They may have a population of 1.4billion, but China has never managed to get a sprinter into a 100m, 200m or 400m final across the past 14 editions of the IAAF World Championships.But with the 15th edition of the championships due to be held for the first time in China in August, the host nation&rsquo;s sprinters are hoping to cause a few surprises at the Birds&rsquo; Nest Stadium this summer.Wei Yongli, winner of the 100m at the 2014 Asian Games and 2013 Asian Championships, is arguably the most in-form sprinter in China at this early stage of the season.The 24-year-old equalled the national indoor 60m record of 7.19 on three consecutive occasions last month. The first of those marks came at the National Grand Prix meeting in Shanghai where she tied the mark set by Li Xuemei at the 2001 IAAF World Indoor Championships.One week later, Wei raced to another 7.19 to win in Xianlin before matching that time again in Beijing the following week.&ldquo;It was definitely a pity,&rdquo; said Wei, who is currently at a training camp in Fuzhou in southeast China. &ldquo;I really wanted to break the record.&ldquo;I started my indoor season in Europe where I competed in four events and then returned to China to run in three meets,&rdquo; she added. &ldquo;My results had been improving competition by competition. The three races in China, as dramatic as they were, proved my progress. Now I am looking forward to the outdoor season.&rdquo;Wei will run her first 100m race of 2015 at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix next month in Kawasaki, where she will try to meet the 11.33 entry standard for the World Championships in Beijing.&ldquo;I know compared with my PB of 11.29, the entry standard is a little bit high for me, but I am confident that I can meet the standard,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;I will compete in the World Championships and hopefully I can make history this time.&rdquo;Wei set her PB in the Indian city of Pune when she claimed the 100m title at the 2013 Asian Championships. She also won last year&rsquo;s Asian Games title in Inchon in 11.48. But Wei is under no illusion about the difference in the quality of competition on the global level compared to the continental circuit.&ldquo;Winning in Pune and Incheon helped to boost my confidence, but there is still a huge gap between Asian sprinting and world sprinting,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;In Asia only a few women can sprint to sub 11.20, but in the world dozens of female sprinters can run sub-11.00. So the World Championships in August will be a different experience for me.&rdquo;Wei has competed at the past two editions of the World Championships, but only in the 4x100m. She had something of a baptism of fire on her debut appearance. Aged just 19 at the time, she false-started in her 4x100m heat to end China&rsquo;s chances in the event before it even began.Two years later, and this time running the anchor leg, the Chinese team safely got the baton around, but their 44.22 clocking was only good enough for seventh place in their heat.This year in Beijing, not only does Wei want to contest an individual event; she also wants to make amends in the relay.&ldquo;Our relay team ran 42.83 in 2014,&rdquo; said Wei of China&rsquo;s gold-medal-winning run at the Asian Games. &ldquo;I believe we have established ourselves as a serious contender on the world stage. Making the final in Beijing is our goal.&rdquo;<h3>Men&rsquo;s sprints on the rise</h3>Also in Inchon, China&rsquo;s men&rsquo;s 4x100m team broke the Asian record as the quartet of Chen Shiwei, Xie Zhenye, Su Bingtian and Zhang Peimeng crossed the finish line in 37.99, beating the previous mark of 38.03 set by Japan.&ldquo;For me, the 100m and relay events are equally important,&rdquo; said Zhang, who holds the Chinese 100m record at 10.00. &ldquo;Now we have three members from our team that can run 10.30 or faster. I think that shows our competitiveness.&rdquo;Aside from his national 100m record, Zhang is also the second-fastest Chinese sprinter ever in the 200m after his former national record of 20.47 was beaten by 2010 Youth Olympic champion Xie Zhenye last October with his 20.44 clocking.Zhang and Xie are just two of China&rsquo;s up-and-coming sprinters. Two-time Asian champion Su Bingtian broke the national indoor 60m record last year when he just missed out on a medal at the IAAF World Indoor Championships by less than a hundredth of a second.One year before that, Mo Youxue became the first Chinese athlete to win a global 100m title when triumphing at the IAAF World Youth Championships in Donetsk. Mo will still be a junior in 2015, but showed good progress during the indoor season to suggest he might make it on to China&rsquo;s team for Beijing this summer.After breaking the national 100m record at the 2013 World Championships to narrowly miss the 100m final by the margin of 0.009, 28-year-old Zhang experienced a relatively lacklustre year in 2014. His season&rsquo;s best in the 100m was 10.17 and he finished outside of the medals at the Asian Games. But Zhang believes everything is still under control.&ldquo;We had expected the decline in performance last year,&rdquo; said Zhang, who is also currently at the training camp in Fuzhou. &ldquo;On the one hand, I was bothered by the injury in my right knee. But on the other hand, I was on the peak of my performance curve in 2013, and 2014 could be seen as the trough, which is quite necessary if I want to reach another peak this season.&ldquo;Although I am not a young sprinter any more, I feel I still have room to improve,&rdquo; he added.Zhang will also start his outdoor season in Kawasaki. His focus this year is on the 100m and relay and he won&rsquo;t compete in any 200m event internationally.&ldquo;The Beijing World Championships is our most important task this year,&rdquo; said Zhang&rsquo;s coach Li Qing. &ldquo;The competition in men&rsquo;s 100m is always brutal and Zhang will stand little chance (of reaching the final) if he is not at his highest level.&rdquo;&ldquo;We will try to keep him in good form and avoid injuries or sickness,&rdquo; added Li. &ldquo;Hopefully he can give his best in Beijing.&rdquo;Vincent Wu for the IAAF

They may have a population of 1.4billion, but China has never managed to get a sprinter into a 100m, 200m or 400m final across the past 14 editions of the IAAF World Championships.

