30 April 2010
More stars confirmed for Doha – Two-weeks-to-go to IAAF Diamond League
Doha, Qatar – There is now only a fortnight to go to the start of the inaugural season of the IAAF Diamond League which begins in Doha on Friday 14 May.
A week ago we were pleased to announce the participation of six IAAF Diamond League Ambassadors - Sanya Richards-Ross (USA), Kenenisa Bekele (ETH), Allyson Felix (USA), Asafa Powell (JAM), Barbora Spotáková (CZE), and Blanka Vlasic (CRO), and now we can reveal some more star athletes who will be competing in the Qatar Sports Club Stadium.
World Shot Put champion Christian Cantwell (USA) will be lining-up for the IAAF Diamond League season opener. He has already made plenty of fans in Doha as last month in the Aspire Dome in the city he took the third World Indoor title of his career with a 21.83m performance. Cantwell also ended the 2010 indoor season as the world’s best putter of the winter thanks to his 21.95m win earlier on in New York.
Doha will enjoy quite an invasion of US talent on 14 May, as also scheduled to compete is fellow Berlin champion Kerron Clement (USA). The reigning two-time World gold medallist at 400m Hurdles has yet to race at his specialist distance this season but has been confirmed to fly over the barriers in Doha. The Olympic silver medallist was also competing in Qatar this winter, part of the quartet which qualified the USA for the final of the 4x400 relay, a title which they went on to win in Clement’s absence.
Competing in women’s 100m Hurdles in Doha is another American. Lolo Jones (USA) also has fond memories of Qatar. While not having had the best of luck in recent outdoor championships at the sprint hurdles, Jones proved on the 13 March that she is the very best at 60m Hurdles indoors, both retaining her World title and setting an Area record with a super 7.72sec run, the fastest of 2010.
The other major name which has been confirmed today is that of Kerron Stewart (JAM). Stewart is the 2009 World and 2008 Olympic 100m silver medallist, losing the titles on both occasions to IAAF Diamond League Ambassador Shelly Ann-Fraser. Stewart is also the Olympic bronze medallist at 200m, and it is at that distance that she will compete in Doha.
IAAF Diamond League
2010 IAAF Diamond League Calendar
Doha (QAT) – Fri 14 May
Shanghai (CHN) – Sun 23 May
Oslo (NOR) – Fri 4 June
Rome (ITA) – Thu 10 June
New York (USA) – Sat 12 June
Eugene (USA) – Sat 3 July
Lausanne (SUI) – Thu 8 July
Gateshead (GBR) – Sat 10 July
Paris (FRA) – Fri 16 July
Monaco (MON) – Thu 22 July
Stockholm (SWE) – Fri 6 Aug
London (GBR) – Fri 13 and Sat 14 Aug
Zürich (SUI) – Thu 19 Aug
Brussels (BEL) – Fri 27 Aug