Women’s 5000 metres: The race will be highlighted by Genzebe Dibaba, who dominated the Indoor season with three world records in the 1500m, in the 3000m and 2 miles and the World Indoor title in Sopot. However, she was beaten by Mercy Cherono and Almaz Ayana (World silver and bronze medallists in Moscow) in Doha in the greatest women’s 3000 metres race in history. The Olympic stadium record of 8:23.96 set by Olga Yegorova could be broken at the fierce pace set by African runners. The line-up also features World Cross Country silver medallist Hiwot Ayalew, former 10000m World champion Linet Masai, US runner Molly Huddle. Cherono is looking to draw level to Dibaba, who now leads 5-4 in their head-to-head clashes.
Women's 800 metres: The rising Cuban star Sahilly Diago (1:57.54 WL) will face a hard-fough battle between two generations of Kenyan runners: experienced Janeth Jepkosgei (a gold, two silvers and a bronze at the Olympic Games and the World Championships) against young Eunice Sum, who won the world title in Moscow and won the opening leg of the Diamond League in Doha. South-African Caster Semenya, who upset the world winning the World title in Berlin and confirmed this win with two silvers in Daegu and London, will return to Rome. Other athletes to watch are three US runners Ajee Wilson, Brenda Martinez (world bronze in Moscow) and Chanelle Price, world indoor champion last March in Sopot. An outsider could be Cuban Almanza, who returns to Italy five years after the fourth place at the World Youth title in Bressanone. In the head-to-head clashes Jepkosgei leads over Sum 4-3, Semenya edges Jepkosgei 5-4 and Semenya and Sum are 2-2 level.
Men’s 800 metres: The name of Mohamed Aman is enough to raise the interest for the men’s 800 metres. The Moscow World Outdoor champion added the World Indoor title in Sopot to his trophy cabinet. He has been unbeaten for more than one year and won last year in the Rome Olympic Stadium with 1:43.61. The 20-year-old 800 metres runner clocked the ninth best time outdoors in history with 1:42:37 and the third fastest time indoors with 1:42.37. He was the best ever sixth placer in the Olympic final, the best ever 800 metres race, in a highly-impressive 1:43.20. He has been the only runner able to beat David Rudisha 3 times. He will face Nijel Amos, who beat the Ethiopian in London winning the Olympic silver with the World Junior record. I twill be the re-match of the recent Doha race where Aman won a very tight battle against Amos by just a few hundredths of a second. The line-up also features Kenyan Job Kinyor, the two best US middle-distance runners of the moment Duane Solomon and Nick Symmonds (World silver in Moscow), Pole Marcin Lewandowski and Italian Giordano Benedetti who clocked an excellent 1:44.67 in the last edition of the Golden Gala.
Men’s 1500 metres: The name of Asbel Kiprop says everything. He is an extrahordinarily gifted runner who won the Olympic gold medal in Bejing and two World gold medals in Daegu and Moscow. He did not perform well in London because of an injury. He won one of the best ever 1500 metres races in Doha clocking 3:29.18 but he ran a career best of 3:27.72, the fourth fastest time in history. He won twice in Rome in 2008 and 2009 and clocked his best time in this stadium with 3:31.20. He will take on Gibuti’s Ayanleh Souleiman, who won the World Indoor bronze in the 800 metres and the World Indoor title in Sopot and improved his National record to 3:30.16 in Doha, his eternal rival Silas Kiplagat, who won the World silver in Daegu behind Kiprop and finished runner-up in Doha with 3:29.70, Ethiopian record holder Aman Wote (3:30.86 PB), Olympic bronze medallist Abdelati Iguider from Morocco and Kenyan Caleb Ndiku (3:29.50). Kiprop’s dream is to attack the world record set by Hicham El Guerrouj in 1999 at the Olympic Sradium with 3:26.00. Kiprop will a less difficult task to draw level to Kiplagat who leads 11-10 in their head-to-head clashes. Kiprop and Souleiman are 2-2 level. The race also features Southafrican Cronje (world bronze medallist in Moscow), former Kenyan Ilham Tanui Ozbilen from Turkey (known with his kenyan name William Biwott) and French steeplechaser Mahiedine Mekhissi Benabbad (seven-time medallist in European, Olympic and World finals) who will chase his PB (3:33.12).
Men’s 3000 metres steeplechase: The name Ezekiel Kemboi is synonimous with gold medals. The kenyan runner, who is based in Tuscany, won two Olympic gold medals in Athens and London, three World titles in Berlin, Daegu and Moscow and the world silver medals in Helsinki and Osaka. The multi-medallist Kemboi will face Brimin Kipruto, Olympic champion in Bejing and World champion in Osaka, who clocked a sensational time of 7:53.64 in Monaco three years ago missing the world record by just 0.01 sec, Paul Kipsiele Koech who won at the Golden Gala three years ago with 7:54.61 clocking the third fastest time in history, Olympic bronze medallist Abel Mutai and young stepplechaser Jairus Birech. Kemboi got off to a great start this year winning a great race in Doha.
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02 June, 2014