Chinese sprinters looking to impress in Beijing

- Read on for English and French language versions of this story - La traduction française suit le texte anglaisThe first major milestone in the promotion campaign for the IAAF World Championships, Beijing 2015 took place today in the shadow of the Bird’s Nest with a dramatic ‘one year to go’ ceremony, attended by the mayor of Beijing Wang Anshun, China’s minister of Sport Administration Bureau Liu Peng, IAAF President Lamine Diack and three of China’s top athletes Liu Xiang, Zhang Peimeng and Wang Yu.Leading members of the Chinese Athletics Association and Beijing’s Sport Bureau joined representatives of the official IAAF partners and media to welcome the return of major championship athletics to the iconic National Stadium. “We are ready and able to welcome the world of athletics again to Beijing,” said the mayor. “We are excited not only about the barrier-breaking performances we can expect but about creating a new respect and affection for athletics among the people of China.”Dramatic performances from modern and classic Chinese dancers bookmarked a packed programme which saw the launch of the official mascot and official poster, the unveiling of the official website and the unveiling and switching on of a specially designed countdown clock. The clock, although based on a traditional Chinese stone sun dial, reflects the dynamism and modernity of athletics, and includes many design elements symbolising aspects of the sport.President Diack welcomed the decision of the Chinese authorities to build on the legacy of the 2008 Games and ensure that the best athletes in the world would once again get the chance to shine at an event that will be broadcast to billions of TV viewers all over the world.“Next year, Usain Bolt, along with other super stars of athletics such as David Rudisha, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Kirani James, Sally Pearson, Renaud Lavillenie, Valerie Adams, Mo Farah, to name but a few, will compete again in Beijing,"&nbsp;said President Diack. "The Chinese capital will witness great sport entertainment as the Bird’s Nest again embraces the Olympics’ number one sport." “I have no doubt that Chinese athletics, like Usain Bolt in 2008, will come of age in 2015.”As well as the ceremony itself, residents of Beijing will be able to contribute to the IAAF World Championships, Beijing 2015 countdown through a weekend of activities throughout the city, sponsored and organised by the Beijing City Cultural Bureau to encourage sport and a healthy lifestyle.<h3>IAAF launches Chinese edition of SPIKES and social media</h3><a href="http://spikes.iaaf.org/">SPIKES</a> has been part of the IAAF website since February this year and with one year to go until the World Championships in Beijing, it marks the perfect moment for SPIKES to embrace the passion China has for our sport.<a href="http://spikescn.iaaf.org/">SPIKES China</a> will help build excitement leading into the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Guiyang, China next March and then on to Beijing and beyond.SPIKES China will also make its mark on popular Chinese social networks such as Instagram, <a href="http://weibo.com/u/3860583602">Sina Weibo</a>, a hybrid of Twitter and Facebook, and <a href="http://t.qq.com/Spikeszhongguo">Tencent Weibo</a>. In addition, SPIKES China will be active on WeChat (ID: SpikesChina), a popular app available for all smartphones that allows activities such as text, voice and broadcast messaging as well as the sharing of photographs and videos. WeChat has 300 million users, with 70 million outside of China.IAAF<hr /><h3>A un an des Championnats
du monde de Pékin – lancement du compte à rebours</h3>Dans un an exactement, débuteront
les Championnats du monde de Pékin 2015.



Lamine
Diack, le Président de l'IAAF, qui se trouve actuellement en Chine pour les
Jeux Olympiques de la jeunesse à Nankin, a fait le voyage à Pékin aujourd'hui
pour assister à la «&nbsp;cérémonie de lancement du compte à rebours ».Le Président Diack était aux côtés Wang Anshun,
Maire de Pékin, de Liu Peng, Ministre des sports et Président du Comité
olympique chinois, eux-mêmes accompagnés d’autres dignitaires municipaux et
nationaux et de responsables de la fédération d’athlétisme ainsi que du Comité
local d'organisation. Le Secrétaire général de l’IAAF, Essar Gabriel
faisait partie de la délégation de l'IAAF présente à la cérémonie.Une horloge géante symbolisant le compte à rebours
a été dévoilée à l’extérieur du stade national, mondialement connu sous le nom
de « Nid d'oiseau » qui a accueilli les Jeux Olympiques de 2008. Ce même lieu
hébergera la compétition pendant les neuf jours (22-30 août 2015) de
championnat.L’affiche officielle et la mascotte des
championnats ont également été divulguées lors de cette manifestation publique.« La Chine est la nouvelle super puissance de
l'athlétisme, » a déclaré le Président Diack.«&nbsp;Cela m’est une source personnelle de
satisfaction car dans les années 1970, j’étais venu en Chine pour favoriser son
retour au sein de la communauté de l'IAAF. Ce fut chose faite en 1978 et depuis
lors, la force de l'athlétisme dans ce vaste pays d’un milliard d’habitants n’a
cessé de croître. »«&nbsp;Les Championnats du monde de Pékin 2015
devraient inspirer de nouvelles générations de Chinois et de jeunes Asiatiques
et leur donner le goût de l'athlétisme. Ce sera le plus grand héritage de ces
championnats. »<h3>IAAF lance l'édition chinoise de SPIKES et ses
réseaux sociaux </h3><a href="http://spikes.iaaf.org" target="_blank">SPIKES</a> est intégré au site de l'IAAF depuis février et à un an des
Championnats du monde de Pékin, c’est le moment idéal pour SPIKES de
partager la passion de la Chine pour notre sport.<a href="http://spikescn.iaaf.org" target="_blank">SPIKES China</a> sera l’outil idéal pour drainer l’intérêt du
public chinois vers les Championnats du monde de cross, qui auront lieu en mars
prochain à Guiyang, puis vers les Mondiaux de Pékin et au-delà.SPIKES China sera aussi présent sur les réseaux
sociaux chinois les plus en vogue comme Instagram et <a href="http://weibo.com/u/3860583602" target="_blank">Sina Weibo</a> - un mélange de
Twitter et Facebook – et aussi sur <a href="http://t.qq.com/Spikeszhongguo" target="_blank">Tencent
Weibo</a>.En outre, la version chinoise de SPIKES sera
opérationnelle sur WeChat (ID: SpikesChina), une application grand public
disponible sur tous les smartphones qui permet d’envoyer des SMS, des messages
vocaux et de diffuser des messages publics ainsi que de partager photos et
vidéos. WeChat possède 300 millions d'utilisateurs, dont 70 millions à
l'extérieur de la Chine.IAAF

