analyzing his workouts and training schedule with his coach, he has traced the injury --first an inflamed and torn plantar, then a fractured cuboid bone in his right foot-- to what seemed like the most successful period of running of his young career. On June 13, Hunter ran a personal best 7:39.85 for 3000m at the Bislett Games in Oslo. His foot was just a little sore, but his fitness was excellent and he wanted more.

"I felt my planter and it wasn't bad," Hunter explained. "I had the same symptoms before the Oslo Diamond League. Then I ran Olso, then hopped on a flight straight to Boston and did the Boost Games Mile (where he finished second in 3:58)." He continued: "My plantar was sore, but it was very minor. Right after Oslo and Boost Games I ran really well. I looked in my training log and I know where I screwed everything up."

Hunter, who was a miler in high school, had been successful as a 5000m man on a relatively low-mileage training plan. A big training week for him was 80 miles, but wanting to increase his fitness base he ran successive 90-mile weeks after Oslo. That, Hunter said, was the tipping point.

"I ran my two highest mileage weeks ever back to back," Hunter said. He added: "It just kind of slowly got worse and worse."

In his one tune-up race for the USA national meet, Hunter ran the 1500m at the Sunset Tour meeting in Azuza, Calif., on July 9. He clocked a solid 3:37.29, showing that he had enough fitness to run the 5000m at the national meet, but his foot felt awful.

"Then I ran Azuza, and after the race I could barely walk," Hunter said. "My plantar was, like, on fire. After Azuza my training went really inconsistent and really shaky into nationals. I couldn't do long runs, I couldn't do workouts."

Hunter knew the injury was bad, but decided not to get an MRI because part of him didn't want to know how bad it really was. He was committed to the national meet and didn't want to pull out. That's what professional athletes do, he said.

"I didn't get an MRI before and that was intentional because I knew something was wrong. I knew I had a plantar problem, but I didn't want to know how severe because I was all-in on running nationals." He continued: "So I just worked with my soft tissue therapist and just managed it."

Ironically, by taking so many steps to protect his plantar Hunter actually caused the cuboid fracture. The planter problem is mostly resolved, he said, but the the cuboid fracture needs more time to heal.

400m world record holder Wayde van Niekerk of South Africa will not defend his title at the IAAF World Championships in Doha, Qatar, as he continues to recover from a knee injury

The 2016 Olympic gold medallist, who already qualified for the event as the reigning world champion, suffered the injury while participating in a celebrity rugby match in 2017.

Despite the setback, van Niekerk’s management remains confident that the two-time world champion will return to competitive running.

“I’m still positive and I’m just taking things day by day, respecting all the calls made by the doctor and respecting my body,” van Niekerk said in a statement.

The two-time world champion has been cleared by his coach Ans Botha to resume training having undergone additional rehabilitation at Aspetar Sports Medicine Hospital in Doha.

Van Niekerk added that he was extremely happy, at peace with where he was and not rushing or pressuring himself.

“My main goal is to look after my body and when the opportunity comes, I’ll take it,” van Niekerk said.

Van Niekerk’s doctor, Louis Holtzhausen, is also optimistic of his return noting that the latest rehabilitation process yielding promising results.

“The medical teams, both in Bloemfontein and Aspetar, did all we could to have him ready for the World Championships, but it was just not possible,” Holtzhausen said.

Van Niekerk has raced only once in 2019 at the Free State Championship in Bloemfontein in February winning the event in a time of 47.28. In contrast, his world record stands at 43.03 while his best time since the Rio Olympics is 43.62 in July 2017.

Van Niekerk’s focus is likely to be a full recovery in preparation for the defense of his Olympic title at the Games in Tokyo next year.

In July, van Niekerk’s agent said that the South African had picked up a bone bruise in his right knee that had set back his training by five to six weeks.

A British team of 72 athletes has been named for the IAAF World Championships in Doha

A 72-strong squad has been announced for the global event in Qatar, taking place from Sept 27 to Oct 6.

