Posted: June 23, 2005

Athletics: TDK Golden League 2005 – Middle Distance Events

Monte-Carlo – The TDK Golden League 2005 begins with the Meeting Gaz de France, Paris St Denis on Friday 1 July. With an eye to who is in contention for the $1 million Jackpot, yesterday we began our preview of the 12 TDK Golden League disciplines by assessing the provisional list of competitors in the men’s and women’s 3000m/5000m. Today, we sample some of the delights that await us in three more events, the men’s 800m and 1500m/Mile, and women’s 800m.

Maria Mutola, IAAF World Ranked number one, who was the outright winner of the Golden League Jackpot in 2003, is one of the most experienced campaigners at the world’s six premier meetings - Paris, Rome, Oslo, Zurich, Brussels and Berlin - which comprise the TDK Golden League. The women’s World indoor and outdoor 800m champion was run out of the medals in last summer’s Olympic final, finishing in fourth place. The 32-year-old has blasted back this year with three swift 800m victories (2 indoors), with her outdoor season’s debut in Eugene on 4 June (1:59.95), confirming that she will be in the fight for honours this summer.

Among the talented line-up facing her in Paris are three Russians, perhaps ominously for Mutola, a trio which includes Svetlana Cherkasova who famously beat her last summer in Lausanne.

The men’s 800m, amongst others offers two World champions André Bucher (2001) and reigning title holder Djabir Said-Guerni (2003), along with African champion William Yiampoy, and former Kenyan Youssef Saad Kamel (Gregory Konchellah) now from Bahrain. However, it is Olympic silver medallist Mbulaeni Mulaudzi of South Africa, and Kenyan Wilfred Bungei, the IAAF World Ranked number one, who will start as marginal favourites.

The 1500m is perhaps the hardest race to call. IAAF World Ranked number one, Bernard Lagat, newly an American citizen, will face French hero Mehdi Baala, Ukraine’s Ivan Heshko, and Kenyan Paul Korir, who respectively were the second, third and fourth place finishers at the last World Championships held at the Stade de France venue which hosts the Paris TDK Golden League 2005 opener. In all, five of the top-10 IAAF World Ranked athletes are due to start.

TDK Golden League 2005
2005 Dates
Paris- Friday, 1 July
Rome- Friday, 8 July
Oslo- Friday, 29 July
Zurich- Friday, 19 August
Brussels- Friday, 26 August
Berlin- Sunday, 4 September

2005 Events

There will be seven events for men and five for women:

Men - 100m, 800m, 1500m or Mile, 3000m or 5000m, 110m Hurdles, High Jump, Javelin Throw.
Women - 100m, 800m, 3000m or 5000m, 400m Hurdles, Triple Jump.