Two months to go to IAAF World Indoor Championships in Lisbon. Already 438 athletes entered from 61 countries.
11 January 2001 - Monaco – With two months still to go until the start of the IAAF World Indoor Championships – which will take place in the Portuguese capital Lisbon from 9 to 11 March – sixty-one countries have already sent in their preliminary entry forms for a total of 438 athletes (254 men and 184 women). This is a noteworthy figure, when we consider that two years ago, at the World Indoors in Maebashi, there were a total of 487 participants (266 men and 221 women). All the signs would indicate that there will be a record number of entries and competition of the highest level in Portugal.
The international indoor season will start in two weeks time with the IAAF Permit Meetings in Moscow and Karlsruhe (GER), both scheduled for 27 January. Then, on 2 February, there will be the traditional Millrose Games in New York, on 4 February, Stuttgart (Sparkassen Cup), 10th in Budapest the NAP Kupa, 11th in Dortmund the Sparkassen Meeting, 15th Stockholm, the GE Globen Galan; 18th in Birmingham (GBR) the Norwich Union Grand Prix, on 21st the Athens "Athina 2001", 23rd in Gent the Flanders Energizer and in Lievin on 25th the traditional Meeting Gaz de France du Pas de Calais.
There will be plenty of chances at these meetings to check out champions new and old and follow their form leading up to the World Indoor Championships in Lisbon, which will be followed , on 14 March in Madrid, by the last IAAF Permit Meeting indoors of 2001, the Memorial José Ma Cagical.
2001 – the Year of Athletics – is about to start in top gear and the news coming in from the various training centres around the world says that all the champions from Sydney have started their preparations for Lisbon and, most specially, for the rendezvous in Edmonton, from 3-12 August, for the 8th IAAF World Championships in Athletics – "The Worlds".
All National Federations have sent out to written press journalists their accreditation forms for the 8th IAAF World Indoor Championships of Lisbon. The closing date for the return of these forms has been set at 1 February. For further information or in the event that journalists have not received an accreditation form, they should contact the IAAF Media Department or the Local Organising Committee of Lisbon 2001.