International Athletics' News

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IAAF Press Releases

December 1999

November 1999

November 19. Doping Crisis: Antidoping campaigner Dieter Baumann stated that he tested positive for Nandrolone
Dieter Baumann, the German 5.000 Gold Medallist of Barcelona, said on a statement that has tested positive for the banned substance Nandrolone, at two tests. Ben Johnson also tested positive once more for a banned substance two days ago. It seems that the Doping Crisis has exceeded every limit, as Olympic and World Champions test positive one by one these last months.
Dieter Baumann tested positive at two tests, held on October and November, and was informed by the German Federation. He stated, after announcing his positive testing, that "I can assure that I have never taken any doping substance. That would strongly contradict my attitute towards competition and life in general". He was one of the antidoping campaigners when the first scanadals started to break out on May. he two latest cases, Baumann's and Johnson's, prove that the problem is much more deeper than it seems. It is quite obvious, as more facts come into lights, that the way that the IAAF and IOC try to face it is ineffective. The Federations of the Nations clear the athletes and leave the case for the IAAF to decide, which seems to be in a very uncomfortable situation at the moment. It is time for some action to be taken, as the credibility of the sport is question by more people every day.

November 18. IAAF under the leadership of Lamine Diack until 2001
IAAF Council confirmed Lamine Diack as acting President of the Federation, untill the Congress of Edmonton in 2001. Istvan Gyulai continues as IAAF General Secretary until the Edmonton Congress too.
Lamine Diack: The acting President was born in Senegal in 1933. He is married and has 15 children.
Profession: 1995-date.  President of the Société Nationale des Eaux du Senegal (SONES) Executive Board
Positions held within the IAAF:
Acting President since 8 November 1999
Senior Vice President since 1991
Vice-President since 1976
Finance/Budget Commission Member
Positions held in the National Federation:
1963-1964. General Secretary of the Fédération Sénégalaise d'Athlétisme
1974-1978. President of the Fédération Sénégalaise d'Athlétisme
1978-date. Honorary President of the Fédération Sénégalaise d' Athlétisme
Active sports career:
1957-1960. French/West African Record Holder of long jump
1958. French Champion long jump (7.63m)
1959. French University Champion long jump (7.72m)
 Past and present offices held:
1963-1964. Football Coach of the Foyer France Senegal
1964-1968. Technical Director of the national football team of Senegal
1969-1970. General Commissioner for State Sport
1970-1973. State Secretary for Youth and Sport
1973-1987. Member of Executive Committee of the Conseil Supérieur du Sport (CSSA)
1973-date. President of the African Amateur Athletic Confederation (CAAA)
1974-date. Member of the National Olympic Committee, Senegal (CNOS)
 President of the ASC DIARAAF
1978-date. Member of the Council of Administration of International Development of Physical Education and Sports of UNESCO
1985-date. President of the National Olympic Committee of Senegal Decorations
Chevalier de l'Ordre National du Lion Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur de la République Francaise
Officier de la Médaille de la Reconnaissance Centrafricaine
Grand Officier de l'Etoile Equatoriale (GAB)
Commander of Order of Good Hope (RSA)
Officiale di Grancroce (ITA)
Médaille de l'Ordre du Nil de la République Arabe d'Egypte
Olympic Order, Order of Merit ACNOA, Order of Merit IAAFA
Order of Merit CAF
November 12. Nominations for the Athletes of the Year and of the Century
 IAAF anounced the nominations for Athlete of the Year as follows. Women: Eunice Barber (FRA), Gail Devers (USA), Ludmila Engquist (SWE), Ludmila Formanova (CZE), Marion Jones (USA), Tegla Loroupe (KEN), Svetlana Masterkova (RUS), Mihaela Melinte (ROM), Gabriela Szabo (ROM), Gete Wami (ETH). Men: Abel Anton (ESP), Tomas Dvorak (CZE), Hicham El Guerrouj (MAR), Haile Gebrselassie (ETH), Colin Jackson (GBR), Maurice Greene (USA), Michael Johnson (USA), Wilson Kipketer (DEN), Maksim Tarasov (RUS), Paul Tergat (KEN).
Candidates for the "Athletes of the Century" award: Women: Iolanda Balas (ROM), Fanny-Blankers-Koen (HOL), Mildred "Babe" Didriksen (USA), Heike Drechsler (GER), Florence Griffith Joyner (USA), Jackie Joyner-Kersee (USA), Stefka Kostadinova (BUL), Jarmila Kratochvilova (CZE), Wilma Rudolph (USA), Irena Kirzenstein-Szewinska (POL), Grete Waitz (NOR). Men: Abebe Bikila (ETH), Sergey Bubka (UKR), Sebastian Coe (GBR), Herb Elliott (AUS), Carl Lewis (USA), Pietro Mennea (ITA), Edwin Moses (USA), Paavo Nurmi (FIN), Al Oerter (USA), Jesse Owens (USA), Emil Zatopek (CZE).

November 7. President of the IAAF, Dr. Primo Nebiolo passes away at the age of 76
 Primo Nebiolo died of a heart attack during the night from Saturday 6 to Sunday 7 November in Rome. He has been elected president of the IAAF for six consecutive times (first in 1981). He was also a member of the International Olympic Committee since 1992. Dr. Primo Nebiolo was the person who altered the character of Athletics and brought the sport in the spotlight, by his innovative ideas and his sometimes controversial decisions. His name will always be  connected to the "golden years" of Track and Field, however his death comes in a period when the questions about the future of the sport multiply day by day.

The IAAF released the following, immediately after its President's death:
WORLD ATHLETICS MOURNS ITS PRESIDENT PRIMO NEBIOLO DIES IN ROME AGED 76
7 November, 1999
MONTE CARLO - Monaco - Primo Nebiolo, IAAF President since 1981, died during the night in Rome, at the age of 76, following a heart attack. His wife Giovanna was at his side as he passed away. The disappearance of Nebiolo has left a void in the world athletics family, to which he had dedicated his whole life. His creative and impassioned work, coupled to his capacities of intuition and unrelenting commitment were behind the unprecedented growth of the International Federation. All of these merits were recognised during the recent IAAF Congress in Seville, where the representatives of the IAAF's 210 Member Federations re-acclaimed Nebiolo President for the sixth consecutive term. Nebiolo started his career as a sports administrator half a century ago in Turin, where he was born on 14 July 1923 and studied for his degree in law and political science. In the difficult immediate post-war years, he made his own contribution to the social renaissance of the city through the creation of the university sports club, the CUS Torino. Sentimental ties kept him at its head throughout his life.
Athletics and university sports were his two great passions. Nebiolo had been a practising athlete himself in his day and liked to recall his youthful competitions in the long jump. That experience, matured during his time in high school and university, was the basis of his passion for sport and his desire to serve it. After the tragic years of the War and his time with the anti-fascist resistance, he became convinced that something had to be done to bring the world's youth together, regardless of which political regime they lived under. So it was that he played a major role in the creation of the International University Sports Federation (FISU), of which he became president in 1961, successfully bringing together university students from both eastern and western blocs. In athletics too, Nebiolo worked to a single end, to ensure the growth of the movement by offering youngsters, whatever their social or ethnic origin, the possibility to develop. This is the deep inspiration that would give birth to all the initiatives that have made the IAAF one of the most advanced international sports federations.The importance of this work was universally recognised, and was especially appreciated by the President of the IOC, Juan Antonio Samaranch, who in 1992 named Nebiolo member of the International Olympic Committee "for particular
merit".

Primo NEBIOLO
14 July 1923 - 7 November 1999
Chairman of a number of companies, particularly in the field of construction. In May of 1991, he was appointed by the Italian Government to the Administrative Board of Finmeccanica, one of the largest state holding companies in Italy, comprised of 85 individual companies with more than 95,000 employees.During World War II, Nebiolo valiantly served several important positions as a volunteer in the Italian Army. After July 1943, he joined the partisan movement. Arrested by the German forces in 1944, he managed to escape from prison in Turin and reunite with the partisan forces nearby in Monferrato. For his courage and valour he was nominated on April 25 1945 as Inspector General in the Italian Government for the Piedmont Region by the National Liberation Committee (CLN), an exceptional honour considering his young age. Nebiolo remained in this position for more than two years, earning recognition and respect from his colleagues.An avid sportsman in his youth, Nebiolo first gained notoriety as a consistent, national-class long jumper for the University sports club in his home town of Turin (CUS Torino) where he also occasionally played wing for the club rugby team. Following an interruption of his athletic career by the war, Nebiolo returned to competition continuing to earn several places on the Italian national team for athletics. His sports administration career had its effective beginning while he was still actively competing in athletics when in 1948 he was elected as president of CUS Torino, a position which he still proudly holds today.Over the years, Nebiolo's distinguished career has spanned the entire spectrum of sport administration, whether on a national or international level. His initial concentration on University sport and Athletics has led him to a natural role in the Olympic Movement both in Italy and abroad where he remains active as an IOC Member and Executive Board Member of the Italian Olympic Committee. Known for his tireless drive and enthusiasm as a leader and organiser, Nebiolo has accumulated a vast experience in the complexities of international relations and world sport.The principle highlights of Nebiolo's administrative career can be found below.
Athletics Administration
¥ President of the Italian Athletics Federation (FIDAL) (1969 - 1989)
¥ Member of the Council of the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) (1972 - 1981)
¥ President of the IAAF (1981 - )
¥ President of the organising committees of the European Track and Field Championships, Rome (1974), the World Cup of Athletics, Rome (1981) and the
2nd IAAF World Championships in Athletics in Rome (1987).
University Sport Administration
¥ President of the University Sports Club of Turin (CUS Torino) (1948 - );
¥ Honorary President of the Italian University Sports Federation (CUSI);
¥ President of the International University Sport Federation (FISU) (1961 - );
¥ He organized the Summer World University Games in 1959, the Winter World
University Games in 1966, and the Summer World University Games in 1970 all
in Turin, the World University Track and Field Games in 1975 in Rome and the
World University Alpine Winter Games in 1976 in Livigno.
Olympic Movement
¥ As President of IAAF, he was elected President of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) (1983 - );
¥ Member of the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) Executive
Committee (1973 - 1978) and (1992 - ), CONI Vice-President (1978 - 1989);
¥ Nominated Member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), 'motu proprio', by the IOC President, H.E. Juan Antonio Samaranch (1992) based on
his function and particular qualifications in International Sports.

