Athletics
SEMENYA MAKES WINNING COMEBACK AT DIAMOND LEAGUE
BY MIKE ROWBOTTOM
Caster Semenya came back, saw and re-conquered at the Prefontaine Classic meeting held at the temporary venue of Stanford, California on Sunday as she won by almost three seconds in the women’s 800 metres at the seventh International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Diamond League meetings of the season.
South Africa’s double Olympic and three-time world 800m champion was able to make her first Diamond League appearance since the season-opener in Doha after a Swiss Court extended its temporary suspension of the IAAF’s ruling that obliges athletes with differences in sexual development (DSD) to take drugs to medically reduce their naturally-occurring testosterone if they want to compete at events ranging from 400 metres to a mile.
The “superprovisional order” was considered a major boost for Semenya in her challenge against a Court of Arbitration for Sport decision in the IAAF’s favour, and her lawyers are believed to have earned her an extension until tomorrow.
Semenya won in a meeting record of 1min 55.70sec – albeit that the meeting was not being held in its traditional venue of Hayward Field in Oregon because that venue is being extensively rebuilt ahead of the 2021 IAAF World Championships in Eugene.
Home runner Ajeé Wilson was second in a season’s best of 1:58.36.
Sifan Hassan, the Dutch European 5,000m champion, produced one of the highlights of an outstandingly rich meeting as she won the women’s 3,000m in a personal best, meeting and Diamond League record of 8:18.49 from Germany’s Konstanze Klosterhalfen, who clocked a personal best of 8:20.07.
Ethiopia’s Rio 2016 10,000m champion and world record holder Almaz Ayana, due to make her first competitive outing since winning the world 10,000m title at London in 2017, did not take part, but her compatriots Letesenbet Gidey and world 1500m record holder Genzebe Dibaba finished third and fourth in personal bests of 8:20.27 and 8:21.29.
In the men’s 400 metres hurdles home runner Rai Benjamin won in a meeting record and 2019 world-leading time of 47.16sec, with double Diamond League champion Kyron McMaster of the British Virgin Islands a distant second in 48.94.
Another highlight occurred in the men’s shot put where Brazil’s Darlan Romani earned a surprise win in a meeting and Diamond League record of 22.61 metres, pushing home thrower Ryan Crouser, the Rio 2016 champion, into second place despite an effort of 22.17m.
World champion Tom Walsh of New Zealand was third on 21.76m.
Kenya’s world record holder for the women’s 3,000m steeplechase, Beatrice Chepkoech, won in a meeting record and 2019 world-leading time of 8:55.58, with home world champion Emma Coburn a distant second in 9:04.90.
Athletics
Record 6000 runners register for 2nd Lotus Bank Abeokuta 10km Run
A record 6,000 runners, local and international from across the African continent and Nigeria have registered for the second edition of the Lotus Bank Abeokuta 10km Run slated for September 28, 2024, as the organisers, Nilayo Sports Management Limited guns for a bronze label status for the race.
The Chief Operating Officer of Nilayo Sports Management Limited, Ebidowie Oweifie, noted that the theme of this year’s edition of the Abeokuta 10km Race titled ‘For Greatness’ out is out to commemorate the birthday anniversary of the Egba paramount ruler, the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo 111, the 10km Run will flag off at Iyana Oloke at 6am and finish at The Alake Palace, Abeokuta.
Kenya’s Peter Nwaniki is the men’s race defending champion at a time of 28 minutes 14 seconds, while Shamila Kipsirir also of Kenya is the women’s defending champion.
Nigeria’s race men’s defending champion is Francis James at 31minutes 08seconds, while the women’s defending champion is Patience Daylop at 36 minutes 31 seconds.
The second edition of Abeokuta10km Race will be sponsored by Lotus Bank, FEBBS Premium Water, Fatgbems Petroleum Limited and Cash Token.
Athletics
Behold, CAS statement on Tobi Amusan
Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan is the winner as the Court of Arbitration for Sports, CAS has rejected the appeals filed by World Athletics and WADA.
The decision confirms the decision taken by the World Athletics disciplinary tribunal finding that Tobi Amusan did not commit any anti-doping rule violation.
Here is the full statement of CAS.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed the appeals filed by
World Athletics (WA) and by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) against the decision issued on 17 August 2023 (the Challenged Decision) by the World Athletics Disciplinary Tribunal (WADT) in relation to the hurdler Oluwatobiloba (Tobi) Amusan (Nigeria).
Accordingly, the Challenged Decision in which the WADT considered that Tobi Amusan did not violate Rule 2.4 of the WA Anti-Doping Rules (WA ADR) and that no period of ineligibility should be imposed on the Athlete is confirmed.
The Athlete was initially charged with committing an Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) under Rule 2.4 WA ADR following three alleged Whereabouts Failures within a 12-month period.
In their respective appeal to CAS, WA and WADA had sought the imposition of a two-year period of ineligibility. The CAS Panel held a hearing on 19 January 2024. Having deliberated, the CAS Panel has issued its decision today dismissing both appeals. The CAS Panel unanimously acknowledged that the Athlete committed two filing failures but did not confirm the existence of a missed test, alleged by WA and WADA, which would have been the third Whereabouts Failure committed within a 12-month
period. Accordingly, the CAS Panel concluded that the Athlete did not commit an ADRV and that the Challenged Decision should be confirmed.
The reasoned award will be published by CAS unless the parties request confidentiality.
Athletics
Tobi Amusan floors WADA and World Athletics!
Nigeria’s Paris 2024 medal hopeful, Tobi Amusan has been cleared as the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) has dismissed the appeal filed by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the World Athletics.
She is therefore cleared to feature at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Amusan is the 100m hurdles world record holder.
The athlete was charged in July last year with missing three anti-doping tests in 12 months but was cleared of the offence by the Disciplinary Tribunal of the sport’s governing body, World Athletics.
The Integrity Unit of the World Athletics appealed the clearance which has now been dismissed by CAS, the final arbiter in the case.
CAS in its statement remarked that its panel “unanimously acknowledged that the athlete committed two filing failures but did not confirm the existence of a missed test, alleged by WA and WADA, which would have been the third Whereabouts Failure committed within 12 months.”
Amusan set the world record of 12.12 seconds in the world championships in Eugene, Oregon, in July 2022 and went on to win the title.
She finished sixth in the world championships in Budapest last year.
World Athletics’ anti-doping rules say any athlete failing to declare their whereabouts for a doping test on three occasions over 12 months is ineligible to compete for two years.
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