MONTE CARLO, March 14 AP - Athletes winning the same event in five of the six Golden League meets this year will split a prize of $US500,000.
The International Association of Athletics Federations said Tuesday that the prize will be in addition to the $US 1 million jackpot shared by athletes who win at all six meets.
The jackpot winners will be required to compete at the season-ending World Athletics Final in Stuttgart, Germany, in September in order to collect their winnings.
Ethiopian runner Kenenisa Bekele, the world record holder at 5,000 and 10,000 metres, said he will compete in all six Golden League events.
``With no individual global championships to aim at in 2006, my focus is the Golden League this summer, and I am looking forward to challenging for the US$1 million prize,’’ said Bekele, who last week became the first man in history to win world titles on three different surfaces.
Bekele won the 3,000 at the world indoor championships in Moscow to go along with the 10,000 outdoor title and his cross-country titles.
The Golden League consists of meets in Oslo, Norway; Paris; Rome; Zurich, Switzerland; Brussels, Belgium; and Berlin.