November 2. Grete Waitz and Bill Rodgers are honoured by New York City Marathon
Grete Waitz and Bill Rodgers were elected as the top athletes in New York Marathon history, according to a poll of sportswriters and will be specially honoured during Sunday's 30th edition of the Marathon. Meanwhile, the more important race of the past weekend was this of Frankfurt Marathon, where Pavel Loskutov of Estonia won with a national record at 2:12' 38".

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October 1999

October 17. International Peace Marathon of Athens "Gregoris Lambrakis"
 Japanese Yonehara Masato won the 17th Peace Marathon of Athens, running the distance from the ancient location in Marathon to Athens in 2: 18' 35" after a great competition with Nikolaos Pollias who was second with 2: 18" 38" Greek runner Vassilios Zambelis was third (2: 22' 28"). Japanese Okuno Tamaki won the women race in 2: 46' 46". Also today in Amsterdam three runners set times among top 10 ever. Kenyan Fred Kiprop was the winner in  2: 06' 47" (4th all time world performance) followed by Ethiopian Tesfaye Jifar ( 2: 06' 49", 5th all time), Kenyan William Kiplagat (2: 06' 50", 6th all time) and another Ethiopian, Tesfaye Tola (2: 07' 00", 10th all time).

October 3. Paul Tergat won on the finishing line Henrick Ramaala at world half-Marathon Champs. Third win for Tegla Loroupe.
 Paul Tergat won the 8th IAAF World Half-Marathon Champs, held in Palermo today, although an official accidentally blocked his path as he sprinted. Tergat ran in 1: 01' 50" the same time with Ramaala. Third was Ethiopian Jifar Tysfage with 1: 01' 51. Tegla Loroupe won the championship for third time in 1: 08' 48" followed by Japanese Noguchi (1: 09' 12") and Kenyan Ndereba (1: 09' 23"). The men team  of south Africa and the women team of Kenya got the world titles. Greek runner Georgia Ambatzidou was 56th with 1: 20' 45" and Vassilios Zambelis 82nd with 1: 07' 47.

October 2. Athens Grand Prix was promoted to GP I series
 The Athens Grand Prix "Tsiklitiria" was placed seventh among the GP meetings of 1999 with 85.773 points and promoted to GP I series. The Athens Grand Prix I Tsiklitiria 2000 will take place on June 26th, 2000 in the Olympic Stadium of Athens.
Classification: Weltklasse Zurich Zurich, SUI GL 87316; Herculis Zepter Monaco, MON GL 8720; Memorial Van Damme Bruxelles, BEL GL 86897; Golden Gala Rome, ITA GL 86703; Meeting Gaz de France Paris, FRA GL 86102;  Athletissima Lausanne, SUI GP 86031; Tsiklitiria Athens, GRE GPII 85853; ISTAF 99 Berlin, GER GL 85782; Nikaia Nice, FRA GP 85585; Mobil Bislett Games Oslo, NOR GL 85248; St Denis - l'Humanité St Denis, FRA GPII 85163; DN Galan Stockholm, SWE GP 84635; British Grand Prix London, GBR GP 84566; Weltklasse in Koln Koln, GER GP 83871; Vittel Stadium Lille, FRA IPM 83522; Rieti'99 Rieti, ITA GPII 83342; Zipfer Gugl Grand Prix Linz, AUT GPII 83201; Qatar International Athletic Meet Doha, QAT GPII 83176; Zagreb99 Zagreb, CRO IPM 83066; Live' 99 Nuremberg, GER IPM 83045; LG Athletics Stuttgart, GER IPM 82979; Prefontaine Classic Eugene, USA GP 82623; Gran Premio Diputacion Seville, ESP GPII 82351; Notturna di Milano Milano, ITA IPM 82334; Japan Grand Prix Osaka, JPN GP 82278; Adriaan Paulen Memorial Hengelo, NED GPII 82168; Bupa International Gateshead, GBR GPII 82049; Ericsson GP Helsinki, FIN GPII 82002; Flanders Athletic Cup Hechtel/BEL EAA 81831; Adidas-Ciutat de Barcelona Barcelona, ESP IPM 81609; Meeting Internazionale di Atl Legg Turin, ITA IPM 81218; International Meeting Budapest, HUN IPM 80949; All Africa Invitational Johannesburg/Pretoria, RSA GPII 80161; Sydney Track Tour Sydney, AUS IPM 80065; Melbourne Track Tour Melbourne, AUS GPII 80063; Oregon Track Classic Portland, USA IPM 79724; Gran Prix Brasil de Atletismo Rio, BRA GP 79677; Meeting IAAF du Conseil Général La Martinique, FRA IPM 78792; Engen Grand Prix Final Cape Town, RSA IPM 78544; Toto Meet Tokyo, JPN IPM 76948; Slovnaft'99 Bratislava, SVK GPII 76303; US Open Meet St Louis,USA GP 63157

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September 1999

September 26. Tegla Loroupe set a new world best performance at Berlin Marathon.
Kenyan Tegla Loroupe won the Berlin Marathon, improving her own best world performance by 4 seconds. Loroupe ran the distance in 2: 20' 43", while the old record was 2: 20' 47" from 19 Apr 98. Second in Berlin was Marleen Renders of Belgium with 2: 23' 58", the 8th all time European performance and third Svetlana Zakharovaa  from Russia with 2: 27' 07". In men competition, two runners fell under 2:07' with Kenyan Josephat Kiprono to be the winner in  2: 06' 44" (2nd 1999 time) followed by Takayuki Inubushi of Japan who ran set a 2: 06' 57".

September 20. World champions Tomas Dvorak and Eunice Barber won the IAAF combined events chalenge.
Tomas Dvorak won in Talence, the final stage of the IAAF World Combined Events Challenge, with 8.690 p. , twenty six points behind Erki Nool who was second. Placed third Roman Serble had 8.231 p. In women competition Eunice Barber was the winner with 6.514 p., followed by Sabine Braun 6.422 p. and Irina Belova 6.357 p.

September 11. Gabriella Szabo and Wilson Kipketer won the Grand Prix jack pot of $1 million. Bernard Barmassai and Gabriella Szabo dominated the overall Grand Prix standings
The Grand Prix series 1999 finished today with an impressing Grand Prix final held in Munich, Germany. Gabriella Szabo and Wilson Kipketer won their events and shared the jack pot of $1 million. The men standings were dominated by Bernard Barmassai (111 points), who was followed by Costas Gatsioudis  (109 p.) and Wilson Kipketer (108 p.). In Women's Classification, Maria Mutola and Gabriella Szabo had 84 points but Szabo had participated in 7 GP meetings, one less than Mutola and thus she placed first. The final meeting was marked by great performances achieved by Claudinei Da Silva, who broke the 200 m. South American record with 19"89. to leave Maurice Greene at the second place, Noah Ngeny (3'28"93.), Lars Riedel (68,61 m.), Deon Hemmings (53" 41.), Ashia Hansen (14, 96 m.). Costas Gatsioudis set a National Record for Greece with a throw at 89, 84 m. to win the javelin competition, while Paraskevi Tsiamita was second with 14, 77 m.

