Lausanne, Switzerland - Usain Bolt in the men’s 200m, Dayron Robles in the men’s 110m Hurdles and Asafa Powell in the men’s 100m are just a few names in the spotlight in the star-studded Athletissima meeting in Lausanne on Tuesday 7 July.

Athletissima 2009 is a Super Grand Prix status event as part of the IAAF World Athletics Tour.

JAM vs USA in men's flat sprints - Bolt's loves Lausanne track

Jamaica's triple Olympic champion Usain Bolt will make his first European appearance in the 200m just over a week after taking the sprint double at the Jamaican Championships in Kingston where he clocked 9.86 (beating Asafa Powell) and 20.25 into headwind.

In his only standard track race of the European season so far Bolt won the 100m in Ostrava with a tailwind of +2.1 m/s despite what he described as “the second worst start I ever had”. Bolt has a fond memory of Lausanne where he equalled the meeting record last year clocking 19.63 easing up in the final part of the race.

“I love the track, its long curve and the great crowd”, said Bolt of the great atmosphere in Lausanne which is famous for the super-fast times in sprint events, especially the half-lap sprint. It is enough to remember that Bolt tied Xavier Carter’s meet record set in the famous 2006 race where four sprinters dipped under the 20 seconds barrier.

2004 Olympic champion and current silver medallist Shawn Crawford, winner at the US Champs in a windy 19.73, and 400 metres Olympic champion Lashawn Merritt (20.07 in Carson this year) will lead the US challenge to Bolt. Olympic 100 metres fourth placer Churandy Martina from the Dutch Antilles will be looking to run his first ever sub-20 seconds time.

The men’s 100m also promises to be another Jamaica vs. USA clash. Jamaica’s Asafa Powell won last year at the Pontaise stadium in Lausanne in 9.72, which is his PB, the meeting record and makes him second fastest man in history behind the legendary Bolt’s 9.69 in Beijing.

Powell, who was beaten by Bolt at the Jamaican Championships but showed encouarging form after a ankle injury with his season’s best of 9.97, opened his european campaign with a photo-finish win in Oslo in 10.07, and will be challenged by new US champion Mike Rodgers who won three World Athletics Tour meetings in Belem, New York, Eugene Prefontaine Classic and the US Champs in a wind-assisted 9.91 so making the US team for the Berlin World Championships.

Robles back to make up for rare 2008 defeat

Dayron Robles will run his fourth men’s 110m Hurdles of the year after 13.30 in Thessaloniki, a world seasonal lead of 13.04 in Ostrava and a 13.47 heat and a windy 13.18 at CAC Champs in Havana.

Last year in Lausanne the Cuban hit the final hurdle and was beaten by David Oliver for one of his two defeats in 2008. Robles, World record holder with 12.87 and seven times under the 13 seconds barrier in 2008, will be looking for his first win at the Athletissima and possibly his first sub-13 seconds time of the year on the track where his Chinese rival and friend Liu Xiang set the previous World record (12.88).

Robles will face US Dexter Faulk who ran brilliantly in the European circuit this summer with a Golden League win in Berlin and a new PB of 13.13 in Ostrava behind Robles. Two US stars who have made the Berlin team are in the Lausanne line-up. They are US Champs David Payne and third placer Aries Merritt.

Jamaica vs USA again in women's sprints too

A clash between Jamaica and USA will also headline the women’s sprint events. Olympic champion Shelly Ann Fraser from Jamaica, who clocked an impressive 10.88 into a headwind of -1.5 m/s at the Jamaican Trials, will clash against US champion Carmelita Jeter, who ran a super wind-assisted 10.72 in the semifinals of the US Champs in Eugene before taking the National title in a windy 10.78. Jeter is still unbeaten this year and won at the World Athletics Tour meets in New York and Eugene.

Muna Lee, runner-up in the US Champs in 22.13, and double Olympic medallist Kerron Stewart from Jamaica, who won the first two legs of the Golden League in the 100 metres in Berlin and Oslo, Jamaican 400m Olympic silver medallist Shericka Williams will line up in the women’s 200 metres.

Harper's Beijing recall

Another US champion who will make her European debut in Lausanne will be 100m Hurdles Olympic champion Dawn Harper who won the Eugene US Champs securing her spot in the US Berlin team with a windy 12.36. Harper will line up against fellow Beijing medallists Sally Mclellan from Ausralia and Canadian Priscilla Lopes Schliep (world seasonal leader with 12.52) in a re-match of the 2008 Olympic Games.

