Stars gather for adidas Oregon Track Classic

With a solid line up of World champions, Olympic gold medallists, and early 2003 season world leaders, the adidas Oregon Track Classic – IAAF GP11 – meeting on Saturday 17 May, promises to be an exceptional lead-off to the U.S. leg of the IAAF Grand Prix circuit.

World and Olympic 100m champion Maurice Greene will make his seasonal debut in the 100 metres, and has promised a display of “poetry in motion.” Greene, who's won two races in two outings over 200 metres, has his sights set on Coby Miller's meet record of 9.98 set last year.

“This meet is very important,” said Greene, who is targeting both the 100m and 200m sprint titles at this year's World Championships in Paris (23-31 August). “It's like the start of a race, only it's the start of the season. I plan to run very fast, and I'm not holding anything back.”

Commonwealth champion Kim Collins, who rode a strong wind to a 9.92 clocking at last month's Texas Relays, should provide the strongest challenge to the former World record holder, while 2000 African Champion and Edmonton finalist Aziz Zakari, who also has a wind-aided sub-10 to his credit this season, will be looking for an early-season breakthrough.

The 200 metres features John Capel, who ended his comeback indoor season this winter as the fastest in the world, making his long-anticipated outdoor debut. But Coby Miller, who sped to a 20.13 win two weeks ago in Mexico City, and Briton Dwain Chambers aim to spoil the 2000 Olympian's outdoor opener.

In the 400m, defending World champion Avard Moncur of the Bahamas will face last year's IAAF World Cup and Grand Prix Final winner and Commonwealth Games champion, Michael Blackwood of Jamaica.

When the recently crowned World Indoor champion David Krummenacker lines up for the 800m, he will do so in territory vastly unfamiliar to most U.S. distance runners over the past two decades, as he will be the hunted, instead of the hunter.

The 27 year-old Krummenacker, who captured a pair of Golden League 800m wins last season, opened his outdoor campaign with a 1:46.00 run at the Brazil IAAF Grand Prix in Belem on 4 May, finishing second to Kenyan Joseph Mutua, but had initially planned to run his season's first 800m in Portland, as his domestic debut.

“It was a bit of a surprise, I had gone there (Belem) originally to run a 1500,” he said, explaining that last minute changes to the start lists of both races forced organisers to put him on the 1500m start line." 

“A 1:46 felt pretty good for an opener, particularly when we had prepared for the 1500. I had been doing more endurance training and we had really been preparing for a 1500 as an opener. We've done more speed work the past week and a half, so I'll be prepared for a faster time this weekend.”

The men’s 800 field also includes Krummenacker's training partner Patrick Nduwimana of Burundi, 1999 NCAA champion Derrick Peterson and 1999 U.S. champion Khadevis Robinson, Kenyans Japheth Kimutai and Nicholas Wachira, and Ethiopian Berhanu Alemu.

Reigning Olympic 1500 metres champion Noah Ngeny, and bronze medallist Bernard Lagat headline a strong 1500 metres field. Lagat, who also raced to silver at both the World Championships in 2001 and the 2003 World Indoor Championships in March, is expecting fast performances.

“Look for the excitement to come after 600 metres,” said the Washington State grad. “And if we get to 800 metres in 1:53 or even 1:52, that's when the excitement really gets in there, and everyone will know we're running a good time.”

Joining the top Kenyan duo will be fellow countrymen Laban Rotich and David Kiptoo, Canadian Olympians Kevin Sullivan and Graham Hood, early-season world leader Hudson de Souza of Brazil, and Americans Michael Stember and Jason Lunn.

As in 2002, the top shot putters in the world - three-time world outdoor champion John Godina, World Cup champion Adam Nelson, and season’s world leader Kevin Toth - will go head-to-head for the first time this season. With the unusual set-up and rare spotlight on the event, with the Shot Put ring less than four metres from the spectators, sterling performances are in store.  Last year, the crowd and the ferocious competition pushed all three throwers beyond the 70-foot mark (21m plus)

The women's 100m features Commonwealth double sprint champion Debbie Ferguson of the Bahamas, who already has a near-PB 10.97 under her belt this season. Americans Inger Miller (11.16 this season) and Torri Edwards (11.18) should pose the strongest challenge, along with Sydney Olympic bronze medallist Tayna Lawrence of Jamaica, who makes her 2003 debut.

The women's 5000m also features a strong field, led by Kenyan record holder Leah Malot and the teenage Ethiopian trio of Meseret Defar, last year's world Junior 3000/5000m champion, Tirunesh Dibaba, the reigning World Junior Cross Country champion, and Sentayehu Ejigu, who boasts a 14:53.99 PB from last year. Canadian Emilie Mondor, who had an impressive cross country season, makes her track debut, while American Elva Dryer, who showed good form recently with a 31:28.88 PB in the 10,000m, races for the first time this season in the 5000m.

American Jenny Adams and Melissa Morrison, and Jamaican Vonette Dixon headline the 100m Hurdles field, while the 800m, led by Americans Jen Toomey and Sasha Spencer, Canadian record holder Diane Cummins and Slovenia's Brigita Langerholc, should provide a good test of early season form.

World leader Beatrice Faumuina of New Zealand leads the Discus competition, which also includes American record holder Suzy Powell and Aretha Hill, this season's fourth furthest thrower.

The women's Pole Vault features five of the six jumpers that comprise the just-released ‘Vault girls calendar’, led by 2000 NCAA Champion Tracey O'Hara, Jillian Schwartz and Kellie Suttle. All have jumped 4.35 or higher this season.

The meet will be televised live in the US and a total of $126,000 in prize money will be awarded.