Ellie Greenwood wins the 2010 IAU 100km World Champs in Gibraltar (© Jan Vandendriessche)
Shinji Nakadai of Japan and Ellie Greenwood of Great Britain will defend their titles at the 25th IAU 100km World and European Championships on Saturday (10) in Winschoten, The Netherlands.
Winschoten is located in the province of Groningen and is the second largest city in the region with a population of 18,000 inhabitants.
There will be two hundred and thirty athletes representing thirty five countries who will be toeing the start line in Winschoten. These are record numbers for the highest ever participation, by athletes or participating federations, at any IAU 100km World Championships. The race also doubles as the 100km championships for the Masters in collaboration with World Masters Athletics.
Nakadai’s winning time from last year’s 24th IAU World and European Championship in Gibraltar was 6:43:44. He will be given a tough competition from the top qualifier this year and 2008 World Champion Giorgio Calcaterra (ITA) with a qualification time of 6:25:47. Last year’s silver medalist and the current European champion, Jonas Buud (SWE), will also try to improve his standings on the podium with a personal best time of 6:41:49.
In the women’s race, Greenwood, the 2010 World and European champion, will attempt to repeat her outstanding performance from Gibraltar. Her winning time was 7:29:05. She will face interesting competition from perennial top performer and 2010 silver medallist Monica Carlin (ITA) and 2009 World champion Kami Semick (USA) who have times of 7:30:50 and 7:33:58, respectively.
The World Championships also have a European championship component to them. European athletes will be vying for the best in Europe title in addition to competing for the world championships. Furthermore, the race also has a Masters component. This is being organised with the World Masters Athletics (WMA) and will be running concurrently with the World and European Championships.
The race takes place at 10am and will be carried under Live Updates on www.iau-ultramarathon.org
Top runners in the Men’s field include (based on 2009-2011 performances):
1) Giorgio Calcaterra (ITA) 6:25:47
2) Yashikazu Hara (JPN) 6:41:17
3) Jonas Buud (SWE) 6:41:49
4) Masakazu Takahashi (JPN) 6:42:05
5) Marco Boffo (ITA) 6:45:38
Top runners in the women’s field include (based on 2009-2011 performances):
1) Ellie Greenwood (GBR) 7:29:05
2) Monica Carlin (ITA) 7:30:50
3) Kami Semick (USA) 7:33:58
4) Gloria Vinstedt (SWE) 7:37:06
5) Marija Vrajic (CRO) 7:37:40
Nadeem Khan for the IAAF