September 7. Another Middle Distance record: Hicham El Guerrouj ran the 2.000 m. at 4' 44" 79. in Berlin
Hicham El Guerrouj, the 1.500 m. and the Mile World Record holder added on more tonight to his collection. He ran the 2.000 m at 4' 44" 79. in Berlin, in a Golden League meeting where a lot of great performances were achieved and that leads us to the GP Finals this Saturday in Munich. Wilson Kipketer and Gabriela Szabo continued their winning streak and will challenge the 1 million $ prize in Munich. Bernard Barmassai lost to Ali Ezzine at the Steeple race, so the controversy over his eligibilty for the prize is ended. Maksim Tarasov jumped 6, 01 m. at the Pole Vault and 4 athletes were over the 67 m. at the Discus, where Lars Riedel won with 68, 41 m. Costas Gatsioudis dominated once again the Javelin competition with 87, 96 m., followed by three Germans in their own country. Maria Mutola beatee Svetlana Masterkova this time, running at 1' 57" 56. and Hestrie Storbeck jumped 1, 95 m. to beat World Champion Inga babakova who cleared the same height. Let's check the names of the athletes who have the right to compete at the Grand Prix Finals, by event, according to the GP Standings:  MEN: 200 m.- Da Silva, Thompson, Little, Greene, Obikwellu, Stevens, Fredericks and Griffin. 800 m.- Kipketer, Sepeng, Kimutai, Kimwetich, Chirchir, Kiptoo, Bucher, Krummenacker. 1.500 m.- Ngeny, El Guerrouj, Rotich, Saodi-Sief, Lelei, Lagat, Holman, Tanui. 3000 m.- Limo Ben., Komen, Hissou, Gebreselassie, Limo Rich., Kipktere, Mourhit, Bitok. Steeple- Barmassai, Koskei, Kosgei, Misoi, Ezzine, Khattabi, Chelule, Kandie. 110 m.H.- Crear, Wade, Johnson, Schwarthoff, Dees, Korving, Ross, Jackson. Pole Vault- Tarasov, Hartwig, Lobinger, Hysong, Ecker, Markov, Galfione, Tivontschik, Potapovich. Long Jump- Beckford, Streete-Thompson, Moudrik, Taurima, Walder, Pedroso, Cankar, McGhee. Discus- Schult, Riedel, Alekna, Washington, Mollenbeck, Kruger, Bloom, Godina. Javelin- Gatsioudis, Hecht, Makarov, Henry, Zelezny, Blank, Parviainen, Pukstys. The Overall Men standings are dominated by Bernard Barmassai (87 p.), Costas Gatsioudis (85 p.) and Wilson Kipketer (84 p.). WOMEN: 200 m.- Jones, Miller, McDonald, Ferguson, Fynes, Frazer, Campbell, Yusuf. 800 m.- Mutola, Masterkova, Formanova, Tsyganova, Graf, Paulino, Miles, Vriesde. 1.500 m.-Beclea, Chojecka, Weyermann, Jackubzak, Nelyubova, Komyagina, Pells, Maranga. 3.000 m.- Szabo, Ouaziz, Loroupe, Ribeiro, Malott, Radcliffe, Pantyukova, Oubouhou. 400 m.H.- Hemmings, Bidouane, Cummings, Tereschuk, Blackett, Tirlea, Johnson, Parris. High Jump- Storbeck, Iagar, Yelesina, Babakova, Rodina, Kovacikova, Haughland, Lapina. Triple Jump- Tsamita, Govorova, Prandzeva, Nicolau, Hansen, Marinova, Lebedenko, Lebedeva. Shot Put- Kumbernuss, Fyedushina, Kleinert, Price, Danylczuk, Thompson, Steer, Koeman. Overall: Gabriela Szabo, Maria Mutola (84 p.), Svetlana Masterkova (81 p.)

September 4. Noah Ngeny broke the world record of 1.000 m. in Rieti
Noah Ngeny broke the 18-year old world record of Sebastian Koe this afternoon in the Rieti GP II meeting. Ngeny ran the distance in 2' 11" 96. while the old record was 2' 12" 18 from July 1981. Stephan Diagana won the 400 m. hurldes with 48" 27. where the World Champion Fabrizio Mori was third and Paul Bitok won the 3.000 m. race in 7' 35" 82. Katerina Thanou won the 100 m. race with a wind assisted 10" 96. and Kostas Gatsioudis finally participated and won the javelin competition with a throw at 84, 20 m. Gatsioudis now dominates the javelin Grand Prix standings with 73 p. The triple jump world champion Voula Tsiamita was 4th in the long jump with 6, 55 m.

September 3. European Record for Mohammed Mourhit in Brussels. Second all time performance for El Guerrouj at 3.000 m.
Long and middle distance events brightened the Golden League meeting of Brussels.Despite the absence of Haile Gebreselasie, the race of 10.000 m. was extremely fast with two athletes under 27 minutes. Kenyan Charles Kamathi was the winner with 26' 51" 49. while Belgian Mohammed Mourhit broke the European Record with 26' 52" 30. Hicham El Guerrouj ran the 3.000 m. race in 7' 23" 09. the second all time performance, while 800 m. were also great, as Wilson Kipketer won in 1' 42" 27, followed by three more runners under 1' 43": Sepeng, Kimutai and Bucher. Gabriella Szabo won again and she is into the claim of the jack pot with Wilson Kipketer. Voula Tsiamita achieved her third victory in a golden league meeting with 14, 83 m. and Kostas Gatsioudis won the javelin for fourth time with a throw at 87, 26 m. Maria Mutola (80 p.) and Bernard Barmasai (82 p.) dominate the Grand Prix Standings before the last two GP meetings of the year in Rieti and Berlin.

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August 1999

August 29. North Korea won women Marathon.
The last day of the 7th World Championships opened with women Marathon. Korean Song-Ok Jong won the gold medal with a national record at 2: 26' 59" beating Ari Ichihashi of Japan during the last kilometer before the stadium. It is the first medal for North Korea in a world championship. Romanian Lidia Slavuteanu - Simon got the bronze medal, while fourth was the Olympic Champion Fatuma Roba who was leading the race for the most part of the distance.

August 28. Gail Devers and Ivan Pedroso won their third world title.
 Gail Devers won the third world champion title on the 8th day of the 7th World Championships. She ran the 100 m. hurdles in a world leading 12"37 to get the gold, ahead of Glorie Alozie who equalled the African Record and the bronze medalist Ludmilla Engquist. Ivan Pedroso managed also his third win in world champs with a jump at 8, 56 m., leaving at the second place Yago Lamela, while Slovenian Gregor Cankar with a season's best at 8,36 m. got the bronze. Jai Taurima of Australia broke the Oceanian record but lost the bronze by 1 cm. Morocco returned to the top of the 5.000 m. after about a decade, with Salah Hissou who won with a championships record at 12' 58" 13. The second placer Benjamin Limo of Kenya beated the Belgian Mohammet Mourhit on the finishing line to get the silver in 12' 58" 72. Abel Anton doubled his wins in Marathon being deified by the local crowd. Anto won in 2: 13' 36" followed by Italian Vincenzo Modica and the Japanese Nobuyki Sato. Greek champion Nikos Pollias was 22th with 2: 18' 27".

August 28. Mirela Tzelili won the javelin gold.
Mirella Manjani- Tzelili won the gold medal of javelin throw on the 8th day of the 7th World Championships. Tzelili threw a 67,09 m. to set a national best and the second world performance of the season. Defending champion Trine Hattestadt placed third with 66,06 while Tatyana Shikolenko got the silver with 66, 43 m.
Mirella Tzelili was born on December 21, 1976 in Dyrrahion, Albania. She trains with Vassilios Kokolis, her height is 1, 65 m. and her weight 64 kgs. She is married with the Greek weightlifting champion Giorgos Tzelilis, 4th in Atlanta. Mirela Tzelili was 9th in European Championships 1998 and 11th in Athens '97. As a member of the Albanian National team she was 8th at the World Juniors Champs in 1994 and silver medalist at the European Juniors Champs in 1995.

August 28. Surprising relay disqualifications.
The qualification rounds of relays resulted two great surprises as the men 4X400 team of GBR and the women 4X100 team of Russia failed to qualify for the final. The Greek men team of 4X400  consisted of young runners set a national record for Greece with 3'04"07., althought Kostas Kenteris did not participate due to injury. The women 4X100 Greek team lost the opportunity for a participation in the final because of the tragic changes and despite the great effort of Katerina Thanou. Finally the 4X100 men teams of Canada, France and Ghana were disqualifiedwhile the Greek Team was cancelled.

August 27. Sprint double for Maurice Greene. Great performance for Inger Miller and a gold medal for Italy at 400 m. hurdles.
Maurice Greene became the first spinter who won both the 100 m. and 200 m. gold in World Championships tonight in Sevilla. Greene won the final in 19" 90. followed by Brazilian Claudinei Da Silva and Nigerian Francis Obikwelu. Inger Miller set a world leading performance to win the women competition with an impressing 21" 77, while Jamaikans Beverly McDonald and Marleen Frazer took the other two medals. Three medals of the 400 m. hurdles go to European runners; the lack of a USA athlete among the medal winners is a rather unusual event. Fabrizio Mori of Italy was the winner in 47" 72, a world leading performance, followed by the European Champion Stephane Diagana of France and Marcel Schelbert of Suisse. Gabriella Szabo won once more the 5.000 m. race with a championships record at 14' 41" 82. Zahra Ouaziz got the silver and Ethiopian Ayelech Worku the bronze medal. Seven runners set times faster than 15 minutes in this race. Hestrie Storbeck of the RSA surprisingly failed to qualify for the high jump final, as she cleared only 1, 89 m. Finally, the 7th day of the Championships was marked by the tears of Ludmilla Engquist who set a season's best at 12" 50. and became the fastest qualifier for the final of 100 m. hurdles. The Swedish athlete continues her unprecedented fight in athletics and life.