Dina Asher-Smith, Zharnel Hughes and Adam Gemili have all been confirmed for sprint doubles, with Gemili also joined on the 4x100m squad by his fellow reigning world relay champions Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake and CJ Ujah.

In total, 44 athletes return to the world stage after having earned selection for London two years ago, including British 1500m champion Laura Muir and world indoor hurdles champion Andrew Pozzi, while 24 athletes will make a World Championships debut for GB & NI in Doha, including European indoor silver medallists Jamie Webb and Tim Duckworth and British champions Ojie Edoburun, Neil Gourley, Harry Coppell and Ben Williams.

Kyle Langford has been handed the third men’s 800m spot, while Jake Wightman has secured a 1500m place.

Mo Farah has not yet confirmed whether he will race as the defending 10,000m champion and the team does not currently feature any male athletes in that event, but Eilish McColgan and Steph Twell have been named for the 25-lap discipline, with McColgan set to double up in the 5000m where she will be joined by Jessica Judd and Laura Weightman.

A first wave of athlete selections was announced in May, with Callum Hawkins confirmed for the men’s marathon, although Dewi Griffiths has withdrawn through injury.

Charlotte Purdue and Tish Jones will run the women’s marathon.

British Athletics states that any invites for the championships will be considered “in line with the British Athletics selection policy”.

The governing body adds: “Given the timelines outlined by the IAAF as to when these invites will be received, appeals will not be considered.”

British Athletics performance director Neil Black said: “It gives me great pleasure to name the 72 athletes selected to compete for Great Britain & Northern Ireland at the IAAF World Championships in Doha, starting later this month. Given the standard of performances from British athletes this season, and the strength in depth we possess in several events, finalizing the team was far from easy and there were some tough decisions to make.

“In the 72 athletes, I truly believe we have selected the strongest team possible to compete for medals on the global stage. The team is full of world-class athletes who over the past two years since we were hosts in London have proven that they belong on the global stage.

“It is great to see so many athletes return having competed in London and also see so many make the step up to the world level for the first time. We have selected more women than men once again for a major championships and special mention needs to go to Martyn Rooney, who is competing at his eighth world championships, a truly remarkable feat for a great athlete.

“The championships are going to be held in a challenging climate at the end of what has been a long season already but what pleases me the most is how our athletes have approached the challenge and are ensuring that they peak when it matters most. The next three and a half weeks are key in preparing for the championships and I look forward to watching our athletes flourish in Doha.”

The allure of a back-to-back win for Geoffrey Kirui and a third win for Edna Kiplagat will inspire the Kenyan team to dominate the World Championships in Doha, Qatar

The final team from Kenya will thus have the defending champion Kirui, Amos Kipruto, Laban Korir and Paul Lonyangata in the men's team while the women's has Kiplagat, Ruth Chepngetich and former Paris Marathon champion Visiline Jepkesho.

After missing out on the title in London in 2017, Kiplagat knows she is on the cliff and she has to get it right on her fifth attempt in Doha.

"We are prepared to do our best as a team during the World Championships. We will be working as a team to deliver the best results. It feels special for me because I will be chasing my last medal at this stage having been part of the team since 2011 in Daegu, South Korea," said Kiplagat on Friday in Nairobi.

For the first time in the history of marathon, the race in Doha will be staged at midnight to limit the damage of extreme heat on the athletes. The average temperatures in October in Doha sees highs of 35 degrees celsius and lows of 25.

The IAAF has sanctioned the event to be pushed back from the traditional start date due to weather (the event is now being hosted in October instead of August) and major action is being taken to ensure that athletes are able to perform in the extreme heat.

Kenya's athletics team manager Joseph Kiget says the marathon team is the best the country has ever assembled and will weather the storm from rivals Uganda, Ethiopia, USA and Japan.

"This team is very strong and we expect good results in Doha," said Kiget, noting that Kenya has selected a strong coaches team and he is confident that they will deliver good results in the championships.

