Colin Jackson and IAAF President Lamine Diack (© Getty Images)
Birmingham, UKOn the eve of the 9th IAAF World Indoor Championships which will start tomorrow at the National Indoor Arena (14-16 March), the IAAF hosted its traditional press conference.
After the formal speeches and questions were concluded, a special presentation was made by IAAF President Lamine Diack to Britain’s Colin Jackson, the World record holder at the 60m and 110m Hurdles, to mark 18 years in international athletics which will draw to a close at these championships with the 36-year-old’s retirement from the sport.
“I have been preparing very well for these championships and I am very much looking forward to it,” said Jackson who received a large frame containing photographs of his three World Championships gold medal victories at the presentation. “It is going to be an immense competition, probably the best ever field put together in a Hurdles race. Whatever the outcome, it will still be the culmination of 18 years of a great time I’ve had in the sport I have loved since I was a child. I am very fortunate that my last competition is going to take place in such an important event. It is a huge stage to end a career.
As well as Colin Jackson, four other world class athletes and strong medal contenders were present at the conference -Terrence Trammell (USA), the defending World Indoor 60m Hurdles champion, Jolanda Ceplak of Slovenia, the World Indoor 800m record holder, Kajsa Bergqvist (SWE) the reigning women’s World Indoor High Jump champion, and Bernard Lagat of Kenya, the second fastest man ever at 1500m outdoors.
Representing Great Britain and Northern Ireland and competing in the 60m Hurdles, World indoor and outdoor record holder Colin Jackson
On his competition this weekend which will be his last
“I have been preparing very well for these championships and I am very much looking forward to it. It is going to be an immense competition, probably the best ever field put together in a Hurdles race. Whatever the outcome, it will still be the culmination of 18 years of a great time I’ve had in the sport I have loved since I was a child. I am very fortunate that my last competition is going to take place in such an important event. It is a huge stage to end a career. I have always enjoyed competing indoors and been quite successful in World indoors with one gold and three silvers. And for it to take place at home in Great Britain it is even better. I am sure it will be a great competition for everyone to watch. I know I will have a lot of support from the crowd and that might go to my advantage on Sunday.”
On Terrence Trammell’s attempt to double
“I have been successful in a similar double at the European Championships in 1994 when I won the Hurdles and the flat. I think Terrence is very capable of it. As everyone has seen he is in exceptional form and has beaten anyone in the world be in on the flat or in the hurdles. It is now just a question of how he is going to handle the situation.”
On the new false start rule
“A rule is a rule; one just has to accept it. And I am very happy to accept this new rule. The clearer the start of a race the better for all competitors. We know what we have to play by and we just comply with rules.”
On competing indoors
“What I like about indoors is that the crowd is right next to you. There are some vast stadiums in Europe where the crowd is so far that you feel lost. Also when you compete in indoor halls the weather conditions are always guaranteed. And being a Brit I like it when it’s dry!”
On his retirement
“I think it’ll be all fun when I retire. It will be good to be able to wake up around 10 or 11 in the morning rather than being at training so early. More seriously, I am working on my autobiography and I am also writing a nutrition book. I will also be doing a lot of stuff for the media when I retire. I promise I will find time to keep in shape though.”
Representing the United States of American and competing in the 60m and 60m Hurdles, reigning 60m Hurdles World indoor champion Terrence Trammell
On his competition this weekend
“I chose to attempt the double simply because nobody has done it before. People think it is impossible but I am not afraid. Every race is a challenge in itself and this is just the challenge I have decided to take up. It’s my choice, I have prepared very well for it and I am going to try and achieve it. No one can predict what is going to happen. I am just going to execute what I have been training for. The crowd will obviously be cheering for Colin when I line-up for the Hurdles but I will hear the noise as well. The atmosphere and the electricity in the air will help me as much as the others. The field in the 110m Hurdles is as strong as ever, there is a lot more depth and quality than there used to be. In the final there will probably be 6 potential winners and that will be a very important test for me.”
On how he considers himself
“I think I am a hurdler that can sprint. I have been doing both races through my college career; this isn’t anything new for me. I haven’t been able to concentrate much on sprinting because of my graduation but now that I can, I just take each race at a time. Colin is obviously the best technician in the world, the world records speak for themselves, but I am a good hurdler too. I have never seen him sprint though. I am a very competitive person and I am still in my learning process technically speaking.”