August 27. Sprint double for Maurice Greene. Great performance for Inger Miller and a gold medal for Italy at 400 m. hurdles.
 Maurice Greene became the first spinter who won both the 100 m. and 200 m. gold in World Championships tonight in Sevilla. Greene won the final in 19" 90. followed by Brazilian Claudinei Da Silva and Nigerian Francis Obikwelu. Inger Miller set a world leading performance to win the women competition with an impressing 21" 77, while Jamaikans Beverly McDonald and Marleen Frazer took the other two medals. Three medals of the 400 m. hurdles go to European runners; the lack of a USA athlete among the medal winners is a rather unusual event. Fabrizio Mori of Italy was the winner in 47" 72, a world leading performance, followed by the European Champion Stephane Diagana of France and Marcel Schelbert of Suisse. Gabriella Szabo won once more the 5.000 m. race with a championships record at 14' 41" 82. Zahra Ouaziz got the silver and Ethiopian Ayelech Worku the bronze medal. Seven runners set times faster than 15 minutes in this race. Hestrie Storbeck of the RSA surprisingly failed to qualify for the high jump final, as she cleared only 1, 89 m. Finally, the 7th day of the Championships was marked by the tears of Ludmilla Engquist who set a season's best at 12" 50. and became the fastest qualifier for the final of 100 m. hurdles. The Swedish athlete continues her unprecedented fight in athletics and life.

August 27. Easy qualification for Kostas Gatsioudis.
 Kostas Gatsioudis was the best qualifier of Javelin Throw tonight in Sevilla. In the first attempt he sent the javelin to 87, 97 m. Only four athletes made the standard of 83, 50 m. while almost all the favourites were finally qualified, althought with some difficulties mainly due to the humidity and the high temperature. The great surprise of the event was the disqualification of the world champion Marius Corbett of the RSA, who threw only 76, 34 m. The Greek walker Despina Deskou was 13th in the 20.000 walk final which was dominated by Chinese Hongyu Liu and Yan Wang, while Kerry Saxby was the bronze medalist. Niki Bakogianni was unable to tide over injury problems she had this year and with a jump at 1, 85 m. she will not participate in the final of the high jump.

August 26. 400 m. World Record falls after eleven years
 Another sunny Andalusian afternoon will be added to Track and Field history, afterMichael Johnson broke the 11 years old 400 m. World Record on his way to his fourth consecutive 400 m. world title and his eighth Gold WC medal. The previous WR at the 400 m. (43" 29.) belonged to Harry-Butch Reynolds, a U.S. athlete like Johnson, from a meeting in Zurich on 17th of August 1988. Except for Johnson's World Record the race tonight in Seville produced a South American Record for Sanderlei Claro Parella of Brasil with 44" 29. and a Mexican Record for Alejandro Cardenas at 44" 31. The 400 m. Women final race was also a very fast one, with Cathy Freeman of Australia defending her World title with 49" 67., followed by new German star Anja Rucker at 49" 74. and Jamaican Loraine Graham at 49" 92. Ethiopia scored a 10 km double, as Gete Wami followed her teamate Haile Gebresselasie in winning the event. She ran the distance at 30' 24" 56. which is a new Championships Record. Paula Radcliffe that led the race from the beginning, as usually, managed eventually to win second place and Tegla Loroupe of Kenya was third. Maksim Tarasov of Russia also broke the Championships Record of the Men's Pole Vault. He jumped 6, 02 m. in a fantastic night for him, proving that he is the undoubtable number one of the event after the Czar, Sergeij Bubka. It was the first World title to go to another athlete except for Bubka who had dominated the six previous World Championships. Dmitry Markov of Australia jumped 5, 90 m. to win the Silver medal and Aleksandr Averbukh of Israel got the Bronze with 5, 80 m. The Men's Long Jump Qualification was a very difficult fight among many good athletes, however the level remained low, as only six athletes passed the 8 m. mark and only three the Qualification Standard (8, 15 m.). As one can assume, a lot of big names will be replaced by new talents as McDonagh of Ireland, Moudrik of Morocco, Al Sabee of Saudi Arabia, Nijs of Belgium and others. Both Pedroso and Lamela qualified, however athletes as Walder, Schurenko, Jahic, Lukasevich, Streete-Thompson and Calado will have to watch the final from their TV sets. Kostas Koukodimos of Greece ranked 14th and lost the qualification due to his worse second jump, as his best was 7, 90 m. -the same with Australian Hair who was 12th. At Women's 100 m. Hurdles, the favorites will go on, while at the Javelin Qualification, Tania Damaske was injured and will not be at the final. No problems there for the rest of the big names. Mirella Maniani-Tzelili of Greece advanced easily with 61, 45 m. There were a lot of upset results at Men's 800 m. Qualification Round, as athletes like Rodhal, Haida and Onyancha did not manage to Qualify to the Semis due to bad tactics. Nils Schuman and Norberto Tellez had to wait for the best times to confirm their qualification, while Wilson Kipketer, Johan Botha and Rich Kenah seemed in great form winning their heats with relative ease.

August 25. Cuban Daimi Pernia is the new rising star of Women's low hurdles
Daimi Pernia, the young Cuban hurdler that won the Universiade this year, not only managed to upset the favorites Nezha Bidouane and Deon Hemmings and get Gold in Seville, but also achieved an incredible time of 52" 89. (best 400 m. Hurdles time for '99). She was fast from the beginning, however she stumbled at the last hurdle and Bidouane seemed for a moment to win her second consecutive world title. Pernia managed to come back with an exciting finish and reach the Moroccan just on the finish line. The cameras focused on Bidouane, but the photo finish gave the title to the young Cuban. It was one of the faster races in history. Bidouane broke the African record with 52" 90. and Hemmings clocked 53" 16. Tonight, the highlights seemed to have no end. At Women's 200 m., Marion Jones was injured during the race. First diagnosis says back spasm and cramps and everything indicates that her quest for something more than her two medals is over. Inger Miller was the fastest girl to qualify for the final, and now seems as the No.1 favorite for the win. At Men's 200 m. Semis, Greene won his heat at 20" 10. Frank Fredericks clocked the same at the other heat, to finish ...fourth! Francis Obikwellu produced an incredible World Leading 19" 84., Marcin Urbas smashed his PB with 19" 98. and Kevin Little his own with 20" 10. The question now is if Greene is able to get his second gold of the World Champs, at the 200 m. Colin Jackson ran the 110 m. Hurdles at 13" 04. to win another title at his long career, followed by Anier Garcia of Cuba (13" 07.) and Duanne Ross of the U.S.A. (13" 12.). At Men's Triple Jump, Charles Friedek flied at 17, 59 m., which is the best performance for 1999. Bulgarian Dimitrov was the surprising silver winner with 17, 49 m. and Jonathan Edwards had to settle for the Bronze, jumping 17, 48 m. Astrid Kumbernuss made the best possible comeback after one year's absence due to pregnency. She won the World Title, throwing 19, 85 m., followed by her compatriot and rising star for Germany Nadine Kleinert. Russian Kryvelova was third. Tomas Dvorak had no problem winning the Decathlon, contrary to European Champion Erki Nool who did not manage to clear a height at the Pole Vault. It was also very hard for a great number of other decathletes, especially the 1.500 m., where Chris Huffins lost his second place to British Dean Macey. The last event was also dreadful for Greek Korkizoglou who lost 4 places to rank 13th. Dvorak scored 8744 points, Macey 8556 and Huffins 8547.

August 25. Another gold medal for Russia in 50.000 m. walk
 Russia won the third gold in the first final event of the 5th day of World Championships. The walker German Skurygin won the 50.000 m. in 3: 44' 23", followed by Italian Ivano Brugneti and the other Russian Nikolay Matyukhin. Greek walkers Theodoros Stamatopoulos and Spyros Kastanis, placed 12th and 18th respectively, had a very satisfying presence. At decathlon Thomas Dvorak has a variance of 83 points of the the second placer Chris Huffins.After 7 events he has 6.382 points, Huffins is second with 6. 299 p. and Macey Dean of GBR is third with 6. 218 p. Prodromos Korkizoglou is currently 8th with 5. 874 p. Ludmila Engquist ran the 100 m. hurdles in 12" 62. the fastest time of the qualification round. Finally, all the favourites of the women shot put were qualified for the final, where Svetlana Krivelyova was the best qualifier with 19, 54 m. Greek thrower Kalliopi Ouzouni was 16th.