"Kitting of the team has been a problem in the past but this time around, we have been able to deliver on time and we thank the AK for supplying the kits on time," he said.

Kiget also said that Kenyan marathoners will be taken through training in hot climatic conditions enable them to acclimatize to the conditions in Doha.

With just one month to go until the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019, the organising committee today revealed the design of the medals to mark the start of the final countdown to the competition

More than 2000 of the world’s top athletes will be competing for 192 medals set to be awarded across 49 finals during the 10-day competition, which gets underway on Friday 27 September.

Paying homage to the Qatari capital, the gold, silver and bronze medals were designed by the all-female branding team in the Qatari capital, showcasing the Doha skyline and illustrations of the iconic Khalifa International Stadium, which will host the championships as it comes to the Middle East for the first time.

With dedicated designs on the medals, the Doha skyline, which will be the backdrop of the marathon and race walk events, makes up the other side of the medal, while 13 different elements of athletics disciplines are also weaved into the design.

Specially handcrafted in Doha by Sndala, the local company has also incorporated traditional Arabic Sadu patterns with a modern sporting twist.

“A medal is the symbol of excellence in our sport,” says IAAF President Sebastian Coe. “It represents all the years of sweat, striving and persistence required to succeed in athletics at the highest level, so the design of the medals must be as special as the achievement in winning them. Our local organizing committee in Doha has done a brilliant job in creating medals that our athletes will be proud to receive as a permanent keepsake of their moment of glory. I’d like to have one myself, so I may have to come out of retirement.”

Speaking on the final preparations and medals for the championships, Sheikha Asma Al Thani, director of Marketing and Communications for the local organising committee, said: “Having designs on the medals which showcase Qatar is a special occasion for the country, as so many people throughout Doha have played a vital role in delivering the competition. A gold medal will naturally take pride of place in an athlete’s collection and they will be reminded of the competition being held in the Middle East forever.

“The whole of Qatar is excited to welcome the world’s best athletes and we look forward to celebrating the successes of all those competing and those iconic moments at the finish lines and on the podiums.”

Eight refugee athletes will compete at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar

“We have been training hard. The team is motivated and prepared to perform well at the World Championships. The refugee camp has 30 athletes, out of which we have selected eight for the Doha championships.

We already have three athletes who have qualified for the Tokyo Olympics from the team and we are sure others will attain the qualification standard by next year,” said head coach Thomas Mukwana.

On Thursday, Athletics Kenya President Jackson Tuwei and other officials met the team during the national athletics championships at Nyayo Stadium.

The refugees’ team first participated in the World Championships in London in 2017 and since then, the team has been invited to all IAAF events, with the travel and accommodation for the athletes and officials catered for by the IAAF.

The programme is an initiative of Tecla Loroupe, a three-time world champion, through the Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation.

Kamworor remained adamant that Doha is not on his mind as he seeks to reclaim the New York Marathon title

Kenya Defence Forces Alex Oloitiptip is the beneficiary of a slot to represent the country at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Qatar next month despite finishing fourth during yesterday’s national trials.

Oloitiptip, a 58:51 man over the half marathon clocked 27:29.40 behind race winner Geoffrey Kamworor (27:24.76), Rhonex Kipruto (27:26.34) and Rodgers Kwemoi (27:26.92).

Richard Kimunyan (27:47.86) and Bernard Kimeli (27:53.32) completed the top six places.

Oloitiptip got the rare slot after Kamworor remained adamant that Doha is not on his mind as he seeks to reclaim the New York Marathon title he won in 2017 but lost to Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa last year.

In a rare move, Athletics Kenya held the 10,000m race trials during the national trials and it was evident from the onset that the invited athletes were eager to bag a ticket to Doha, save for Kamworor, whose aim was to represent his team, National Police Service and as well fine-tune for New York.

In fine weather conditions, Oloitiptip set the early pace followed closely by 2008 Olympic bronze medallist Edwin Soi and Kimunyan, the 2018 world U-18 3,000m champion.

