Golden Memories
from Oslo to Berlin
IAAF
26 June 2002 - Monte Carlo - This Friday's Exxon Bislett Games marks the start of a new season of the IAAF Golden League. Since 1998, the IAAF Golden League has provided many magical athletic moments. IAAF Editorial Manager Chris Turner has selected some of his own. Seven meetings, seven golden moments!
Oslo -
Exxon Mobil Bislett Games:
Oslo will forever be associated in my mind with Trine Hattestad's 69.48m world
record in the women's Javelin in 2000. There is nothing better than watching a
national heroine at the top of her form on home ground. The blonde Norwegian's
throw repaid the local crowd's unstinting support throughout a long career, and
the spectators' wild reception of the new world mark returned the affection in
style. A truly magical moment.
Paris -
Meeting Gaz De France Paris Saint-Denis:
The
size of the audience in Paris in recent years (more than 50,000) has made a
memorable impression. However, if I was to select a single personal memory it
would be from 2000 when Morocco's Ali Ezzine led home a whole army of Kenyans in
the steeplechase, becoming then, with 8:03.57 the best ever non Kenyan at the
distance. For one day at least the "chase" was not a Kenyan "parade" event.
Rome -
Golden Gala:
My
best memory? I would say "memories" since I can recall every race ever run by
Hicham El Guerrouj in Rome's magnificent Olympic stadium. 1 Mile (1999) and
1500m (1998) world records are something you never forget and the manner of the
great Moroccan's triumph over Noah Ngeny in the 1999 race will always stay fresh
in my mind.
Monte Carlo, Monaco - Herculis:
The
men's 800m last year when Switzerland's soon to be crowned world champion Andre
Bucher defeated the fast finishing Russian Yuriy Borzakovskiy, 1:42.90 to
1:43.17, remains a freeze-frame image. Perhaps
my real memory should have been watching Kenya's Raymond Yator break the world
junior Steeplechase record with 8:03.74 the year before. But, to be honest, I
hardly noticed at first, since I was watching the front of the race and the
marvelous duel between Kenya's Bernard Barmasai (8:02.76) and Brahim Boulami
(8:02.90).
Zurich -
Weltklasse Zurich:
1999 was Gabriela Szabo's year. She became Overall Grand Prix champion and won
the Golden League Jackpot too. Her 3000m in Zurich that season was simply superb.
She ran the world's leading time of the year (8:25.03) and dragged national
records out of second and third place finishers Morocco's Zahra Ouaziz (8:26.48)
and Britain's Paula Radcliffe (8:27.40). That race proved, beyond any doubt,
that Szabo was peerless that year. But you can't recall Zurich without
mentioning the tremendous din from the capacity crowd which reverberates from
the tin roofs of the stands. Seeing a top performance in Zurich is a
spine-tingling experience
Brussels
- Memorial Van Damme:
I
have to say that the music concert is always a great finale for the huge
audience which packs into the Stade Roi Baudouin each year. But as an addict of
great 10,000m running, seeing the emergence in 1999 of a future Edmonton world
champion Charles Kamathi was something special. The virtually unknown Kenyan's
26:51.49 was eye-opening and there was a "local" flavour to savour too as
Belgium's Mohammed Mourhit broke the European record with 26:52.30, just behind
Kamathi.
Berlin -
ISTAF:
This is the most recent of all my recollections! For me, Berlin brings back
memories of last summer and the completion of an unbroken series of Golden
League victories (seven) for Violeta Szekely. The Romanian won the 1500m in
4:00.80 to impressively conclude a string of gutsy and determined races at
Europe's top venues. And as a student of history, I must also admit that
Berlin's Olympic Stadium is one of the most evocative in the world. You can
still sense the ghost of Jesse Owens there ...