August 24. A fantastic night for Athletics in Seville: Incredible Middle Distance races, exciting Discus competition, Greek Triple Jump triumph to write history in World Sport
 This Tuesday will be remembered for a long time by the Track and Field fans, as the 7th World Championships in Athletics of Seville produced some of the most exciting moments for the King of the Olympic Sports. At Women's 800 m., a race where 7 athletes ran under 1' 58" (probably the fastest race ever), Ludmilla Formanova of the Czech Republic won the Gold medal, after an incredible finish over Maria Mutola of Mozambique and Svetlana Masterkova of Russia. Her winning time was 1' 56" 68. Mutola clocked 1' 56" 72. and Masterkova 1' 56" 93. But it was the Men's 1.500 m. race that awarded the Athletics fans with one of the most beautiful shows ever. Moroccan Kaouch sacrifised himself, running a very fast first 800 m. to help his compatriot Hicham El Guerrouj to win the race in an incredible 3' 27" 65. Noah Ngeny of Kenya made the best race he could, broke the Kenyan National Record, however he was still second with 3' 28" 73., followed by the three Spaniards who were all great in front of their home crowd. Reyes Estevez achieved a Personal Best of 3' 30" 57., Fermin Cacho a SB of 3' 31" 34. and Andres Diaz a PB of 3' 31" 83. The first 9 athletes clocked under 3' 35", while Nouredine Morceli did not manage to finish the race. The winner of the 10.000 m. was known  before the start. Haile Gebreselasie repeated his triumph with 27' 57" 27, followed by Paul Tergat of Kenya 27' 58" 56 and the other Ethiopian Assefa Mezgebu. Contrary to 10.000 m. the Discus Throw final produced an unexpected process. Antony Washinghton of U.S.A. took the Gold medal with a championships record at 69,09 m. at his sixth attempt, leaving second the 39-year old World Record holder Jurgen Schult (68, 18 m.) and third the four times world champion Lars Riedel (68, 09 m.). But this night was a historical one for the Greek athletics. Paraskevi Tsiamita was the favourite and finally won the Triple Jump with 14,88 at her first attempt. She won the first Gold medal ever for Greece in the World Championships and the third medal for Greece in Seville. Olga Vasdeki won the fourth medal, ranking third with a jump at 14, 61 m., same as the second's Yamile Aldama of Cuba. At the other events of this evening, Michaela Melinte of Romania won the Hammer Throw, triumphing with 75, 20 m., followed by Russian Kuzenkova at 72, 56 m. At the Decathlon, after the events of the first day, Thomas Dvorak leads with 4582, in an attempt for another WR, followed closely by Dean Macey of Great Britain (4546 p.). Makis Korkizoglou of Greece is 8th with 4227 points. At Men's and Women's 200 m. Quarter Finals there were no surprises. Koffa was 27th with 23" 28. Panayotis Sarris was 18th with 20" 65., while Kostas Kenteris was injured and did not compete. At Men's 110 m. Hurdles Semis, Robin Korving did not manage to make it to the finals, while Allen Johnson could not compete due to his injury yesterday. The two Semi-final series of Women's 400 m. were really fast, with almost all the athletes running PBs. Cathy Freeman, Falilat Ogunkoya, Loraine Graham and Anja Rucker were impressive and together with Grit Breuer promise an exciting final. The Men's 400 m. Semis were also very fast, especially Michael Johnson's heat, which he won with 43" 95., almost walking at the last meters! A NR for Alejandro cardens of Mexico with 44" 37. and a South American Record for Sanderlei Parella of Brasil with the same time. Meanwhile, Jeff Hartwig and Vadim Strogyalov did not manage to qualify to the Pole Vault final

August 24. Important absences from the 400 m. hurdles. Thomas Dvorak improved his personal records of the three first decathlon events.
 The absence of the world champion of Athens Llewllyn Herbert from the 400 m. starting round was the first surprise of the 4th day of World Championships, but also Chris Rawlinson of Great Britain with a recent 48"14 in Zurich few days ago did not participate in the event.The third absence is this of Ken Harnden who ran a 49"72 and disqualified from the semis, while one of the favourites for a medal Angelo Taylor of USA ran a 49"58 and also disqualified. The decathlon started also today and Thomas Dvorak is the favourite for the gold metal. The world record holder has already broken his personal best of the first three events and dominates the overall classification with 2.890 p., followed by Chris Huffins: 2.800 p. and Erki Nool: 2.688 p.

August 23. Voronin impresses in Sevilla with 2, 37 m.
Controversy to break over Spanish judges' decisions at horizontal jumps
Although some of the top names were absent from the High Jump finals of the 7th World Championships in Seville, the level of the event remained were it was left by Sotomayor in Athens. Vyacheslav Voronin had 5 successful jumps that were enough to give him the Gold. He cleared 2, 37 m. (World Leading for '99) and tried for 2, 40 m., without success. However the 2, 37 m. jump was enough for the Russian, leaving Mark Boswell of Canada with a surprising Silver medal and a National record at 2, 35 m. Martin Buss of Germany was third with 2, 32 m. Christopher Kosgei would leave nobody to pass him at the last 100 m. this time and won the 3.000 m. Steeple race, followed by the Athens Golden Champion Wilson Boit-Kipketer. However the Kenyans did not manage to win all three medals, as Barmassai lost to the Moroccan Ali Ezzine and German Damian Kallabis, who both ran a very smart race. In Women's Discus, Franka Dietzsch of Germany dominated with 68, 14 m., followed by Greek Champion Anastassia Kelesidou (66, 05 m.) and Nicoleta Grasu of Romania (65, 35 m.). At Women's 400 m. Hurdles Semis, all the stars managed to advance to the finals, where a great race between Bidouane (53" 95. tonight) and Hemmings (54" 00) is expected. In Women's Long Jump the final resuls will be discussed a lot as the Spanish did not cancel Montalvo's last jump as a foul (at 7, 06 m.), with which she managed to beat Italian Fiona May (6, 92 m.) and Marion Jones who missed her quest for 4 Gold medals. The judges have already made a lot of mistakes, beginning with Denise Lewis at the Heptathlon Long Jump and continuing with Dennis Kapustin at Men's Triple Jump Qualification today. Also, Marion Jones' last jump was considered foul, while Montalvo's last jump was almost identical. At Men's Triple Jump, all the stars made it to the finals with a fantastic Dimitrov jumping 17, 30 m. Jonathan Edwards passed with 17, 28 m. Mark Crear was eliminated from Men's 110 m. Hurdles Quarter Finals, after two false starts, so the event will continue tomorrow without '99 number one. Also, Igor Kovac did not make it to the Semis, while Allen Johnson was injured and will probably be absent tomorrow, as well

August 22. Marion Jones and Maurice Greene verified the forecasts. Bronze medal for Katerina Thanou.
Marion Jones started the pursuit for the four gold medals in Sevilla, winning the 100 m. with 10" 70. in a race where 6 women ran under 11" 00. Impressing performances by the silver medallist Inger Miller, who set a personal best at 10"79 and Katerina Thanou, who took the bronze with 10" 84. At men's event Maurice Greene had not any problem to win with 9" 80 approaching his own world record. Brunny Sourin had a tremendous race and with 9"84. became the second world all time athlete.Third was Dwain Chambers with 9" 97. the second all time european performance. Eunice Barber won finally the heptathlon with a personal best at 6.861 p. Second was Denise Lewis while at the last event Chada Shouaa took the bronze from Sabine Braun. German Karsten Kobbs won the hammer throw with 80, 24 m., followed by Zsolt Nemeth (79, 05 m.) and Vladislav Piskunov. Christos Polychroniou was 6th with 78, 31 m.

August 22. Eunice Barber and Denise Lewis for the gold medal of heptathlon.
 Eunice Barber, the former athlete of Sierra Leone touched the gold medal after her third win at the long jump. Having won three events Barber dominated the total grading by 214 points. Denise Lewis and the world champion of Athens Sabine Braun followed her in the second and third place respectively.But Denise Lewis who had a 6,20 m. at the long jump protested against a called foul jump and got her 6, 64 m. This brings her closer to the French as the difference is now only  73 points. The morning events of the second day of the 7th World Championships did not hide surprises for the participating athletes, with the exception of the disqualification of John Godina in the discus throw. All the favourites of the 400 m. women hurdles were qualified for the next round, where Deon Hemmings was the faster qualifier, with 54"27., followed by Sandra Cummings-Glover and Tatyana Tereshchuk-Antipova. Virgilijus Alekna with 65,86 m. and Jurgen Schult with 65,65 m. were the only athletes who passed the qualification standard of the discus throw. John Godina of USA, although he has the second world performance of the year, failed to qualify for the final as he was only 16th with a throw at 62,27 m.