The race went into a single file by the start of the sixth lap with no athlete willing to make the decisive move. Road racer Bernard Kimeli then tried to up the pace in the eighth lap after taking the lead but the chasing pack kept tabs with him for the next four laps.

Kipruto took the lead at the halfway point controlled the race comfortably with Kwemoi and Kimunyan still interested. Kamworor joined the leading pack in the 17th lap and bid his time as Kipruto and Kwemoi tussled for the lead.

At the bell, Kamworor made his move, cruising past a tiring Kipruto and Kwemoi and strode home to victory.

“I was using the event today to test my speed work for the marathon. My body is in good shape and I am confident I can win in New York come November 3,” said Kamworor.

Hellen Obiri has announced she will compete in both the 5k and 10k races at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha

Kenyan middle-distance champion Hellen Obiri has announced she will compete in both the 5k and 10k races at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha next month.

Obiri, 29, the current world 5,000m champion, aims to become one of the rare athletes to win over both distances at the same event.

“Since I have a wild card for the 5,000m in Doha, I feel it is the right time to run both the 5k and 10k. The humid weather has been favourable to me the three times I have ran in the Qatari capital,” Obiri told AFP.

“I know that this is a big task but I am going to intensify my training in these remaining five weeks before we travel to Doha.”

Obiri qualified for the 10k race by coming second behind world bronze medallist Agnes Tirop in the Kenyan trials on Wednesday. Rosemary Wanjiru finished third in the qualifying race.

Three-time World Half Marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor and World Under-20 10000m champion Rhonex Kipruto to renew rivalries with Doha tickets on the line

Geoffrey Kamworor and  Rhonex Kipruto are set to light up Nyayo National Stadium when the National Athletics Championships takes place from August 20 to 22.

While the trials for the World Championships is slated for September 3 at the same venue, the 10000m races for both men and women will be used to select Kenya’s team for the global showpiece set for September 28 to October 6 in Doha, Qatar.

Kamworor who has been regarded the king for both track and road races will have to deal with the youthful Kipruto who is no doubt one of Kenya’s finest talents over the distance.

The duo last clash was at this year’s World Cross Country Championships with Kamworor settling for a bronze medal while Kipruto came sixth.

After storming to an easy win at the National Police Service, Kamworor revealed that he was not yet decided if he will be competing at the Worlds since he may opt to take a shot at the Copenhagen Half Marathon which comes a week before the World Championships after his entry was confirmed June.

Although the pair may be the favorites on paper, World Under-20 10000m silver medalist Stanley Waithaka should not be ignored either being one of the 10 athletes who have already hit the qualification mark of 27:40.00 alongside Kamworor and Kipruto.

Ireland´s Mark English has declared his intent to qualify for next month’s World Athletics Championships in Doha following yesterday’s sensational 800m win at the Diamond League meeting in Birmingham

English put a disappointing Cork City Sports behind him thanks to his dramatic success at Alexander Stadium, which scarcely looked possible with less than 100 metres to go – and now he wants qualification for Qatar wrapped up within the week.

The Letterkenny UCD AC athlete didn’t finish the 800m at CIT on Wednesday night, withdrawing with 200m to go as the race was well beyond him, but this time around rocketed from down the field to earn a sensational win on athletics’ biggest circuit.

The Donegal star was lying 8th and way down at the final bend as Alfred Kipketer of Kenya and Britain’s Elliot Giles were fighting it out for the win.

But they never spotted the man in lane four.

With absolute determination, three-times European Championship medallist English pushed through on the outside to score a major victory on the world tour, albeit in a race not actually counting towards the Diamond League standings.

English won in a season’s best time of 1:45.94 seconds – just 0.14 seconds outside the IAAF qualifying time for next month’s Worlds in Doha – a full second inside his previous best mark of the campaign.