The first major milestone in the promotion campaign for the IAAF World Championships, Beijing 2015 took place today in the shadow of the Bird’s Nest with a dramatic ‘one year to go’ ceremony, attended by the mayor of Beijing Wang Anshun, China’s minister of Sport Administration Bureau Liu Peng, IAAF President Lamine Diack and three of China’s top athletes Liu Xiang, Zhang Peimeng and Wang Yu.

Countdown clock switched on outside Bird’s Nest to mark 'one year to go' before IAAF World Championships, Beijing 2015

The athletics competition of the 12th National Games concluded in Shenyang on Wednesday evening (11) with a new generation of Chinese athletes stepping up.Only three athletes, all women, were able to retain their titles from the 2009 Games – Zheng Xingjuan in the High Jump, Gong Lijiao in the Shot Put and Zhang Wenxiu in the Hammer. The future looks bright for China as they have plenty of young athletes ready to be medal contenders in Beijing for the 2015 IAAF World Championships.Unsurprisingly, the best results of the last three days came in the field events with exciting contests in both the men’s and women’s Triple Jump finals.On the men’s side, Dong Bin, ninth in Moscow, qualified with ease with 16.80m in qualification and looked to be the outstanding favourite. But 21-year-old Cao Shuo had other thoughts for the final and took the lead with his first jump of 16.90m.Cao went on to jump 17.19m in round three before reaching his winning mark of 17.26m, a season’s best and the second-best jump of his career, in round four.Dong could manage only 16.76m for second place while reigning champion Li Yanxi, competing in his first meet of the season because of an injury, could only jump 16.17m for seventh, far behind his Asian record of 17.59m from the 2009 Games.In the women’s competition the top five finishers from the 2009 Games were in the final, but Chen Yufei didn’t come close to defending her title, finishing sixth with 13.69m.Li Yanmei took the lead in round two with an equal PB of 14.35m, the same distance she had jumped in 2011. But Xie Limei, the national record-holder with 14.90m and the best Chinese triple jumper for years, was not going leave without a title this time after finishing fourth in 2005 and second in 2009.Xie jumped her winning mark of 14.39m in both rounds three and four, her best since 2011. Deng Lina was third with 13.92m, the same mark achieved by Liu Yanan in fourth place.Li and Zhao win quality Javelin contestsBoth Javelin finals produced good results as well. 24-year-old Zhang Li, a 64.74m performer last season and second at the 2009 National Games, grabbed the lead with her first throw of 62.07m, a season’s best.Zhang led the competition until the last round with Li Lingwei, eighth in Moscow, in second place with her 61.67m second-round effort. The former Asian record-holder with her 65.11m throw last year, Li played her ace card in the last round with a winning effort of 63.06m, a season’s best.In the men’s competition, Zhao Qinggang, who narrowly finished second in 2009, took the lead from the start, but his second-round throw of 83.14m put the title out of the reach of the others. Zhao’s personal best moved him to third on the Chinese all-time list and gave him a clear win ahead of 2009 winner Chen Qi, who was second with a 75.88m season’s best.In the men’s High Jump, there was a big surprise as World finalist Zhang Guowei was unable to clear 2.23m and finished in sixth.A 2.33m performer this season, Wang Yu won with a perfect record until 2.29m. The 22-year-old then made three unsuccessful attempts at a personal best height of 2.34m. Pai Long was second with a 2.26m season’s best and Wang Chen was tied for third with Li Peng, clearing 2.23m.Wang Guangfu, 25, led the Shot Put from round one, capping his win with a 20.12m season’s best with his last attempt, his second ever 20-metre competition following his 20.20m PB in 2012.Peimeng equals Chinese 200m record Zhang Peimeng, winner of the 100m earlier in the Games, achieved a sprint double by equalling his own national record of 20.47 to win the 200m.In the absence of Liu Xiang, Xie Wenjun emerged as the winner of the 110m Hurdles, clocking 13.36. Jiang Fan was second in 13.52 and Ji Wei ran a season’s best of 13.65 for third place.In the men’s Decathlon, Qi Haifeng came agonisingly close to his fourth straight title but fell short, finishing in third place with a 7520 season’s best. Zhu Hengjun won with a 7662 season’s best.Wu Jian won the discus with 60.98m.Zhao secures middle-distance doubleIn the rest of the women’s events, Jiang Lan could not retain her 100m title, but won the 200m instead this time with a 23.31 personal best. 18-year-old Kong Lingwei was second in a PB of 23.44.Zhao Jing, winner of the 1500m earlier at the championships, was another double winner. She won the 800m with a season’s best of 2:02.36, followed by 18-year-old Wang Chunyu, who ran 2:02.74 for second place.Jiang Xiaoli was fastest in the women’s 5000m final, winning in a season’s best of 15:49.14 ahead of Cao Mojie in 15:49.22 and 2009 winner Xue Fei (15:49.47).Positions were revered in the 10,000m with Cao passing Liu Ruihuan with 90 metres to go to win in a personal best of 31:55.66. Liu clocked a PB of 31:56.80 in second, while 5000m winner Jiang was third with a PB of 31:58.34.Xiao Xia took more than a second off her PB to win the 400m Hurdles in 56.25. Xu Xiaoling jumped a season’s best of 6.48m for the Long Jump win as 2009 winner Lu Minjia finished down in 11th with 5.97m.Three out of four relay wins for GuangdongJiangsu topped the women’s 4x100m Relay with an Asian-leading 43.44 while Guangdong won the 4x400m in 3:31.21.Just like in 2009, Guangdong won both titles in the men’s relays, setting Games records in both events. Liang Jiahong, fourth in the 100m, anchored the Guangdong team to 38.73, the first ever sub-39 time by a Chinese team, other than the national team.Su Bingtian, the 100m silver medallist, ran the third leg for the winning team, receiving the baton from World youth champion Mo Youxue. Sichuan was second in 39.12 and Zhejiang third in 39.25.In a tight men’s 4x400m final, three teams went well below of the previous competition record. The victory was decided in the final 30 metres with individual 400m winner Chen Jianxin trying to lift his Tianjin team to the front, but he eventually finished in third in 3:05.34.Guangdong’s Qu Shaowei, who was second in the 400m with 46.42, was the strongest towards the finish line, clocking 3:05.14 for the win. Liu Xiaosheng, the 2009 400m winner, did not run the individual event here, but his strong third leg was important for the win in the relay. Shandong anchor Zhu Chenbin, third in the 400m in 46.54, finished second in 3:05.28.The 13th National Games will be held in 2017 in Tianjin and before that the 8th City Games, a national junior meeting, will be held in Fuzhou in 2015.Mirko Jalava for the IAAF

