Posted: July 1, 2004

Athletics: Golden League Resumes In Rome Friday Night

From David Monti

(c) 2004 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved RaceResultsWeekly.com

by Bob Ramsak

ROME -- A full slate of intense distance competition is on tap as the TDK Golden League series resumes Friday night at the MGK-Vis Golden Gala meeting in Rome's Stadio Olimpico.

Yuriy Borzakovskiy, winner of the Golden League kick-off meet in Bergen, Norway two weeks ago, faces a stiff challenge as he picks up his pursuit of a share of the one million dollar Golden League jackpot. Posing the strongest threat is Wilfred Bungei, last year's fastest, who arrives in Rome after a pair of sub-1:45 races in less than 24 hours at the Kenyan Olympic Trials. Moroccan Amine Laalou (1:44.76 in Milano), Florent LaCasse (1:44.82) of France, and Kenyan William Yampoi (1:44.97) have already dipped under 1:45 this season. World champion Djabir Said Guerni, 2001 World Champion Andre Bucher, and world record holder Wilson Kipketer --in his seasonal debut-- round out the field. Of the fastest racers this year, only Athens-bound Kenyans Michael Rotich and Joseph Mutua, and Spaniard Antonio Reina, the current world leader (1:44.30), are absent from the field.

In the men's 1500, also a Golden League event, Bergen winner Bernard Lagat faces an equally brutal test. With the pressure of the Kenyan trials behind him, Lagat, who was second in Nairobi last weekend to clinch his second Olympic spot, can now fully focus on the competition at hand. World champion Hicham El Guerrouj, who skipped the Bislett Games, makes his second appearance of the year. In his first, he was pushed to the finish by Kenyan Alex Kipchirchir for a narrow .03 win in 3:36.46 in Zaragoza, Spain. It was the world record holder's slowest debut since at least 1996. Mehdi Baala of France, the silver medallist at last year's world championships, comes to Rome on the heels of a solo 3:32.63 win in Strasbourg last weekend.

Also in field are Kenyan trials winner Isaac Songok, along with compatriots Kipchirchir, Paul Korir and Benjamin Kipkirui, and Commonwealth Champion Michael, who lowered his personal best to 3:34.85 in Bergen. Three of the season's top five fastest --world leader Rashid Ramzi of Bahrain (3:31.87), American Alan Webb and Ivan Hesko of Ukraine are not on the startlist.

Last year in Rome, Abraham Chebii stunned both Kenenisa Bekele and Haile Gebrselassie with his vicious kick. This year he returns, less than a week after securing his spot on the Kenyan Olympic team. But the favorite this year is World Champion Eliud Kipchoge, who romped through the Kenyan trials to a strong win over runner-up John Kibowen and Chebii. 19-year-old Mulugeta Wendimu (13:01.28), who was a distant second in Kenenisa Bekele's world record run at Hengelo, leads a strong Ethiopian contingent that also includes Gebre-egziabher Gebremariam, Dejene Berhanu and Abiyote Abate. All three have run 13:05 or faster this season. NCAA champion Alistair Cragg of Ireland will make his professional debut, while American Tim Broe, still on the comeback trail from last year's injury-riddled season, will chase the Olympic 'A' standard.

Elsewhere, World leader Paul Kipsiele Koech (8:05.31 in Sevilla) of Kenya leads a steeplechase field that includes Moroccan Ali Ezzine and European co-record holder Bob Tahri of France.

Six of the entrants in the women's 800 have dipped under two minutes, lead by Russian Svetlana Cherkasova (1:58.53). Front-running Jolanda Ceplak of Slovenia, the winner in Gateshead last weekend has a 1:58.80 to her credit this season, but the darkhorse in the race could be Cuban Zulia Calatayud who was sidelined with injury in 2003. A Sydney Olympic finalist and a sub-1:57 peformer in 2002, the 24-year-old returned to competition with a 1:59.48 win in Algiers a week ago.

The year's second and third fastest, Olga Yegorova and Yelena Zadorozhnaya, head the women's 1500 field. Yegorova, the defending champion, is undefeated in three starts in the last three weeks, while Zadorozhnaya, a 1500/5000 finalist at the world championships last year, arrives off a strong win in Tuesday's Zagreb Grand Prix. World champion Tatyana Tomashova of Russia will make her first major appearance of the season, while Briton Hayley Tullett, last world championships bronze medallist, toes the line as well. Five of the starters have run 4:05 or faster in 2004. Bergen winner Iryna Lishchynska (4:03.76) of the Ukraine, is not on the start list.

With the withdrawal of world record holder Elvan Abeylegesse of Turkey, the women's 5000 is shaping up to be a largely Ethiopian affair. World Champion Tirunesh Dibaba, second to the Ethiopian-born Abeylegesse at Bergen in 14:30.88, leads a field that includes her older sister Ejegayehu, and Sentayehu Ejigu. The trio fills spots three, four and five on the 2004 world list. Lornah Kiplagat of the Netherlands and Edith Masai who dropped out of the Kenyan trials race last weekend, will compete as well.

Five of the 12 Golden League event winners from Bergen --U.S. sprinters Shawn Crawford (200m) and Torri Edwards (100), 100m hurdler Gail Devers of the U.S., Ukrainian Iryna Lishchynska (1500m) and Abeylegesse-- will not be competing in Rome.