Kipketer finished second in 1:46.10, with Giles third in 1:46.27, in a contest where unusually there were a mammoth twelve starters.

English paid tribute to coach Steve Magness and physio Chris Bramah afterwards, quipping on social media: “A right funny old sport, eh? Nice to take the big win at the Birmingham Diamond League today. Big step in the right direction.”

Reece Prescod and Laura Muir, two of Britain’s leading medal hopes, will both be absent from the world Championships for Doha

Britain have suffered a worrying double injury blow ahead of next month’s World Championships, with Reece Prescod on the verge of missing the event and Laura Muir facing a race against time to regain full fitness.

With that latter event serving as the national trials for the Doha World Championships, any athlete who does not compete will have to rely on the selectors to be given the sole discretionary spot available per event.

That should be a given in the 1500m for Muir, who injured her calf when triumphing at the London Anniversary Games last month but has finished in the top three at all five Diamond League races she has contested this summer.

She is hoping to return to racing at the start of September, although a six-week absence from competition is far from ideal preparation for the four-time European champion, who has her sights firmly set on making the podium in Doha.

Prescod’s situation is more serious, with the double reigning national 100m champion and European silver medalist looking unlikely to recover from a hamstring problem in time to gain selection for the World Championships.

Prescod opened his season by running 9.97 seconds in Shanghai in May, but hobbled over the line when picking up the injury during only his second outdoor race at June’s Oslo Diamond League.

With the British selectors meeting just eight days after the national trials in Birmingham, Prescod has little chance of proving his form and fitness following two and a half months out.

Selecting someone who has completed just one race at full speed all summer would be a major risk and it is understood Prescod does not want to be considered for the team if he is not in good enough shape to make the world final in Doha.

His absence would be a significant blow to a British team short of genuine individual medal contenders. Dina Asher-Smith (100m and 200m), Katarina Johnson-Thompson (heptathlon) and Muir are all expected to make the World Championships podium, while Prescod’s fellow 100m sprinter Zharnel Hughes has strong claims after winning European gold last year.

The rest of the British contingent head to Doha with varying levels of aspiration, rather than expectation, of winning a medal.

Muir has repeatedly come within touching distance of a first global outdoor medal, having finished fifth and fourth over 1500m the last two World Championships and seventh at the Olympics.

Hellen Obiri is having the season of her life and seemingly nothing will stop her attempt of lighting up the World in Doha

By all means, Hellen Obiri is having the season of her life and seemingly nothing will stop her attempt to etch her name amongst Kenya’s athletics folklore.

If her exploits on the track so far this year is anything to go by, she could break the ceiling when the 2019 IAAF World Athletic Championships get underway in Doha, Qatar on September 28.

The month of March was particularly monumental for her what with the World Cross Country triumph in Aarhus, Denmark which earned her a spot in the track greats, having emerged as the first female runner with senior crowns in the IAAF World outdoor (3,000m), World Indoor (5,000m) and World Cross Country Championships (10km).

She reckons it is the toughest win of her career having had to shake off an absorbing Aarhus terrain to reign supreme.

Given that the cross county victory was her debut; she observes that was the best highlight for the first half of the year.

“So far the year has been fantastic for me because I made my debut in World Cross Country and I won.

“That was a good start to form me. We are in the middle of the season and given that we have three months before the year ends, I’m   sure it will be my best,” She told Citizen Digital.

Her meteoric rise has seen her stage strong performances in both indoor and outdoor games and she is leaving nothing to chance in her preparations.

“We are working hard, my coach and my manager are working hard to make sure that everything I need is in place.

“The aim at the moment is to establish my weaknesses and also the areas I need to improve on so that I’m ready for the World Championships,” she added.

Scotland’s marathon record holder Callum Hawkins is turning up the heat in preparation for Doha

Callum Hawkins hopes that subjecting himself to heat chamber therapy, twilight training and running at altitude will set him up to win a medal at this autumn’s IAAF World Athletics Championships.