Chinese National Games end with exciting Triple Jump contests

The athletics competition of the 12th National Games concluded in Shenyang on Wednesday evening (11) with a new generation of Chinese athletes stepping up.

The 12th National Games got off to a real start on Sunday (8) in Shenyang, Liaoning Province, with a total of 13 finals during the second day of competition following the two finals on Saturday.All of the best athletes in the country are competing and naturally those who did well in Moscow at the IAAF World Championships were also in the spotlight at the National Games.The best result on Sunday was Li Ling's 4.65m Asian Pole Vault record, Li Jinzhe’s competition record of 8.34m in the men's Long Jump, and a fast 100m won by Zhang Peimeng in 10.08.Since first claiming the record with 4.35m in May 2000, Gao Shuying has held the Asian record in the women's pole vault for more than 13 years with her last record – 4.64m from New York in June 2007 – lasting until today.It was only matter of time before Li would break the record as she had cleared 4.54m and 4.55m in 2013, the latter for fifth place in the qualification round at the World Championships in Moscow. Li's first three tries at 4.65m were unsuccessful when she won the IAAF World Challenge meeting in Beijing in May with 4.50m, but this time she only needed one attempt and recorded only one failure during the whole competition.Li’s 4.65m Asian record led the best ever national competition in China with 19-year-old Ren Mengqian finishing second and Wu Sha in third, both equalling their personal bests of 4.40m.Championship records from Li and ZhangIn the men’s Long Jump, there was only one favourite. Li Jinzhe, who jumped an 8.34m personal best to win the Shanghai IAAF Diamond League meeting in May and placed second at the 2009 National Games at the age of 20 with a 8.18m PB, did not find his best form in Moscow, finishing only in 12th with 7.86m.But in Shenyang, Li did not leave it late and was a joint leader after round one with 7.91m, before his second-round effort of 8.19m in windless conditions put the title beyond the reach of others.Li then went on to equal his personal best of 8.34m in round four, despite a negative 0.6 m/s wind, and won comfortably ahead of Su Xiongfeng, who was second with a 8.08m season’s best.Li's 8.34m also eclipsed the previous competition record of 8.27m from 2009 by Zhang Xiaoyi, who was fifth today with a 7.96m season's best. Zhang Yaoguang was third with 7.98m and 19-year-old junior Huang Changzhou was third with a 7.97m personal best.There was much hype around the men’s 100m final and for a good reason. China has two world-class sprinters, who both reached the Moscow World Championships semifinals with 26-year-old Zhang Peimeng clocking a 10.00 national record there.The previous national record-holder Su Bingtian, who ran 10.16 in 2011, has also stepped up this season, clocking a 10.06 personal best in Beijing in May. Both athletes ran in the 2009 National Games final with Zhang finishing in second place and Su fifth, and today their order was the same.Zhang crossed the finish line in 10.08, smashing Zhou Wei’s previous competition record of 10.22 from the prestigious 1997 Games. A helpful 1.1 m/s following wind aided the runners as Su was second in 10.12, his second-best career clocking in what was easily the best ever national competition in China.Zhang and Gong successfully defend throws titlesIn the women’s Hammer, the competition was expected to be an epic battle between the third and fourth-place finishers from the World Championships in Moscow, but Wang Zheng, who had surprised everyone with big personal bests in both qualification and the final in Moscow, was not up to the task on Saturday.Wang, who threw a 74.90m PB in the Moscow final, only broke 70m in round four before improving to 71.48m in round five to finish second. Moscow bronze medallist Zhang Wenxiu had an easy task of winning her second successive National Games title with a winning throw of 73.68m.In the women’s Shot Put, Moscow bronze medallist Gong Lijiao had no problems at all winning her second straight National Games title with her third-round effort of 19.75m. Liu Xiangrong was third with 18.45m and Li Ling third with 18.40m.The top five in the women’s 100m Hurdles final produced their best marks of the season with Wu Shujiao winning in a personal best of 12.96. Sun Yawei was second in a 13.01 season’s best and Wang Dou third with a PB of 13.09.Zhao Jing won the 1500m in a season’s best of 4:12.32, while Zhao Yanmin clocked a 52.15 PB for the 400m win. Tao Yujia won the 100m final in 11.48, equalling her season's best from the heats, and Wang Qingling won the Heptathlon with a personal best of 5785.Surprising depth in Hammer and Pole VaultIn the rest of the men’s events, it was the best ever Chinese competition in the men’s Hammer. 24-year-old Wang Shizhu, competing for the Liaoning Province in front of his home crowd, entered the competition with a PB of 73.25m, but managed to break 73 metres five times in Shenyang and became only the second Chinese in history to surpass 75 metres.He ended his winning series with a personal best of 75.20m, more than a two-metre improvement on the previous competition record from 2001. It was the best mark by a Chinese athlete for 24 years, bettered only by Bi Zhong’s 77.04m national record from 1989.Wan Yong was second with a 73.87m PB, Qi Dakai third with 71.82m and 2009 defending champion Ma Liang was fourth with a 70.63m season’s best.In the Pole Vault, Moscow finalist Xue Changrui was the winner in the best ever domestic Pole Vault competition in China.The 22-year-old cleared 5.60m before making one attempt at 5.76m national record height. Yang Yangsheng, who was in great form during the indoor season clearing 5.80m national indoor record and coming close to clearing 5.90m, capped a disappointing outdoor campaign with a 5.50m season’s best clearance for second place.The next three athletes set personal bests as Yao Jie was third with 5.50m, Zhou Bo finished fourth with 5.45m and Lu Yao was fifth with 5.40m. In sixth, 19-year-old Zhang Wei set a season’s best of 5.40m.Chen Jianxin won the 400m in a 46.19 PB, Zhang Haikun took the 1500m title in 3:41.27, and Wang Yashuan topped the 3000m Steeplechase with a PB of 8:37.66.Tomorrow’s events include the 200m heats, where 100m winner Zhang Peimeng returns to the track, and the 110m Hurdles final, where Liu Xiang will not defend his title. Liu had won the previous three titles between 2001-2009 prior to his latest injury.The women’s Discus, a straight final, will also be held tomorrow with 2011 Daegu World champion Li Yanfeng returning to competition after a bad back injury which has kept her off the field all summer.Mirko Jalava for the IAAF

Chinese National Games begin with Asian pole vault record

The 12th National Games got off to a real start on Sunday (8) in Shenyang, Liaoning Province, with a total of 13 finals during the second day of competition following the two finals on Saturday.