On the World Record
“I think Colin has set the World Records very high. Obviously it would be great if I could break the world record but what I want the most is to be able to compete at my best level. If I didn’t break the world record I know my career wouldn’t have been a waste, there are other things that matter like winning medals. We obviously all strive for the world record but it will only come in due time. Some day someone will go under 12.90 but only in due time and no one can guess when that is going to be…”
About the new false start rule
“I am very much in favour of it. I have never had any false start issue and I think that in every event an athlete eventually need a clean start to compete. I have been used to the no false start rule in the NCAA and I think all this is good for the sport. Let us all compete the way we should.”
About Security
“Yes I know there are metal detectors and policemen around but it’s just normal. In all the big championships I have taken part there have always been a remarkable security. It helps so nothing can distract you from your concentration; it’s a good thing to feel safe. We were aware of the situation before coming here so everything is fine.”
On competing indoors
“I like it very much because at least you don’t have to worry about the weather. Whether it rains or it snows or if there is a tornado, that doesn’t matter you can still compete. And at least you don’t have to worry about your performances been wind aided and therefore not legal.”
Representing Sweden and competing in the High Jump, reigning World Indoor champion Kajsa Bergqvist
On her competition this weekend
“I know this weekend’s is going to be a tough competition. The Russians alone have a lot of girls who have jumped extremely well this winter. Unfortunately only two of them will be competing here but still the competition will be rude. Yelena Yelesina who won the Russian championships and Anna Chicherova who broke the Russian indoor record will be very strong competitors.
When Chicherova jumped 2.04m this winter I was still warm training in South Africa and I must tell you that learning about her performance was an excellent motivation for me. I felt the adrenaline run through and that day I remember I had a great training session. I believe it will take a higher performance than 2.00 to win the title. I think 2.02 or 2.03 or 2.04 or maybe even higher. When you enter such a competition you have to think that you are going to have to jump higher than you have ever done. That is what I do. I always try and aim at jumping higher than ever before. The qualification round will be interesting as well. We will have to see how much it is going to take out of the competitors.”
On marketing our sport
“I am glad to see that the Women’s High Jump is now receiving an increased interest from the media. We, athletes, have a strong responsibility to market our sport. It is very important for all of us. I am happy that the event is part of the Golden League.”
On competing indoors
“I love jumping indoors. A nice sunny day is pleasant when you compete outdoors but indoors is a guarantee. When I think back at the European Championships in Munich last summer, when it was pouring down…I never felt colder in my whole life!”
Representing Kenya and competing in the 1500m, World silver and Olympic bronze medallist Bernard Lagat
On his competition this weekend
“My event compared to the sprints or the women’s high jump has been very low key this winter. I have been running very well in the United States before coming to Europe but then in Athens I finally had some real tough competition. I ran against Rui Silva (Editor: Reigning 1500m World Indoor Champion) and realised how good a shape he was in. That is when I understood that maybe I had been taking it a bit too easy back home. Now I know that I will have to be in my best physical condition to be successful here. The competition will be very tough but I don’t think the winning time in the final will be that fast.”
On the importance of this championships
“These championships are very important to me because so far I have never won any major championships, apart from the World Cup last year. I have been training the best way I could and I know I am now ready to step up a level and finally win a major championships title. My ultimate goals though remain the World Championships this summer in Paris and next year’s Olympic Games. And one day I want to be the World number one in the Mile and the 1500m.”
On competing Indoors
“I like the Indoors because the fans are so close. When you run you can even hear your name being shouted and also see who has been supporting you. So after the race you can go and thank them for cheering you on. The indoor season is also an excellent training base for the outdoor season.”
Representing Slovenia and competing in the 800m, World Indoor record holder Jolanda Ceplak
On her competition this weekend
“This winter I didn’t run like I would have liked to. I have had a few problems but now I feel ok. I don’t think that this year I will be able to come anywhere near my World Record (editor: 1:55.882 ran at last year’s European indoor championships, 3 March). But I feel I am able to run around 1.56 or 1.57. I am going to try and do my best to beat Maria Mutola but you have to remember that there isn’t just Maria Mutola in the 800m. Stephanie Graf is coming back very strongly and she is definitely a medal contender. I will obviously try my best to achieve the best possible result.”
On how her World Record changed her approach
“I still remember the World Record very well. At the beginning of this year everything was going very well and I thought I could have another excellent year but then I had three weeks of problems and things were no longer the same. My motivation never changed though and now that I am back in shape I look very much forward to the competition. I am just coming out of two weeks training in the Canaries and the tests I did there were very good. There will be six girls in the final but it will end up being a battle between Mutola, Graf and myself…”
On competing indoors
“I prefer indoors because for a 54-kg young woman like me it is very hard to run against the wind. I also prefer it indoors to outdoors because I think I am a better runner on a 200-metre track.”
IAAF