Hawkins is selected to represent Britain in the marathon in Doha, where the temperatures can hit 35 degrees in late September and early October, when the championships are being held.

The potential heat and humidity has prompted race organisers to choose a start time of one minute before midnight for the men’s marathon on 5 October, and Hawkins has decided to adjust his usual build up for major races to try to acclimatise to the challenging conditions and unconventional start time in the Qatar capital.

Hawkins, who was admitted to hospital after collapsing in unbearably warm conditions during the marathon at the Commonwealth Games in Australia last year, has already been running in the University of the West of Scotland’s environmental chamber to build resistance to the hot conditions.

Speaking after winning Bella-houston Harriers’ Brian Goodwin Memorial 10k in Glasgow on Friday night, the Kilbarchan AAC athlete said he was determined to “get the monkey off my back” in the next major championships.

“The fact it is a night time race in Doha makes it more favorable,” Hawkins said. “The sun is the worst thing, so taking that factor out should take away a bit of the harshness of the heat.”

Marathon-specific training tailored towards Doha is still around six weeks away for Hawkins, but preparation  is set to ramp up shortly.

On July 3, Hawkins will commence altitude training in Flagstaff, Arizona, before he flies to Majorca for further warm weather training. Under the guidance of coach and father Robert, Hawkins will punctuate his schedule with the Beach to Beacon 10k in Maine in early August, and a half marathon in early September – likely the Great North Run – on the agenda.

A further trip to Dubai to join the other British athletes selected for Doha in a pre-championships training camp has also been built into Hawkins’ schedule, and it is during these final couple of weeks of training that he will begin to adjust his body clock.

Olympic decathlon champion Ashton Eaton and indoor pentathlon champion Brianne Theisen-Eaton have been named as ambassadors for the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019

With 50 days to go until the IAAF’s showpiece event gets under way in the Qatari capital, the Eatons are looking forward to 10 days of enthralling athletics action from 27 September until 6 October in what will be their first World Championships as spectators.

For them, the highlight will fall on 2-3 October when – for the first time ever at an IAAF World Championships – the decathlon and heptathlon will be held concurrently, creating two days of excitement for fans of combined events. The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games schedule will also follow this approach.

The champion pair retired after the 2016 Olympic Games, where Eaton won decathlon gold and Theisen-Eaton took the heptathlon bronze medal. But both have continued to follow the sport in recent years.

Theisen-Eaton, who earned world silver medals in the heptathlon in 2013 and 2015, is looking forward to seeing the revamped schedule in action as it provides a new showcase for the combined events.

"Athletics holds such a special place in my heart and I am truly so excited and honored to be an IAAF Ambassador, and to be a part of the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019," she said. "This outdoor World Championships will be unique as it will be the first time the multi event athletes are competing together on the same two days.

"Ashton and I had the opportunity to compete side by side at both the 2014 and 2016 World Indoor Championships, and the energy created from sharing that experience together was unlike any other championship. To do this at an outdoor world championship is really special, and I’m looking forward to watching the camaraderie between the heptathletes and decathletes."

Eaton, winner of the 2013 and 2015 world decathlon titles, says the combined events will be one of the highlights of the championships.

"Some of my most memorable and transformable experiences as a person and athlete have been at the IAAF World Championships - from Berlin in 2009, to Daegu in 2011, to Beijing in 2015," said the two-time Olympic champion. "I’m excited and honored to attend Doha as an ambassador of athletics.

"This year there is anticipation for great performances in many of the single events. But in my opinion the combined events will be the marquee competition of the championships because for one, the men and women will be on the field at the same time making for a fun and lively atmosphere of sport, and two, the caliber of the athletes is arguably the best in history, both veteran and novice.

"I believe we’re witnessing the development of the best athletes of all time."

Berlin marathon silver medalist Amos Kipruto is optimistic to clinch gold at the World Championships in Doha, Qatar

Kipruto, 27, has made the Kenya's team to the World Marathon Championships after his sensational run in Berlin chasing down Olympic champion Eliud Kipchoge as he went on to set a new world record of 2:01:39 in the German capital.