All five of China’s reigning global medallists in race walking events have been named on the team for the 2013 IAAF World Championships in Moscow.Olympic 20km Race Walk champion Chen Ding will contest his specialist event alongside Olympic bronze medallist Wang Zhen and Olympic fourth-place finisher Cai Zelin.Si Tianfeng, the Olympic bronze medallist, will compete in the 50km Race Walk with the two men who finished ahead of him at the Race Walking National Games: Wu Qianlong and Li Jianbo.Liu Hong, who took silver in Daegu two years ago, leads the Chinese women in the 20km Race Walk while Olympic bronze medallist Qieyang Shenjie has also been named in the event.There are several other medal hopes on the team of 53 athletes. Li Jinzhe, the long jumper who won at the Shanghai Diamond League meeting, goes to Moscow ranked fourth on this year’s world season lists.High jumper Wang Yu smashed his PB with 2.33m to win at the Beijing World Challenge meeting before taking bronze at the World University Games.Shot putter Gong Lijiao, who currently sits at fourth place on this year’s world season list, is no stranger to the podium at major championships, having won bronze medals at the 2012 Olympic Games and 2009 World Championships.Zhang Peimeng broke the Chinese 100m record earlier this year with 10.04 to qualify for Moscow. He is joined on the team by the athlete whose record he broke, Su Bingtian, and the pair will expect to feature in the 4x100m final.Zhang Wenxiu, bronze medallist in the Hammer two years ago, is once again on the Chinese team. But 2011 World champion Li Yanfeng and 2011 silver medallist Liu Xiang will not be in Moscow.IAAFCHINESE TEAM FOR MOSCOWMen 100m: Su Bingtian, Zhang Peimeng 200m: Xie Zhenye Marathon: Yin Shujin 110m Hurdles: Jiang Fan, Xie Wenjun High Jump: Bi Xiaoliang, Wang Yu, Zhang Guowei Pole Vault: Xue Changrui, Yang Yansheng, Zhang Wei Long Jump: Li Jinzhe, Wang Jianan Triple Jump: Cao Shuo, Dong Bin Javelin: Zhao Qinggang 20km Race Walk: Cai Zelin, Chen Ding, Wang Zhen 50km Race Walk: Li Jianbo, Si Tianfeng, Wu Qianlong 4x100m Relay: Guo Fan, Liang Jiahong, Su, Xie, ZhangWomen 400m: Zhao Yanmin 800m: Wang Chunyu 100m Hurdles: Wu Shujiao Marathon: Cao Mojie, Ding Changqin, He Yinli, Jia Chaofeng, Wei Xiaojie High Jump: Zheng Xingjuan Pole Vault: Li Ling Shot Put: Gong Lijiao, Li Ling, Liu Xiangrong Discus: Gu Siyu, Su Xinyue, Tan Jian Hammer: Liu Tingting, Wang Zheng, Zhang Wenxiu Javelin: Li Lingwei, Zhang Li 20km Race Walk: Li Yanfei, Liu Hong, Qieyang Shenjie, Sun Huanhuan 4x100m Relay: Li Meijuan, Liang Xiaojing, Tao Yujia, Wei Yongli

Race Walkers feature prominently on Chinese team for Moscow

Race walkers feature prominently on Chinese team for Moscow

All five of China’s reigning global medallists in race walking events have been named on the team for the 2013 IAAF World Championships in Moscow.

Seven athletes who struck gold at the Olympics last summer are among the 18 past and present Olympic champions who will compete at the next IAAF Diamond League meeting in Shanghai, China, on Saturday 18 May.Seven reigning world champions, three world record-holders and a total of 26 2012 Olympic medallists also feature in the star-studded array of athletes unveiled by meeting organisers on Sunday (12) for the second meeting of the 2013 IAAF Diamond League.Olympic champions old and new go head-to-head in a number of disciplines while many other world and Olympic finalists square up again in numerous 2012 Olympic Games replays.The men&rsquo;s 400m will be one of the most hotly contested; pitching Grenada&rsquo;s reining world and Olympic champion Kirani James against the USA&rsquo;s LaShawn Merritt, who took the gold medal over one lap of the track in Beijing back in 2008. James also faces the two men he beat to claim the Olympic crown, Dominican Republic&rsquo;s 2012 world junior champion Luguelin Santos, who clinched the silver medal in London, and Trinidad and Tobago&rsquo;s bronze medallist Lalonde Gordon.No fewer than three Olympic champions meet in the men&rsquo;s long jump in which Britain&rsquo;s 2012 gold medallist Greg Rutherford takes on his Panamanian