August 21. A dramatic Pole Vault Final had to advance up to the World Record to produce a winner! Ilya Markov and C.J.Hunter get the first two gold in Seville
Stacy Dragila of the U.S.A. and Tatyana Balakhonova of Ukraine fought all the way to the World Record in order to win the Gold medal of Women's Pole Vault first World Championships Final ever. The WR holder, Emma George, was left early out of the competition and saw Dragila equalling her 4, 60 m. mark late at the night. Balakhonova was first all the way till then, but had to stay with the silver medal. 3rd place for Tatyana Grigorieva of Australia with 4, 45 m. Ilya Markov won easily the 20 km Walk of the 7th World Championships in Athletics this afternoon and became the first medalist of the championships. The Russian Walk European Champion finished at 1: 23' 34", followed by Jefferson Perez of Ecuador and Daniel Carcia of Mexico, in a race dominated by the favorites. At Men's Shot Put, C.J. Hunter, after enjoying his wife's 10" 76. at the 100 m., he scored a Personal Best with 21,79 m. and won the gold medal of the event just at the last attempt. Oliver-Sven Buder of Germany was 2nd with 21, 42 m. and Aleksandr Bagach of Ukraine 3rd with 21, 26 m. As we already mentioned, Marion Jones ran 10" 76. to prove to Katerina Thanou and Inger Miller who both ran PBs at 10" 86. that there will be no doubt for the final winner. However the results of the Women's 100 m. Quarter Finals show that the fight for the medals is going to be exciting, as the event goes on tomorrow. At the Men's event, Maurice Greene's 9" 91. proves his top form. Bruny Surin also advanced easily to the Semis, with 9" 95. as well as Fredericks, Thompson and Gardener. The only surprises of the quarter finals were Asonze's and Ito's dissapointing performances. At Women's Discus Qualification, all the stars made it to the final, where Greece will be represented by all her 3 athletes. At Men's High Jump Qualification there were a lot of rather unexpected results as Tim Forsyth, Sergei Klyugin, Elvir Krehmic, Ben Challenger and Lambros Papakostas were all left out of the final, although they could still advance with 2, 26 m. The Men's 1.500 m. Quarter Finals were very interesting, with all the big names competing and an upset with Niyongabo staying off the Semis, due to bad tactics. El Guerrouj, Ngeny and Estevez all ran in a way to convince the others that they are the undoubtable favorites of the event. At Women's Heptathlon, Eunice Barber, as we mentioned during the morning events, seems able to win the golden after the first day. She now leads the fight by one point to Denise Lewis, followed by Sabine Brown. The organisers decided to have only two rounds of Men's Steeplechase and thus the Qualification Series were very fast ones. Kosgei, Barmassai, Kipketer and Koskei, together with Khattabi had great races and advanced easily to the finals, were Kallabis will also compete as well as Weidlinger and Ionescu who achieved fantastic performances tonight. No surprises also for Women's 800 m. Quarter Finals, with all the stars through to the Semis. Ludmilla Formanova and Kelly Holmes were the faster qualifiers, both under 2 minutes.

August 21. The 7th World Championships in Athletics start today in Seville
After a liveful and colourful Opening Ceremony last night, a ceremony that symbolised the passion for life of Spain and particularly Andalusia, the games have started this morning, with the qualification rounds for many events and the first day of the Heptathlon. At Women's 100 m.there were no surprises. All the big names qualified easily for the 2nd round, winning their heats (Jones, Arron, Miller, Sturup, Thanou and Pintussevich were 1st at their heats, while Privalova was 2nd to Arron and Devers to Pintussevich). At Men's 100 m., it was also an easy morning for the favorites. Ten heats were organised in order to make it possible for the enormous number of sprinters to compete. 10" 18. was the fastest time achieved by Bruny Surin and Tim Harden, while 10" 44. was the time for the 40st and last athlete to qualify, a time that proves the highest of levels. At Men's Shot Put Mika Halvari and Georghe Guset, both on the top 10 list for '99, did not manage to qualify for tonight's final. As far as the Heptathlon is concerned, it is still too early to make any predictions but it seems that the French Eunice Barber is in a great shape and ready to upset the favorites. At Women's Long Jump Fiona May with a jump at 7, 04 m. achieved a Season Best mark and advanced easily to the final of the event where Niki Xanthou, the 2nd World Champion of Athens did not manage to qualify. A dissapointment also for Balazs Kiss at Men's Hammer throw who did not make it to the final, despite his 6th world position this year.

August 19. More drug stories: Marleen Ottey is positive
 The drama is going on as Marleen Ottey was tested positive for nadrolone, leaving the athletics world wonder how and why she risked her brillant career at the age of 39 just to participate in one more World Championship. Undoubtedly the athlete with the longer duration on the peak of athletics, Marleen Ottey refused the use of steroids and argued that she will fight to prove she is clear.

August 13. "Leave it to me"
 August began with Mitchell's suspension. Then we had the shocks from Sotomayor and Christie. And now Barmasai's scandal in Zurich "I knew he was really good in the final 100m (Chris Koskei) and I didn't see him until I looked up at the screen," Barmasai said. "I know him  and I turned to try and talk to him and said leave it to me. That's why he slowed down because Chris would have won today but because he is my friend and we live together he let me win. The Kenyan also hinted his "friends' would benefit from his share of the bonus money (!) Now the  "IAAF is to conduct a formal investigation to ensure that the principles of fair play have been fully respected."  Meanwhile Ato Bolton pulls out of Sevilla '99 because of an injury, but he comments "I was in Monaco, and in 24 hours I see Dennis Mitchell get banned, Linford Christie gets busted, Sotomayor gets busted and you've got Ben Johnson wandering around the lobby of the hotel. That's the worst week I can think of. We're at an all-time low. Maybe the worst since Korea in 1988". A difficult month for international athletics...

August 13-17. World Military Games
 The World Military Games finished in the Mladost Stadium of Zagreb. During the games 10 world military records were set by: Aigars Fadejevs (20.000 m. walk), Thomas Goller (400 m. hurdles), Mauricio Mariani and Michael Stolle (pole vault), Natalia Duhnova (800 m.), Irina Rosikhina (400 m.), Andrey Skvaruk (hammer throw), Stanislav Olijars (110 m. hurdles), Nadine Kleinert (shot put) and the Polish 4X400 team. The greek team performance is summarized in the bronze medal won by Kostas Koukodimos in the long jump, the 4th places of Voula Patoulidou (100 m.) and Dimitris Polymerou (javelin throw) and the fifth place of Panayotis Stroubakos in the final of 800 m..

August 11. World Juniors Record for Kipkurui in Zurich
 The 18-year-old Benjamin Kipkurui of Kenya set a world junior's record of 1.500 m. running the distance in 3' 33" 16. tonight in Zurich Golden League, where Szabo, Kipketer, Jones and Barmasai achieved their 5th golden league win. Season best for Hicham El Guerrouj (3' 28" 57) who won Noah Ngeni in a race where 5 runners were under 3' 30", Gabriella Szabo (8' 25" 03.), Violeta Zsekely (3' 59" 31) and Haile Gebreselasie (12' 49" 65). Voula Tsiamita won a great triple jump competition jumping a 14, 75 m., followed by Tatyana Lebedeva who jumps 14, 72 m. and Yamila Aldama (14, 68 m.). Also Kostas Gatsioudis was the winner of the Javelin Throw with 89, 53 m. just 4 cm. out of the Greek National Record.

August 7- 8. Greek National Championships 1999
 Voula Tsiamita and Olga Vasdeki had an amazing competition pn the first day of the Greek National Championships. Tsiamita was the winner with a jump at 14,65 just 10 cm. more than Vasdeki. Mirella Tzelili won the javelin with 66, 55 m., which is the 3rd world performance for this year. Giorgos Theodoridis won the 100 m. in 10"22, where Angelos Pavlakakis was injured and probably looses Sevilla'99. Asimina Morfi broke the hammer throw NR for Greece with 60,43 m. The second day marked by the record set by Thaleia Iakovidou (4,15 m.).

August 8. Fast sprints in London
Maurice Green and Marion Jones ran the faster 100 m. ever in Britain as they clocked at 9"97 and 10"80 respectively, during the British Grand Prix. Bruny Surin with 10"07. and Zhanna Pintussevich with 10" 98. was second.

August 4. Szabo, Jones, Kipketer and Barmasai go on
Gabriella Szabo (8' 28" 38.), Marion Jones (22" 15.), Bernard Barmasai and Wilson Kipketer achieved their fourth Golden League win in Monaco. Season's best for Kipketer (1' 42" 57.), Barmasai (7' 58" 98), Violetta Szekely-Beclea (4' 01" 50.) and Hestrie Storbeck who improved the African Record to 2, 04 m. Costas Gatsioudis with 87,95 m. won the javelin throw competition.

August 1. 1' 44" 68. for Mark Everett in Patras
Mark Everett won the 800 m. and achieved the best performance in the meeting of Patras, "Tofaleia". He won in 1' 44" 68., followed by Hecini. Other good performances for Dietsch (67, 81 m.), Kiss (79, 20 m.) and Thaleia Iakovidou who broke the Greek Pole Vault NR with 4, 10 m.