Though Kipruto finished the race almost four minutes later clocking 2:06:23, it opened a door for him to represent the country at the World Championships and he has promises to help the country maintain a firm grip on the gold medal at the worlds.

"I must laud the head coach for trusting me with the duty to represent Kenya at the World Championships. It will be my first time to represent Kenya at the World Championships and I had been praying over it for some time.

"In Kenya we have many athletes and being selected means that I am living the dream itself. So it is up to me to win gold and wrap it up for the country," Kipruto said on Thursday in Eldoret.

Kipruto says Kenyan athletes have the talent, and need not waste it through short cuts by cheating.

"The short cuts are not good. This vice must be destroyed and athletes need to learn that it pays to win clean. Today, we are the most tested athletes worldwide and anyone winning does it through hard training," Kipruto said.

"If you run and train well, it will help you win clean. I know am capable of running a world record one time, but at the moment the focus is on the gold at the World championships."

Kipruto will link up with defending champion Geoffrey Kirui, two-time Paris marathon champion Paul Lonyangata, Laban Korir, and Ernest Ngeno.

At the same time former Commonwealth Games 5,000m champion Mercy Cherono is back from maternity leave and hopes to make Kenya team to the World Championships.

Cherono last won a silver medal in 5,000m during the 2013 Championships in Moscow, Russia.

"I am back in training and hope to make the World Championship team because I have nothing more to prove. Pressure is off me and all I need to do is run my race," she said.

Kenyan´s Mercy Cherono is back from maternity leave and hopes to make Team Kenya from the World Championships

Former Commonwealth Games 5,000m champion Mercy Cherono is back from maternity leave and hopes to make Team Kenya to the World Championships set for September in Doha, Qatar.

The two-time world junior 3,000m champion said she is back to take her rightful position on the track. Cherono last won a silver medal in 5,000m during the 2013 Championships in Moscow, Russia.

“I am back in training and my focus is on the trials. I have no pressure and I am optimistic of making the cut to World Championships,” said Cherono, who won gold in 3,000m at the World Junior Championships in 2008 and 2010. She said she will be seeking a slot in her 5,000m speciality and expects stiff competition.

“All things have changed because I will be running as a mother unlike before and I believe I am stronger than before. After maternity, we always run better because we had enough time to recover.

Any time you train, you are exhausted but after maternity, you run as if you are starting all over again. Just like a kindergarten pupil, you have too much energy to perform,” she added. 

Cherono won 5,000m gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games but failed to defend her title in 2018 as she was on the maternity leave. “Winning a title will be great for me and the country at large because I have had a good time in training. I have also featured in some local meetings,” added Cherono.

Kevin Mayer, Pierre-Ambroise Bosse and Yohann Diniz are part of the first wave of athletes selected by the French Athletics Federation for the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019

Mayer tallied 8768 points to secure the world title in the decathlon in London two years ago before going on the break the world record before a home crowd in Talence last September, scoring 9126 points.

Mayer hasn't completed a decathlon yet this season but has shown strong form in several events, especially the 110m hurdles where he's improved his career best to 13.60.

Diniz, the world record holder in the 50km race walk since 2014, captured his first world title in his specialty in London at 39, in his sixth world championships appearance over the distance.

In a command performance, he led from gun to tape. At the moment, Diniz is the world leader after racing to victory at the European Cup in Alytus, Lithuania, on 19 May, clocking 3:37.43

Bosse, 27, pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the 2017 World Championships edition when taking the 800m title after blasting to the lead with exactly 200 metres to go. This season, Bosse took the French title on 27 July in just his second competition of the year.

Other athletes announced today by the FFA include European 10,000m champion Morhad Amdouni who was selected for the marathon, Gabriel Bordier and Kevin Campion in the 20km race walk and Basile Rolnin in the decathlon.

