Previews24 Jul 2007


Asian Championships – PREVIEW

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Yahya Ibrahim Hassan - after his 100m win in Doha (© Getty Images)

The 17th edition of the Asian Athletics Championships looked doomed when Beirut pulled out as the host because of security considerations. With less than two months left then to find an alternative venue, Jordan stepped in so graciously to assist the Asian Athletics Association (AAA). The five-day meet is set to kick off at the Amman International Stadium on Wednesday (25).

A dozen or more Asian Games winners but missing the top stars

The Asian athletics fraternity has, however, not responded wholeheartedly to Jordan's gesture. A majority of the top-ranked athletes of the continent will be missing in Amman. Japan had fielded almost a full-strength team last time at Incheon, Korea but for this edition, the Japanese, getting ready to host the 11th IAAF World Championships, Osaka, Japan (25 Aug to 2 Sep), have understandably preferred to hold their trump cards back.

What about the Chinese? Since joining the Asian athletics family in 1979, China had been in the forefront of continental athletics, both in terms of participation and medal collection. By the late 80s the Chinese domination grew as Japan's monopoly was eroded. But the last four editions of the Championships have shown a wider spread of medals, with the West Asian countries, especially those with their African recruits, asserting themselves in the middle and long distance events.

Without having given a hint about its intentions, China has decided to enter a second-string team in these championships. Maybe the prominent Chinese athletes are getting ready for the Osaka Worlds or it could be that China is testing fresh talent in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics.

So, will these Championships be bereft of class? Not really. There will be a dozen or more champions from the last Asian Games in Doha and as many silver medallists. But the likes of Chinese Liu Xiang, the World record holder in 110m Hurdles, and Japan's Koji Murofushi, the Olympic Hammer Throw champion, will not be there to bolster the star-cast. And of course, for the second Championships on the trot, we will miss the World record holder in 3000m Steeplechase, Saif Saaeed Shaheen, who is nursing an injury that will also keep him out of the Osaka Worlds.

In the absence of some of the biggest names in the continent, the meet should provide an opportunity for several lesser-ranked athletes to come to the fore. It should also afford a chance to those who are still on the look-out for a qualification mark for Osaka.

MEN

Strong sprints

Despite the absence of the top Japanese and Chinese, the men's sprints will not lack competition. In the fray will be Asian Games champion Yahya Ibrahim Hassan of Saudi Arabia and his team-mate Yahya Saeed Al-Kahes who won the 100m gold in Incheon. Chinese Wen Yongyi, in good form during the recent Asian Grand Prix series, and Thai Wachara Sondee, bronze medallist in Doha, should be capable of stretching the favourites.

High standard 800m duel in prospect

The men's middle and long distance events should be contested even better than the sprints. With Mohamed Obeid Al-Salhi of Saudi Arabia and Mohamed Mutlak Al-Azemi of Kuwait in great form, a mouthwatering 800m duel is in store. Both have clocked sub-1:45 this season on the IAAF Grand Prix circuit and should be looking forward to renewing battle.

As a little-known 20-year-old, Al-Salhi had finished fourth in Incheon when Qatar's Majed Saeed Sultan won in a championship record time of 1:44.27. Al-Azemi had come just behind Al-Salhi.

Qatar has entered Abubaker Ali Kamal, a better-known metric miler and steeplechaser, in the two-lap event and he could be the lone challenger to the Saudi and the Kuwaiti.

At 1500m, with Bahrain choosing not to send its top middle distance runners, Kamal's main opposition in his title defence  could come from his team-mate and Asian Games champion Dahame Najam Basher. Japan's Fumikazu Kobayashi would be the other man to watch.

Hassan, the 10,000m standout

The presence of Asian record holder in the 10,000 metres, Abdullah Ahmad Hassan should add lustre to the event. And in the absence of Shaheen and Bahrain's Asian Games champion Tarek Mubarak Salem Taher, Qatari Moustafa Ahmed Shebto should fancy his chances in the five-man field in the 3000m Steeplechase.

Liu Xiang had added class and star appeal to the Incheon meet two years ago. Neither he nor his Chinese team-mate Shi Dongpeng are here. Wu Youjia, who ended up fourth in the World Championships trials back home last month, is the Chinese contender. He will have to battle it out with Japanese Tanonaka Tasuku for the high hurdles honours.

Lebanese, Indian, Qatari favourites in the jumps

Lebanon's Jean-Claude Rabbath who won the Asian Games title last year should start the overwhelming favourite in the High Jump while Chinese Yan Quan could be the man to beat in the Pole Vault.

Saudi Arabian Hussein Taher Al-Sabee, gunning for his fourth Asian title in the Long Jump, will have to stop Chinese Li Runrun, who jumped a personal best 8.22m in Wuhan this month.

Having crossed 17 metres this season, Renjith Maheswary of India is being projected as India's prime gold-medal contender. In the absence of the top-two Chinese this season, Zhong Minwei and Gu Junjie, Maheswary has his best chance to redeem for a fourth-place finish last year in Doha, but it is not going to be easy for the 22-year-old Indian.