predecessor Irving Saladino and USA&rsquo;s 2004 champion Dwight Phillips who has not competed since September 2011. Australia&rsquo;s world and Olympic silver medallist Mitchell Watt is also in the mix.It&rsquo;s a similar story in the men&rsquo;s javelin, where Trinidad&rsquo;s surprise Olympic champion Keshorn Walcott faces Norwegian great Andreas Thorkildsen, the Athens and Beijing gold medallist, while in the 110m hurdles,&nbsp; Olympic champion and world record-holder Aries Merritt meets world champion Jason Richardson, who took the silver medal in London.Three double Olympic champions are among the stars of the women&rsquo;s events, not least Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce whose 100m bout with her US rival Carmelita Jeter promises to be one of the highlights of the show in Shanghai.The Jamaican struck gold in London to retain her Olympic title, leaving the 2011 world champion Jeter with the silver medal.Defar&rsquo;s first 5000m since OlympicsMeseret Defar also claimed her second Olympic gold in London. The Ethiopian distance star unleashed a devastating finish to regain the 5000m title she had won eight years previously. Defar will have her first race over her gold medal winning distance since London and heads a field of talented Kenyans and Ethiopians over the same distance in Shanghai, including the Kenyan pair of Linet Masai, the 2009 world 10,000m champion, 2011 world 5000m silver medallist Sylvia Kibet, as well as Ethiopia&rsquo;s Genzebe Dibaba, the 2012 world indoor 1500m champion who set a personal best over the shorter distance of 3:57.54 when finishing third at the opening IAAF Diamond League meeting of the year in Doha on Friday.Multiple world record-breaker Yelena Isinbayeva tops the women&rsquo;s pole vault entries and is aiming to get back on top this year after losing the Olympic title she had possessed since 2004. The Russian, who had to settle for the bronze medal in London, will have her first competition of the year and jump against her compatriot and former world champion Svetlana Feofanova as well as Sweden&rsquo;s world junior champion Angelica Bengtsson.Two of Kenya&rsquo;s Beijing champions, Asbel Kiprop and Brimin Kipruto, head the men&rsquo;s 1500m and 3000m steeplechase fields respectively, while another of Kenya&rsquo;s 2008 winners, Pamela Jelimo, is the top name in the women&rsquo;s 800m.Kiprop faces his compatriot Silas Kiplagat, the man he beat to win the world title in 2011, plus two other London Olympic finalists, Ethiopia&rsquo;s Mekonnen Gebremedhin and Kenya&rsquo;s Nixon Chepseba, while Kipruto takes on no fewer than three fellow Kenyans who have all won an Olympic bronze medal: Paul Koech, Richard Mateelong, and Abel Mutai, who were third in 2004, 2008 and 2012 respectively.Olympic bronze medallists also feature in the men&rsquo;s high jump too where Great Britain&rsquo;s Robbie Grabarz and Qatar&rsquo;s Mutaz Barshim clash with the USA&rsquo;s world champion Jesse Williams.Two more 2011 world champions, USA&rsquo;s Lashinda Demus and Ukraine&rsquo;s Olga Saladukha, feature in the women&rsquo;s 400m hurdles and triple jump.Chinese fans will have plenty to cheer as well, not least in the women&rsquo;s shot put where Olympic bronze medallist Gong Lijiao faces the USA&rsquo;s world bronze medallist Jillian Camarena-Williams.There&rsquo;s also China&rsquo;s new sprint hope, Zhang Peimeng, who clocked 10.04 to make a huge improvement to the national 100m record last month. Peimeng will be looking for another national record in the 200m when he takes on Jamaica&rsquo;s Olympic bronze medallist Warren Weir of Jamaica, and the USA&rsquo;s 2005 world 200m champion Justin Gatlin.Organisers for the IAAF2013 IAAF Diamond League calendar Doha, QAT &ndash; 10 May Shanghai, CHN &ndash; 18 May New York, USA &ndash; 25 May Eugene, USA &ndash; 1 Jun Rome, ITA &ndash; 6 Jun Oslo, NOR &ndash; 13 Jun Birmingham, GBR &ndash; 30 Jun Lausanne, SUI &ndash; 4 Jul Paris, FRA &ndash; 6 Jul Monaco, MON &ndash; 19 Jul London, GBR &ndash; 26-27 Jul Stockholm, SWE &ndash; 22 Aug Z&uuml;rich, SUI &ndash; 29 Aug Brussels, BEL &ndash; 6 Sep