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July 1999

July 29-August 1. Christoforos Choidis wins gold in Goteborg. Bronze medal for Periklis Iakovakis. Manuela Levorato makes the sprint double
Christoforos Choidis won the 100 m. final in the U23 European Championships, setting a personal best at 10"19, two years after the win of Angelos Pavlakakis in the same category.Periklis Iakovakis was 3rd in 400 m. hurdles with 49"97, where Lambros Zervakos placed 4th. (50"48.) Vaios Tigkas was 5th in the shot put final. Manuela Levorato of Italy won both the 100 m. and the 200 m. to score a surprising double at Women's sprint events. Other Highlights of the Games: Marcin Nowak and Christian Malcom were both 2nd at the 100 m. final, as the photo finish could not judge the winner. Christian Malcom  was also 2nd at the 200 m., again scoring the same time with the 1st John Ertzgaard, however this time the photo finish gave the gold medal to the Norwegian! Olivera Jevtic easily won the 10.000 m. with 32' 37" 59. Hari Haatainen won the Javelin with a throw at 83, 02 m. Thomas Scigazwski won the 110 m. Hurdles in 13" 36 and Nils Schumann won the 800 m. 1' 45" 21. Yago Lamela with 8, 36 m. was the Long Jump winner. Romain Mensil of France jumped 5, 93 m. at the Pole vault. Christina Nicolau jumped 14, 70 m. in the Triple Jump.
Results: [day 1] [day 2] [day 3] [day 4]
Links: Official Website [1997 Results] ['99 Greek Lists Men] ['99 Greek Lists Women]

July 28. World Champions Zhanna Pintussevich and Nouredine Morcelli impressing in Crete
Nouredine Morcelli and Benson Koech ran a great 1.500 m. in Chania of Crete, while Zhana Pintussevich won both the 100 m. and 200 m. with very good times in both events. Olga Vasdeki the local fans favorite and European Triple Jump Champion returned to the big jumps, winning at 14, 67 m. on a night also marked by Georghe Guset's 20, 72 m. at the Shot Put. Some more great performances were achieved as we reported online from Chania (official "Venizelia" website).

July 21. Paris Golden League Meeting: Rising Star Noah Ngeny dominates
The Golden League Meeting of Paris was held tonight with a wonderful 1.500 m. race as the highlight. Noah Ngeny of Kenya set a new National record, a third all-time performance and a year's best with 3' 28" 84., proving that he will soon be the top Middle Distance runner, since he's only 21 years old. he was followed by former WR holder Nouredine Morcelli who returned after 7 months with an excellent 3' 30" 91. (2nd best for '99) and promised a better race at the "Venizelia" meeting of Chania, Greece. Local hero Driss Maazouzi broke the NR for France with 3' 31" 51. at third place.Sammy Kipketer was 5th at the 3km race, but broke the WJR with 7' 35" 08.Wilson Kipketer ran a fantastic 800 m. race, not in terms of time, but in terms of decisiveness, when he managed to win although he lost one shoe at almost the half of the race. He is now one of the four athletes to continue for the 1 million $ quest, together woth Marion Jones, who easily won the 200 m. with 21" 99., Gabriela Szabo, who ran another World Leading 3km at 8' 25" 59. and Bernard Barmassai, who laso set a WL with 8' 05" 71. at the Steeple. Allen Johnson who did not compete in Paris, as well as Svetlana Masterkova who was 5th and Eric Walder who was 10th, were excluded from the big prize chase. Some important performances were achieved by Maksim Tarasov (5, 90 m. at the Pole Vault), James Beckford (8, 42 m. at the Long Jump), Jan Zelezny (89, 06 m. at the Javelin), Olga Shishigina (12" 50. at the 100 m. H.), Hestrie Storbeck-Cloete (2 m. -new AR for Africa- at the High Jump) and Eunice Barber (7, 01 m. -new NR for France- at the Long Jump).
Related Links:
[IAAF World Lists] ['99 GP Series] ['99 GP Standings] ['98 Results] ['97 Results] [Kenyan Alltime Lists]

July 17. Ngeny and Masterkova set 1.000 m. season's best in Nice.
Noah Ngeny ran the 1.000 m. race in 2' 12" 66., but failed to break the eighteen-year-old world record, during the GP I meeting Nikaia'99. Svetlana Masterkova won the women race in 2' 31" 18. the best time for this year. Meanwhile, the 1st World Youth Championship is in progress in Bydgoszcz, Poland, where the Greek long jumper Luis Tsatoumas placed fourth with 7,54 m. Online results are provided by I.A.A.F
Related Links:
[IAAF World Lists] ['99 GP Series] ['99 GP Standings]

July 7. Golden League Series continue in Rome: El Guerrouj breaks the Mile World Record with 3' 43" 13.
Hicham El Guerrouj broke one more World record tonight in the Olympic Stadium of Rome, during the Golden Gala Meeting. He ran the Mile at 3' 43" 13., destroying Morcelli's previous record for more than a second. Noah Ngeny of Kenya, the rising star of Middle Distances, followed very closely and ran 3' 43" 40., passing the 1.500 m. in about 3' 28" which is probabaly a Kenyan NR! The fans at "The Eternal City" were excited to attend a wonderful meeting, full of top performances, such as follows: Maurice Greene with 9" 85. confirmed his top form in the 100 m., Michael Johnson proved that he's still the 200 m. #1 when he won the race at 19" 93. and beated Obadele Thompson and Ato Boldon. At the 800 m. Wilson Kipketer set a World leading 1' 42" 79., followed by Japhet Kimutai at 1' 42" 98. Seven athletes paced under 13 minutes at the 5.000 m. in the fastest race eve, with Daniel Komen winning at 12' 55" 16. Allen Johnson beated the world leader Mark Crear with 13" 01. and Bernard Barmassai set a new World Leading 3 km Steeple 8' 03" 30. Greek Champion Costas Gatsioudis won the javelin with 86, 92 m., proving that he's in top form for the World Championships. Greece's female stars Voula Tsiamita (leader now of the GP Standings) and Olga Vasdeki dominated the Triple Jump competition. Tsiamita won with 14, 77 m. Marion Jones avoided disqualifying for running in the inside lane and continues her quest for the 1 million $, winning at 22" 19. Svetlana Mastertkova despite following bad tactics during the race, won the 800 m. at 1' 57" 63., with a strong finish and Gabriela Szabo was once again the 3 km winner, followed by the "usual suspects" Zahra Ouaziz and Gete Wami. Nezha Bidouane set a new WL with 53" 05. and Yelena Yelesina won the High Jump with 2 m.
Related Links: ['98 Results] ['97 Results] [IAAF World Lists] ['99 GP Series] ['99 GP Standings]  [World Records in 1999]

July 4. Dvorak breaks O'Brien's World Record in Prague: 8.994 p.
Tomas Dvorak broke the World Decathlon Record by more than 100 points, with a total of 8.994 points, during the European Cup competition in Prague. His individual events were: 100 m.: 10"54 [-0.1], Long Jump: 7, 90 m.[+1.1], Shot Put: 16, 78 m., High Jump: 2, 04 m., 400 m.: 48" 08., 110 m. H.: 13" 73. [0.0], Discus: 48, 33 m., Pole Vault: 4, 90 m., Javelin: 72, 32 m., 1.500 m.: 4' 37" 20.

July 3. European Record for Balakhonova in St Dennis: 4, 55 m.
Anzhela Balakhonova, the Ukranian Pole Vault champion broke the women's ER with 4, 55 m. tonight in the Gaz de France meeting at the suburb of Paris, St. Dennis.
Related Links:  Official Site of the Gaz de France meeting  ['98 Results] ['97 Results] [IAAF World Lists] ['99 GP Series] ['99 GP Standings]

July 2. Athletissima, Lausanne: 66, 45 m. by Menendez in a night full of year's best performances
The Athletissima Grand Prix meeting was held tonight in Lausanne. A lot of great performances and batles kept the crowd in full attention, as a lot af athletes are reaching their top form on the road to Seville. Osleydis Menedez from Cuba smashed Hattestad's world best (no WR is wet recognised for the new type of Javelin) and won the event with 66, 45 m. Larry Wade became one of the top hurdlers ever with 13" 01. in a great race where Mark Crear followed in 13" 04. and Allen Johnson in 13" 10. (all three better than the World Leading until then) and Colin Jackson at 13" 13. Michael Johnson had an impressive comeback after his injury at the U.S. Champs and won the 400 m. in 43" 92. (World Leading). Marion Jones set easily a 10" 80. world leading performance for the 100 m. with Sevatheda Fynes following at 10" 91. and left Katerina Thanou at 11" 06., fourth. Falilat Ogunkoya set the best 400 m. record for 1999 with 50" 01. Ato Boldon ran once again 9" 86. this year (after Athens) and beated Maurice Greene (9" 93.) and the fantastic Jason Gardener (9" 98. and 10" 02. at the warm up race). Gardener became the 2nd alltime European sprinter after Linford Christie. Nezha Bidouane with 53" 08. took her '99 world lead back from Deon Hemmings who was second at the 400 m. Hurdles race. Hasna Benhassi (800 m.: 1' 57" 45.), Ashia Hansen (TJ: 14, 65 m.), Voula Tsiamita (TJ: 14, 59 m. -now is no.3 at the Overall GP Standings), Noah Ngeny (1.500 m.: 3' 31" 18), Daniel Komen (3km: 7' 30" 62.), Jonathan Edwars (TJ: 17, 34 m.) and Dennis Kapustin (TJ: 17, 31) were the other stars of the night, which also included an exciting 800 m. Men's race with 8 athletes under 1' 45".
Related Links: Official Site of the Athletissima Meeting ['98 Results] ['97 Results] [IAAF World Lists] ['99 GP Series] ['99 GP Standings]

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June 1999

June 27. Steven Smith jumps 2,36 m. in Gateshead
Steve Smith attempted an impressive come back tonight in Gateshead, after a period of injury. He cleared 2,36 m. setting a world best for 1999. Haile Gebreselasie won the mile in 3' 52" 39. Sergey Makarov won again with 88,23 m.