Botswana´s Ditiro Nzamani has Doha in his eyes after reaching the qualifying standard at the CAA Yaounde International Grand Prix in Cameroon

Ditiro Nzamani can hardly wait for September.

The 19-year-old 400m sprinter from Botswana could be heading to the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019, after reaching the qualifying standard at the CAA Yaounde International Grand Prix in Cameroon on 20 July.

In what was his first race outside of Botswana, Nzamani won the 400m at Yaounde’s Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in 45.07, taking more than a second off his previous PB of 46.10 and beating Cameroon’s Sangou Tetndap and Martial Etoa.

“I am very happy,” said an ecstatic Nzamani, who had been trying without success all year to cover one lap of the track within 46 seconds.

“I was under pressure back home because all the good athletes are running 45 seconds, except me,” added Nzamani, who is now Botswana’s third fastest 400m runner in 2019.

Nzamani has improved with every race in 2019. He started his season back in February with 47.33 in Gaborone, then improved to 47.22 in April. At the Botswana Championships in May, he clocked 46.55 in the heats and 46.10 to win the ‘B’ final.

After a brief break from racing, he returned to competition last weekend in Yaounde where he achieved the World Championships qualifying mark.

Nzamani’s coach, Ipolokeng Ramatshaba, was bursting with pride.

“We are in the presence of a very talented young man,” said Ramatshaba. “It is easy to work with someone like Ditiro who has the desire to outdo himself. When you give him a programme, he follows it wholeheartedly and this is the result.

“He will be in Rabat in Morocco for the Africa Games in August and who knows, he may produce another personal best.

“Not many athletes from Botswana have qualified for the World Championships in Doha, so Ditiro may be entered into the books. There is still a lot of space for him at this point.”

Member federations will confirm their team selections nearer the time of the World Championships. In the meantime, Nzamani – whose role model is Bahamian Steven Gardiner – is already thinking about his other career goals.

“I want to be good enough to get into the Diamond League, just like other Botswanans before me,” he says. “If I get to run in the World Championships in Doha, my aim will be to achieve the Olympic qualifying standard.”

Irish Stephen Scullion is targeting for marathon in Doha after Santry success

It wasn’t unbearably humid, or midnight for that matter, but winning the National 10,000 metres title has further convinced Stephen Scullion to run the marathon at the World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar.

After safely defending his title – in the pleasant Santry sunshine and temperature of 20 degrees – Scullion promptly outlined why he was willing to tackle the 26.2-mile distance in Doha, when many other runners have already decided against it.

The championships take place from September 27th to October 6th, the men’s marathon set for the final day, starting at midnight to offer some relief from the typically searing heat and crippling humidity. It averages 35 degrees in Doha in October, with 85 per cent humidity.

“It was actually a little warmer out there than I thought,” said Scullion, who took the win in 29:36.33, the south Belfast native now running with Dublin club Clonliffe Harriers.

“Obviously it will be a lot warmer in Doha, and it was tough to decide between the World Championships and a fast marathon like Berlin. I could have looked at Dublin in October as well. But I keep talking to my coach, and really believe I can come top-10 in Doha, if I prepare well. I’ve been back and forward on it, but it’s the World Championships, and you’re selected to run for your country, how can you turn that down?

“I’ve trained in humidity, and it is unpredictable, if a thunderstorm rolls in, it can bounce around. It being midnight there won’t be any sun either. I know as well if you break 2:25 in Doha, it mightn’t be a bad day. It mightn’t be a great day, but because it will be tough.

“I just have a feeling, in Doha, if you f-it up, there’s no going back, and a lot of people will think it’s easy, and start going backwards. You will have to train differently, in the heat, and not super fast. It’s about running fast in the heat and humidity.”

Scullion, now 30, ran a personal best of 2:14.34 in Houston in January, the fastest marathon by any Irish man since 2011, and Doha also offers the chance to qualify for next summer’s Tokyo Olympics, the top 10 assured of selection.