Seven Olympic champions in Shanghai - IAAF Diamond League

Seven reigning Olympic champions in Shanghai - IAAF Diamond League

Seven athletes who struck gold at the Olympics last summer are among the 18 past and present Olympic champions who will compete at the next IAAF Diamond League meeting in Shanghai, China, on Saturday 18 May.

The Chinese outdoor season started at the weekend (27-28) in Zhaoqing, Guangdong Province, with some surprisingly good results.As usual in China, the women’s throwers were strong, even in the absence of World Hammer bronze medallist Zhang Wenxiu and World Discus champion Li Yanfeng. In the Javelin, 23-year-old Lu Huihui set an Asian record of 65.62m to defeat Li Lingwei (60.87m).It meant that Lu regained the Asian record that she lost to Li, after her 64.95m from this meeting last year was bettered by her compatriot two months later with 65.11m. Lu, who finished fifth at last year’s Olympics, now moves to second on the 2013 world lists behind World champion Mariya Abakumova’s 69.34m.On the track, the spotlight was on 26-year-old Zhang Peimeng, who had already shown his class indoors this year when breaking the national indoor 200m record (20.75) and setting a 6.58 PB for 60m. The Beijing athlete has been a promising sprinter since 2007, when he progressed to 10.27, but never really fulfilled those promises until Saturday afternoon.Despite his good form, Zhang wasn’t even the favourite to win the race. Instead, all eyes were on Guangdong athlete Su Bingtian, who was running before the home crowd and had set 6.55 60m national indoor record in March. The 23-year-old also held the 100m national record with 10.16 from 2011 and ran a wind-assisted 10.04 last season.But in the final Su could not respond to Zhang’s strong performance. Even the TV cameras were all directed at Su running in lane six, but from half way it was clear that Zhang in lane three would be the winner.He clocked 10.04 (1.6m/s) to set a national record, cutting a massive 0.12 seconds off the previous mark and equalling Michael Rodgers’ world-leading time (which was bettered two days later by Japanese teenager Yoshihide Kiryu). Su was second in 10.23 and Chen Qiang third in a PB of 10.29.Olympic bronze medallist Gong Lijiao had a convincing outdoor debut with a 19.97m toss, her best ever start (previous one 19.86m in 2011). Fellow Olympic finalists Liu Xiangrong and Li Ling finished second and third respectively with 18.48m and 17.77m.World finalist Tan Jian won the Discus with 62.56m to beat Song Aimin (61.65m), while 20-year-old Gu Siyu was third with a 60.93m personal best. In the Hammer, 21-year-old Wang Lu emerged as a surprise winner with a 69.39m PB, more than three-and-a-half metres farther than her previous best.In the 100m Hurdles, the season started promisingly for China as 20-year-old Wu Shujiao won her first race of the season in 13.08 – just 0.10 shy of her PB from last September. One of the oldest competitors, 30-year-old Zhang Rong, also came close to her PB with 13.15 for second place, while 19-year-old Wang Dou was third in 13.19, smashing her previous PB of 13.40.Ren Mengqian won the pole vault with a 4.40m personal best and, as usual, Zheng Xingjuan topped the High Jump with a 1.88m clearance. The women’s 100m was won by Wei Yongli in a wind-assisted 11.32 (2.6m/s).On the men’s side it looks as though the 200m national record could also be bettered this season. 19-year-old Xie Zhenye – who finished fifth at the World Junior Championships last year and already shares the national record with 20.54 from 2012 – set a 100m PB with 10.31 on Saturday and then won the 200m in 20.71, just 0.17 seconds slower than the national record in his first race of the season.In the 110m Hurdles, Xie Wenjun – the current Chinese No.1 in the absence of Liu Xiang – started his 2013 season well. The 22-year-old won in 13.44, just 0.10 off his 13.34 PB from the London Olympics semi-finals. Jiang Fan was second in 13.57 and newcomer Lu Anye third in 13.67 personal best. Most Chinese athletes tend to achieve good results at an early age, but Lu is different as he only began competing in national-level competitions at the age of 20 and has slowly progressed to the top.Wang Yu – the 21-year-old who jumped 2.30m indoors this year – opened his outdoor campaign with a 2.24m win in the High Jump. National record-holder Yang Yansheng won the Pole Vault with 5.40m, but the second and third best vaulters in the country, Xie Changrui and Zhang Wei, were not competing.The Chinese season will continue with another National Grand Prix in Jinan 11-12 May and the National Games will start with the Race Walking competitions in Shenyang, Liaoning Province 10-12 May and Marathon in Yingkou (Liaoning) on 18 May.Mirko Jalava for the IAAF

