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News17 Jun 2002


Why I support the smaller meetings

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“Why I support the smaller meetings”
18 June 2002

 

After winning her first two races of the season, World 100m Champion Zhanna Pintusevich-Block’s latest IAAF Diary reveals why she has targeted Lucerne, Switzerland, as the place to keep up her streak … 

"Hello again. I am so excited about the start of my season: two races and two wins! Of course, as an athlete there are always things you could do better, and looking back at my first two races I felt there were many things that I can improve upon. But this will happen as I race more often.

"My next race is going to be at one of my favorite cities in Europe as well as a race I have run almost every year since I started competing on the circuit: Lucerne, Switzerland. I have raced there almost every year since 1993 and hope to run there every year until the end of my career. Why? because the meeting promoters have always been very nice and fair to me. Not just during my better years but during my not so good ones as well. I hope that the weather is friendly this year so I can run a season’s best.

"After Lucerne, there is a big question about where I will run next. I will not be competing in Oslo and I am not sure what will come of negotiations with Sheffield, Lausanne and Paris. These are three great meetings that I know will be competitive and I would love to be part of the action. Still, some things I cannot control. I hope that we can work things out as Paris is a meeting that I have always run well in. Even last year, when I lost for the first time in a while, I  ran sub-11.

"My next confirmed meeting after Lucerne is at Rethymno, on the beautiful island of Crete. The weather is always conducive for fast sprint times and, like Lucerne, the people make you really feel at home. I really love to support the smaller meetings as they give younger up and coming athletes a chance to compete and develop into future Champions. It is sad that during my career I have seen many of these meetings disappear. Well, wish me luck, as I am hoping to still be unbeaten when I write my next diary."   
            
Best wishes,
Zhanna Pintusevich-Block

 

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