Qatari Khalid Habash Al-Suwaidi should defend the Shot Put title he won in Incheon without much ado, while Indian Navpreet Singh who took the silver last time has had very little competitive build-up this season. Missing will be Saudi Sultan Mubarak Al-Hebshi who recently posted an Asian record of 20.61 metres in Donetsk.

Iran to bring a touch of real class to the Discus Throw

In the Discus Throw, despite the absence of Chinese regulars, the competition should be expected to touch great heights. Iranian Ehsan Haddadi, gold medallist at Incheon as well as Doha, has cracked the Asian record this season with an effort of 67.95. Team-mate Abbas Samimi has also shown good form with a sweep of the titles in the Asian Grand Prix series with a best of 62.61m in Bangkok. Talented Indian Vikas Gowda has been waiting in the wings for the past two seasons.

Dilshod Nazarov of Tajikstan and Park Jae-Myong of Korea, both gold medallists in the Doha Asian Games, should assert themselves in the Hammer and Javelin Throws respectively.

Two Uzbeks, Pavel Andreev and Vitaliy Smirnov, Kazakh Pavel Dubitskiy and Korean Kim Kun-Woo should make the Decathlon battles interesting in the absence of the top man from Asia, Dmitriy Karpov of Kazakhstan.


WOMEN

The absence of the top Chinese will be felt more in the women's section than in men's. Yet, China's depth of talent in the women's programme had been so pronounced these past few years that no one is taking any medal for granted.

Bahraini find takes on Jayasinghe

It could have been a repeat showdown among Guzel Khubbieva, Susanthika Jayasinghe and Rakia Al-Gassara of Bahrain after their Asian Games clash in the sprints, but the Uzbek has withdrawn.

Jayasinghe, who was beaten twice in the short dash by Khubbieva in the Asian Grand Prix series, came back for a victory in the last meet at Pune when the Uzbek seemed to have suffered a muscle injury. Al-Gasara, with 11.27 and 22.80 national records this season, is impressive if rather new to the Asian arena. And yet she already has an Asian Games title, in the 200m, in her collection. She had beaten both Khubbieva and Jayasinghe in Doha. The Sri Lankan who says that she plans to compete for another three years or more, should be thirsting for revenge.

Asian Games champion Olga Tereshkova will not start in the 400 metres, leaving Indians Chitra Soman and Manjeet Kaur with an easier task than could have been imagined. Kaur had won last time in 51.50 but she has not shown that kind of form since then. The challenge posed by another Kazakh, Marina Maslenko, in the Asian Grand Prix circuit, should worry the Indians.

Without Bahrain's Maryam Yusuf Jamal, the middle distance events will lack class. Indian Sinimole Paulose looks set to dominate the two-lap event and the 1500 metres. Under Belarus coach Nikolai Snesarev the Indian middle distance runners have made huge strides during the past two seasons and Paulose, a 24-year-old from the southern Indian State of Kerala, should realize her potential here.

All set to go Bai Xu’s way

The paucity of entries in the distance events should make the going that much easier for Chinese Bai Xu. Not that the 19-year-old Chinese would have struggled against any opposition. She had completed the distance double rather effortlessly at Incheon and looks set to repeat.

There are only five contestants in the women's 5000 metres and just four in the 10,000 metres. Only three each have entered in the 3000 Steeplechase, Pole Vault and Heptathlon events and just three teams in women's 4x400 metres.

Tatyana Effimenko is challenged by Kazakhstan’s Marina Aitova and Yeketerina Yevseyeva and the former looks likely to challenge the Busan Asian Games High Jump champion.

Japan’s Kumiko Ikeda, Asian leader in Long Jump this season, at 6.73 has not entered and that should leave India's Anju George as the favourite. Olga Rypakova of Kazakhstan, third last season with 6.63m, has not done anything of importance this year. Not that George had been in any great form either. She had struggled through the two Asian Grand Prix legs at home with marks of 6.28m and 6.21m, but fared better in a national competition at Pune with a 6.42. She, like many other athletes, would be aiming for a qualification mark to get into the World Championships. Olga Rypakova, with 14.05m at Almaty this month, heads the small field of six in Triple Jump.

Buoban Phamang, a near cert in the spear

The Chinese normally sweep the throws and they should continue their domination here with one exception too, notwithstanding the second-rung athletes who have been entered.

Thai javelin thrower Buoban Phamang had upset the Chinese at the Doha Asian Games, and if her performance in the Asian Grand Prix season is any indication she will win again here.

Heptathlon had five competitors last time. Just three were there originally here. Two last-minute entries of little significance, from Jordan and Vietnam, have helped bring "respectability" to numbers. Kazakh Irina Naumenko should be the favourite to take the gold against Indians J. J. Shobha and Susmita Singha Roy.

By an IAAF Correspondent

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