World Indoor champion Lolo Jones will try to make up for the disappointment of missing the selection for Berlin at the US Champs, and also for a below par run in Oslo last Friday.

Also in the line-up are 2005 and 2007 World champion Michelle Perry, 2003 World champion Perdita Felicien (this year Canadian champion) and Jamaicans Delloreen Ennis London and Brigitte Foster Hylton.

Jamaica's Walker and phillips to beat
 
Olympic 400m Hurdles champion Melaine Walker from Jamaica will be looking to improve her seasonal best of 54.70, when she faces USA’s Tiffany Williams and this year’s European Team Champsionships winner Anastasia Rabchenyuk. Reigning World champion Kerron Clement returns to the men’s event after his third place over the flat distance at the US Champs. Clement’s major rival will be Jamaican champion Isa Phillips, the winner in Madrid on Saturday in 48.09.

Hooker, Lavillenie and Walker

One of the most-anticipated field events will be the men’s Pole Vault which features Bejing Olympic champion Steve Hooker from Australia, who cleared 6.06m in Boston indoors last February, and new French sensation Renaud Lavillenie, who recently grabbed the headlines with a superb French record at 6.01 at the European Team Championships in Leiria. Brad Walker, reigning World champion and US record holder with the 6.04m set in 2008, will be another 6 metres pole vaulter in the field.

Phillips continues on comeback trail

Former Olympic and World champion Dwight Phillips will be aiming to continue his impressive comeback season in which he leapt to 8.74m (fifth in the world all-time list) at the Eugene Prefontaine Classic. His task will be far from easy as he will face fresh African record holder Godfrey Khotso Mokoena, who jumped a legal 8.50 in Madrid on Saturday, and European indoor record holder (8.71m) Sebastian Bayer who leapt to 8.49 at the German Champs in Ulm, Fabrice Lapierre from Australia, winner in the Madrid Grand Prix with a windy 8.57 and Frenchman Salim Sdiri, national record holder in 2009 with 8.42.

Russian Ivan Ukhov, this winter’s European Indoor Champion in Turin, jumped 2.40m indoors and 2.34 three times outdoors in 2009, starts as favourite in a men’s High Jump field which features Olympic silver medallist Germaine Mason from Britain and Russia’s Alexsey Dmitrik (2.33 outdoors this year).

Likely Berlin podium line-up in Javelin

The women’s Javelin Throw features World and Olympic champion and World record holder Barbora Spotakova, and German Christina Obergföll who beat the Czech star at the European Team Championships in Leiria with a world seasonal best spear to 68.59. Spotakova’s seasonal best in 68.23 set in Prague in June. 

The women’s Triple Jump will be highlighted by Russian Olympic silver medallist Tatyana Lebedeva, the World champion at the Long Jump, who holds the Athletissima meet record with 15.33m set in 2004 and won her first triple jump this season with a windy 15.01 in Madrid. Vying with her will be Osaka World champion Yargelis Savigne from Cuba who set the world seasonal best of 14.97 set at the CAC Champs in Havana. 

Home girl Jamal takes on Burka

Middle distance will have as usual a special significance for the local crowd, as the women’s 1500 m features local star Maryam Yusuf Jamal from Barhain who trains at the Pontaise Stadium and lives near Lausanne. World champion Jamal will rely on the strong support from the Lausanne crowd during the race in which she will play the favourite role against world seasonal leader Gelete Burka from Ethiopia who holds the two best performances of the year and won in Hengelo (3:58.79) and Eugene (3:59.89).

World champs Jepkoskei and Yego in the 800s

The women’s 800m will see Kenya’s World champion Janeth Jepkosgei tackle Yekaterina Kostevskaya from Russia (1:59.43 this year) and 2009 European Indoor bronze medallist Elisa Cusma from Italy, recently double winner in the 800 and 1500 metres at the Mediterranean Games in Pescara.

Ismail Ahmed Ismail from Sudan (1:44.31 in Ostrava in 2009), the Olympic silver medallist in Beijing and World champion Alfred Kirwa Yego and Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Al Sahli (1:43.66 this year) are the strongest favourites in the men’s 800m which features a rare appareance of double 1500 and 5000 metres World champion Bernard Lagat over this distance.

The men’s 3000m is expected to be a clash between Kenya and Ethiopia with 5000m Olympic silver and bronze medallists respectively Eliud Kipchoge (world seasonal leader in the 5000 metres with 12:56.46 in Milan) and Edwin Soi up against this year’s Oslo Dream Mile winner Deresse Mekonnen, the World Indoor 1500m champion.
 
Diego Sampaolo for the IAAF