The promotional poster of Herculis 2007 (© c)
The Herculis 2007, the third of five Super Grand Prix status meetings which are part of the IAAF World Athletics Tour 2007, takes place tomorrow night (25) in the Stade Louis II which is situated in the Fontvieille district of the tiny Mediterranean principality.
There is never anything understated about this playground for the rich and famous, and that also goes for this year’s meeting poster which is displayed all over town.
A blond haired, slim figured, bronzed female athlete stands with her back facing, her torso adorned with a tight kit of athletics vest and pants, with her right buttock suggestively protruding from beneath the already skimpy uniform.
This is Monaco and in a world generally sinking in political correctness the principality epitomized in the world’s glossy magazines by images of swim-suited clad super models and evening dressed royals, is perhaps one of the few places left on the planet able to carry off such a promotional image without anyone turning an eye or voicing a negative comment.
Whether the meeting needs such an image is another question because neither is there anything understated about the quality of the start list for this year’s Herculis meeting.
In former more measured ages when quality and substance were appreciated in the world as much as glitz and glamour are today the line-up of athletes on Wednesday, names such as Kenenisa Bekele, Blanka Vlasic and Tatyana Lebedeva, would have made this year’s poster unnecessary, as they are high powered attractions for any true sports fan in their own right.
In essence Monaco has all the athletics assets needed to match and surpass any salacious hype.
Bekele back to his best
Kenenisa Bekele, whose fortunes seemed on the decline since his DNF in Mombasa in March showed over 3000m in Sheffield on 15 July that the World 5000m and 10,000m record holder is anything but a spent force. The world season leader at the 3000m (7:26.69) thanks to that run is again the prohibitive favourite in Monaco over the same distance.
Vlasic’s time has come
Some might suggest that the vision of the meeting poster comes to life in the frame of Blanka Vlasic. But forget such superficial irrelevances for the Croatian is simply the world’s best high jumper of the moment. Her 2.05m clearance in Madrid on Saturday (21) improved on her world season lead by one centimetre and with promising attempts at a would be World record of 2.10 afterwards, one senses that the World Indoor silver medallist is about to come of age athletically. Perhaps we can already see the reflection of Osaka gold in her eyes?
Sweden’s World champion Kaisa Bergqvist, currently not in the best of form but having jumped 2.02 at the start of June should be her firmest challenger.
Long Jump for Lebedeva
Tatyana Lebedeva has already come of age. The Russian with enough championship medals to give Kenenisa Bekele a run for his money has been at the top of the women’s Triple Jumping elite for most of the current decade. Twice World Championship winner both outdoors and indoors, the World indoor record holder, is also a superb combination jumper. Superb, that’s surely the understatement of the year, as of course Lebedeva is the Olympic champion at the Long Jump.
After a fine 7.15m Long Jump victory in Madrid (21) which stands her as second best on the 2007 list, Lebedeva competes in the Triple Jump in Monaco at which she already holds the world lead with a 15.14m win in Athens (2 July).
So where else should we look for the highlights tomorrow?
Taylor and Merritt…but this time separately
Angelo Taylor has been burning up the tracks at both 400m Hurdles, the distance at which he won the 2000 Olympic title, and at the flat 400m at which he is the current US champion. He goes for the barriers here, and has to face compatriot Kerron Clement, runner-up in this year’s US nationals, and South Africa’s L.J Van Zyl who won the All African Games crown last weekend and kicked every major global butt in Paris at the Golden League meeting on 6 July.
LaShawn Merritt who ran Taylor all the way to the line over 400m at the US nationals is the standout offering here in the flat one-lap. Andrew Rock, the World silver medallist, Derrick Brew the Olympic third-placer, means the US has a total of three very good chances. Australia’s Commonwealth winner John Steffensen who beat Taylor in Madrid, will be their biggest danger, and the largely French crowd will urge on Leslie Djhone.
France vs USA
France also has a standout in the 110m Hurdles. World champion Ladji Doucouré might not be flying well at the moment at the top world level but he is still the fastest in Europe this summer (13.27). US champion Terrence Trammell, and Dominique Arnold, the second fastest man ever, are two of six Americans who will make Doucouré’s challenge very stiff.
Jamaica’s World silver medallist Michael Frater goes in the 100m along with Australia’s Joshua Ross who was adjudged the joint winner in the timing chaos of the race in Madrid last Saturday (21), and World 200m silver medallist Wallace Spearmon.
Quality middle distance line-ups
American champion Khadevis Robinson (1:44.37) and Bahrain’s Youseef Saad Kamel (1:44.39) are the second and third fastest in the world this year over 800m but over the two laps here also watch-out for Olympic silver medallist Mbulaeni Mulaudzi of South Africa, who was surprisingly beaten last week at the All Africa Games and must be smarting from that defeat.
Morocco’s Youssef Baba (3:32.13) is the fastest this year of the 1500m entrants. World Indoor champion Ivan Heshko of Ukraine has had a slow, quiet start to the season but should not be overlooked after his win in Madrid. Europe is also championed by reigning World and Olympic bronze medallist Rui Silva of Portugal.
In the field, the Javelin Throw sees a rare appearance by reigning World champion Andrus Värnik of Estonia who has been injured or ill for most of the last two years <<UPDATE: 25 July - Värnik is not on final start list>>, while Britain’s Christopher Tomlinson is the man in form in the Long Jump (8.29 NR).
Olympic champion Tim Mack (USA) and World gold medallist Rens Blom (NED) are in the men’s Pole Vault but on current form the win will be contested closest by any of three Osaka-bound Germans led by national champion Danny Ecker, or USA’s World Indoor champion Brad Walker or Australian Steve Hooker.
Williams to test Arron
World champion Lauryn Williams lines-up in the women’s 100m but perhaps more eyes will be on French heroine Christine Arron, the European record holder, as she continues to edge closer to top gear.
Jamal and Selsouli are certs
Bahrain’s Maryam Yusuf Jamal who won in Lausanne and is one of only two women to go below 4mins this year is the out and out favourite in the women’s 1500m, and much in the same way in the 3000m is Morocco’s Mariem Alaoui Selsouli after her stunning 14:36.52 PB over 5000min Rome (13 July).
USA’s Lolo Jones, the third fastest in the world this summer holds similar credentials in the women’s 100m Hurdles, though the 400m Hurdles will be a much more open affair with Australia’s 2003 World champion Jana Rawlinson (Pittman) likely to be fighting to the last barrier with Jamaica’s Melanie Walker and USA’s Sandra Glover among the high quality field.
Chris Turner for the IAAF
Click here on Wednesday 25 for ENTRY LISTS and RESULTS