China's Lu Huihui improves Asian Javelin record to 65.62m

China’s 23-year-old Lu Huihui improved the Asian record for the women’s Javelin to 65.62m at the national track and field grand prix meeting in the south China city of Zhaoqing on Saturday (27).

The Chinese indoor season closed in Beijing with a two-day meet on Friday and Saturday. As was the case with the first indoor grand prix in Nanjing three weeks ago, male sprinters provided the highlights but this time with different athletes.At that Nanjing meet earlier this month, Su Bingtian set a 60m national record with 6.55 while the country’s most promising young sprinter, Xie Zhenye, took the 200m national indoor record with a 20.93 clocking.But in Beijing both of those athletes were absent and it was the Beijing-born and based athlete Zhang Peimeng who posted the fastest times over 60m and 200m.The 26-year-old has taken his time to evolve as a top sprinter. He first showed great promise in 2007, clocking a 6.63 PB at the age of 20 before going on to register times of 10.27 for 100m and 20.74 for 200m later that year.It took him four years to break these bests though, setting his current PBs of 10.21 and 20.64 at the 2011 Chinese Championships. But 2013 looks to be his latest breakthrough season as his indoor results are now much better.On Friday Zhang clocked a 6.62 personal best in the 60m heats, following that with a 6.58 win in the final. With this result he is equal 20th in the world this season and equal second on the Chinese all-time indoor list.Zhang further improved in the 200m on Saturday, running his first indoor 200m races since 2005. A 21.24 PB in the heats was followed by a 20.75 national record win in the final which takes him to No.10 in the world this season. With no other male sprinters of note at this meeting, Zhang won by more than a second. Fastest in the women’s 60m was Tao Yujia, who won the final in 7.32 season’s best.London Olympic bronze medallist Gong Lijiao started her season at a high level as well. The 24-year-old grabbed the win in the Shot with a 19.88m toss which takes her to No.2 in the world this season. Liu Xiangrong, sixth in London last year, was second with a best throw of 18.50m.Seventeen-year-old Wang Rong continued her season well and will be a strong medal favourite in Donetsk at the IAAF World Youth Championships in the summer. She won both the Long Jump and Triple Jump, equalling her PB of 6.43m in the former and following it with 13.74m in the latter. Earlier this month Wang set a World youth indoor best in the Triple Jump with 14.09m.Nineteen-year-old Ren Mengqian won the Pole Vault with a 4.40m personal best, taking her to fifth on the Chinese indoor all-time list.Another good men’s event was the Shot where the first five athletes set personal bests. The best Chinese putter at the moment, Wang Guangfu, won with 19.76m – a mark that has only ever been bettered by one other Chinese athlete indoors, Asian record-holder Zhang Jun (20.16m). Wang Like was second with a 19.52m PB and Guo Yanxiang was third with an outright PB of 19.48m.The best Chinese long jumper, Li Jinzhe, grabbed another win with a 7.99m result, while the country’s No.2 pole vaulter of all time (5.75m this indoor season) Xue Changrui snatched an easy win in his event with a 5.40m clearance.In the High Jump, 2007 World youth champion Wang Chen was victorious, clearing 2.24m – the same height as second-placer Wang Yu, one of only three Chinese men to clear 2.30m indoors; the other two being former World record-holder Zhu Jianhua (2.31m in 1986) and Zhang Guowei, who jumped a 2.32m national indoor record three weeks ago in Nanjing.Mirko Jalava for the IAAF

Peimeng sets national 200m record in final Chinese Indoor Grand Prix

The Chinese indoor season closed in Beijing with a two-day meet on Friday and Saturday. As was the case with the first indoor grand prix in Nanjing three weeks ago, male sprinters provided the highlights but this time with different athletes.