Athletics
WORLD ATHLETICS BOSS, COE, TIGHTENS NOOSE ON RUSSIA
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe has said Russian track and field athletes will not be admitted to compete at next year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo unless he is “absolutely comfortable” they are clean.
Coe told the Press Association he is “not going to risk or imperil the careers of clean athletes”.
Last week, acting Russian Athletics Federation (RusAF) President Yulia Tarasenko claimed it is still possible for athletes from the country to be cleared to compete as neutrals at Tokyo 2020, despite the suspension of the national governing body’s reinstatement process.
Tarasenko, who replaced Dmitry Shlyakhtin after he was among the RusAF officials charged with obstructing a doping investigation, revealed she was expecting Russian athletes to be given the opportunity to participate.
World Athletics froze the reinstatement process for RusAF and warned it would consider expelling the organisation, following the “serious anti-doping breaches” alleged by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU).
It also agreed that the current system of allowing Russian athletes to compete as Authorised Neutral Athletes (ANAs) should be put on hold.
Russia has since been handed a four-year ban by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), after an investigation found data from the Moscow Laboratory had been tampered with before it was handed over to the global watchdog.
The sanctions from WADA mean Russia’s flag will be banned from major events, including Tokyo 2020, while the country is also set to be stripped of World Championships it has been awarded.
WADA ruled that Russian athletes who can prove they had no involvement in the doping scandal or the cover-up will be able to compete – a condition Tarasenko claims should apply to track and field competitors.
Although Coe would not speculate about whether any Russian track and field athlete would compete at Tokyo 2020, he told the Press Association: “Authorised neutral status has been suspended until we are able to have a federation which is able to endorse that.
“My instinct is until we are absolutely comfortable that we have the continuation of a system we can trust, I am not going to risk or imperil the careers of clean athletes who have probably devoted at least half of their young lives to being at that point.”
He added: “It is often overlooked but I am happy to say this – my overwhelming concern is for the clean athletes because it is their birth right, it is their commitment, it is the hours and hours that they devote to our sport, and I need to protect them.
“Only when I am absolutely convinced that we are going to reintroduce a federation or athletes back into that system, only when I am absolutely comfortable that they are, as far as we know, clean athletes, then I don’t want to take that risk.”
WADA has been criticised for not imposing a blanket ban on Russian athletes, but Coe does not think it would have been possible to legally enforce such a punishment.
“I think we have to live in the real world,” he told the Press Association.
“A blanket ban is not something that has inherently ever been upheld by the Court of Arbitration [for Sport].
“They do want to look for proportionality, so our philosophy has always been when we introduced the ANA concept that it was predicated purely on one thing – can we separate the clean athletes from the tainted system?
“I didn’t come into the sport as a former competitor to lightly stop athletes from competing, and we were able to create a system which has served us well.
“But clearly the charges levelled against the new federation are serious enough for us to have to suspend that process.”
RusAF confirmed it had sent its response to the AIU’s allegations by the deadline on Thursday (December 12), following the charges against officials at the governing body.
Shlyakhtin, appointed RusAF President in 2016, was suspended by the AIU for his involvement in the obstruction of a probe into whereabouts violations committed by world indoor high jump silver medallist Danil Lysenko.
He has been accused of using fake medical documents in an attempt to ensure Lysenko avoided punishment and of failing to cooperate with an investigation.
The AIU concluded, following a 15-month probe, that RusAF officials had been involved in the provision of false explanations and forged documents to the AIU in order to explain whereabouts failures by the athlete.
Along with Shlyakhtin, the RusAF executive director Alexander Parkin, the athlete and his coach Evgeniy Zagorulko have also been charged with “tampering and/or complicity” under the anti-doping rules and also been provisionally suspended.
-insidethegames
BY DAPO SOTUMINU
Nigeria’s Francis James and Blessing Shambaz yesterday emerged winners of the 2nd Lotus Bank Abeokuta 10km Race to go home with the winners prize money of $1,000 in a race that was officially flagged off by the First vice president of the Nigeria Olympic Committee, Chief Solomon Ogba, and supported by Mr. Nadin Khan, the president of the World Ultra Running.
James won the men’s race finishing at 30minutes 11seconds to beat all opponents to consolidate on his victory in Abuja when he finished second best in the half marathon held in the Federal Capital Territory middle of the year.
James also emerged the Nigeria’s winner of the World class half marathon.
It will be recalled that James at his last major race in Abuja finished second place in a national half marathon race. He stressed that he used that race to prepare for the Lotus Bank Abeokuta Race and he was very happy winning the race.
He stressed that, the victory at Lotus Bank Abeokuta 10m Race has given him the confidence to do better in others races coming up in Nigeria and its an indication, that he’s very close to making history for Nigeria in subsequent marathon races. He added that, Nigerian runners will pull surprise in the others races not minding the attendance of the East Africans.
In second place for the men’s race is Gyang Raymond at a time of 30 minutes 14 seconds. Gyang got $750 for his effort. While the third place winner is Gyang David Boyi at 30 minutes 54 seconds. Boyi got a cash prize of $500.
In the women 10km race, the runners up that placed second was Daylop Patience at a time of 36minutes 98.28seconds to keep her position in last year’s edition. She got $750.
Third place winner is Agofure Charity at 37minutes 88 seconds.She got $500.
The overall 10km also saw the race by special athletes.
The route of the Lotus Bank Abeokuta Race wore a very active look this morning with the active presence of Febbs table water, a part sponsor of the event.
The volunteers on each points on the route all had Febbs Water on their hands ready to hand them over the runners. The organisers decorated all the runners that crossed the finish line with gold medals, this added to the fanfare and celebrations at the Alake Palace finish line of the race.
The Diamond League will increase its prize money to more than $9 million in 2025, the highest in the history of the series, the organisers have said.
Athletes will make a total of $18 million, with top athletes also receiving promotional fees. Male and female athletes will be paid at the same rate, the Diamond League said in a statement.
“The new total is almost a third higher than the sum paid during the pandemic-affected period of 2021-2024,” the statement said, adding that more will be invested in the athletes’ travel, transport, accommodation, medical and physio services.
Each of the 14 Diamond League meets of the 2025 regular season, scheduled to kick off in April, will award a total prize money of $500,000, with the final in August offering $2.24 million.
“The total prize money per discipline will be between $30,000 and $50,000 at the series meetings and between $60,000 and $100,000 at the final,” the statement added.
The Diamond League’s 2024 season concluded in Brussels last week, with Zurich set to host the 2025 final.
The news comes after World Athletics ended a 128-year tradition by paying Olympic champions at the Paris Games $50,000 each and as rival track events try to muscle in on the circuit long seen as the standard-bearer for professional athletics.
Retired American sprinting great Michael Johnson’s Grand Slam Track will offer prize money ranging from $100,000 for the winner to $10,000 for the eighth-place finisher at each of four “slams” when the league launches next year.
It will distribute a total of $12.6 million in prize money in 2025.
“In a league of our own,” Grand Slam Track wrote in a post on X, opens new tab on Wednesday, with a breakdown of their prize money.
-Reuters
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.
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