June 24-27. U.S. Championships 1999
Maurice Greene (19"93), Jeff Hartwig (6,02 m.), John Godina (22,02 m.) and Gail Devers (12"54) were the stars of the latest events of the US Champs '99. The withdraw of Michael Johnson from the Champs because of an injury and the win of Dwan Burrell against Marion Jones in the long jump was the main news from the first days. Dennis Mitchel (9"97) and Inger Miller (10"96) were the US Champions of the 100 m. races.

June 20. Germany and Russia win European Cup. Greek men team hold on Super League.
The men team of Germany and the women team of Russia won easily the European Cup in Paris, after the events of the second day. Greece avoided relegation after a sensational competition with the Polish team. World leading performance for Paula Radcliffe (14'48"79) and impressing marks for Ramas (200 m, 20"34.), Alexopoulos (20"36.), Goncharenko (22"59.), Kapustin (17,40 m.), Melinte (74,48 m.) and the relay teams of Great Britain (3'00"63.) and Poland (3'01"06.). Greek team set a national record with 3'04"43.
SCORING (final): MEN. GER 122, ITA 98.5 , GBR 97, RUS 95, FRA 81.5, GRE 80, POL 79, CZE 62. WOMEN RUS 127, ROM 99, FRA 97, GER 93.5, ITA 71, GBR 68.5, POL 65, CZE 62.

June 19. European Cup - Super League
Christos Polychroniou broke the Greek NR with a throw at 79,72 m. and won the hammer event on the first day of the European Cup. Vaios Tigkas was 3rd in shot put (18,71m.) behind Buder (20,53 m.) and Dal Soglio (19,19 m.). Periklis Iakovakis was 8th in 400 m.h. where Mori won in 48"68. and Christoforos Choidis 4th in 100 m. (10"38) won by Chambers (10"21). Sixth place for Stroubakos in 1.500 m. (3'47"56), a very slow race won by D'Urso in 3'46"01. Very good performance for Costas Kenteris; he placed 3rd with 45"66, following Richardson (44"96) and Golovastov (45"59.) The 4X100 Greek team was second (38"61.), breaking the NR, behind the British runners (38"16, CR). Year's best for Martin Buss (2,34 m.), Tania Damaske (65,44 m.) and Gabriella Szabo (8'36"36.) Impressing races for Christine Arron (10"97.) and Ionela Tirlea (50"69.).
SCORING (after 1st day): MEN. GER 59, ITA 54.5, GBR 49, GRE 47, FRA 45.5, POL 39, RUS 36, CZE 30.WOMEN RUS 67, FRA 55, ROM 52, GER 52, ITA 36, GBR 33, CZE 33, POL 31.

June 16. World Record by Maurice Greene in an exciting night for Athens and the Track and Field fans
(See the race in Real Video (from the official "Tsiklitiria" site)The Athenian sport fans were unlucky two years ago, when -despite the fact that the Athens World Champs were great as far as the competition was concerned- no world records broke at the Olympic Stadium. Tonight, at the "Tsiklitiria" Athens Grand Prix II, the competition was great again. And Maurice Greene, the world champion of Athens two years ago, gave the crowd the satisfaction of a world record that they had been deprived of during the World Championships. Maurice Greene clocked 7" 79. in the 100 m. to become the fastest man of our decade, breaking the official world record of Donovan Bailey (9" 86. in Atlanta on 27/7/96) and equaling Ben Johnson's controversial (and considered by many as the real world record) 9" 79. from the Seoul Olympics. Meanwhile, Maksim Tarasov become the 2nd ever pole vaulter, with a jump at 6, 05 m. in one of the best Pole Vault competitions ever. Even if this was a Golden League meeting few people would hope for so many world leading performances as we had tonight. Except for Greene and Tarasov, Larissa Michailova, Larry Wade, Ato Boldon, Nezha Bidouane and Sergei Makarov achieved the world leading performances for their events this year. Also, very important performances were achieved by Katerina Thanou, Dragutin Topic, Noah Ngeny, Anier Garcia, Jeff Hartwig, James Beckford, Ivan Pedroso, Astrid Kumbernuss and Natalya Sadova. For more details you can check at our summaries of the events.
Related Lins: www.iaaf.orgwww.tsiklitiria.org['99 GP Series] ['99 GP Standings] ['98 Results] [Photo Gallery] [World Records] [Greek Statistics]

June 14.Year's best for Bruny Surin in Germany
Brunny Surin ran an 9" 92. in Nuernberg setting a year's best for 1999, where Dwain Campbell clocked at 9"99, Yvonne Buschbaum set a world juniors record of 4,35 meters and Bianca Achilles broke the world juniors hammer record with 66,75 meters. Meanwhile Christine Aaron started the season with an impressive 22"63 in Villeneuve d' Ascq.

June 10. 7'26"03 for Gebreselasie in Helsinki
Gebre won easily the 3.000 m. in Helsinki GP, althought he was enough off Komen's world record. Good performance for Jones who won the 200 m. in 20" 91. Niki Xanthou was second in the long jump with 6, 51 m. Meanwhile meetings are held all over Europe. We have added a lot of results at our Various Meetings page.
Related Links: ['99 GP Series] ['99 GP Standings]

June 8. Voula Tsiamita wins in Bratislava
Voula Tsiamita won the meeting of Bratislava GP II with a jump at 14,66 m., ahead of Tereza Marinova (14,57 m.), Yelena Lebedenko (14,37 m.), Yelena Govorova (14,19 m.) and Tatyana Lebedeva (14,04 m.). After this win Tsiamita is placed 7th in the overall Grand Prix standings and 2nd in the triple jump classification.

June 6. Hungary and Greece are promoted to Super League of the European Cup
The men team of Hungary and the women team of Greece won finally the first division of the European Cup and they will participate in the European Super League next year. The end of the second day was marked by two important national 4x400 relay records. The first by the men of Hungary with 3'03"64, which is also a European Cup Record and the second by the Greek women team with 3'32"75.

June 6. Year's best for Komen & Gebre in Stuttgart
Haile Gebreselasie ran the 1.500 m. in 3'33"73 in Stuttgart, where Daniel Komen won the 3.000 m. with 7'32"72. Both performances are the best for this year so far.

June 5. Voula Tsiamita flies at 14,94 m.
Voula Tsiamita set a national record once more jumping at 14,94 m. on the first day of European Cup "Bruno Zauli", Division A, held in Athens. Christina Panagou broke the ten-year-old national record of 400 m. hurdles with 57"75, and Mirella Tzelili with a throw at 64,99 m. is now second athlete in the world for this year. Great competitions for the promotion to Super League among the Greek, the Hungarian and the Bulgarian teams in women, the Hungarian, the Spanish and the Slovenian teams in men.

June 5. Gatsioudis wins best ever Javelin competition in Jena
Kostas Gatsioudis had an exciting afternoon in Jena and won the competition with 88, 84 m., while Hecht threw at 88, 67 m., Boris Henry 88, 62 m. and Makarov 88, 40 m.!

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May 1999

May 29. International Meeting of Rethymno
Katerina Thanou ran a wind assisted 10"77 today in Rethymno, against Marleen Ottey. The crowd enjoyed especially the women discus competition, where Anastassia Kelesidou broke the NR for Greece with 67,70 m. and placed second after Grasu (68,23 m.) and ahead of Dietzsch (66,76 m.) and Chernyavskaya (64,68 m.). Very good performances for Svetla Dimitrova (12"97.) Sunday Emmanuel (10"14.), Petko Yankov (20"36.), Deji Aliu (20" 43.),  Christoforos Choidis (10"21) and Anna Guevara (51"48.). Ioanna Volpanou set a national juniors record for Greece, with 3, 90 m. in pole vault.

May 28. Year's best for Kim Batten in Sevilla
Kim Batten set a season's best in Sevilla GP II with 53"99. James Beckford and Tereza Marinova dominate the overall standings, two days before Hengelo and Eugene meets.

May 22. Top World performances by Greek athletes in Kalamata: 10" 91. by Thanou, 14, 67 m. by Tsiamita and 6, 98 m. by Xanthou
The Indoor World Champion of '99 Katerina Thanou, the 2nd World Champion of Athens Niki Xanthou the 3rd World Champion of Athens  Costas Gatsioudis, new Triple Jump talent Voula Tsiamita and the Silver medallist of Atlanta  Niki Bakogianni (official website at: www.niki-bakogianni.gr) impressed with their performances at the International meeting of "Papaflsesseia" in Kalamata, and proved that Greek Athletics have improved so much the last few years so that Greece can expect more than the two medals of Athens at the 7th World Championships in Seville. The meeting was a very successful organisation, a symbol of peace and friendship during the difficult times for the B