30.01.2007
Olympic gold medallist to compete in Telstra A-Series
One of the most colourful competitors in world athletics is heading to Australia for the Telstra A-Series, with the news the ‘Cheetah Man’, Shawn Crawford, will compete in both Sydney and Melbourne next month.
The Athens Olympic 200m gold medallist, who won over 60m at the Boston Indoor Games on Saturday, will be joined by reigning world 100m hurdles champion Michelle Perry, world number three over 400m LaShawn Merritt and Olympic long jump silver medallist John Moffitt.
The news is a boost for Australia’s own world championships 200m finalist Patrick Johnson and Australian 100m hurdles champion Sally McLellan, both of whom are in outstanding form following winning doubles in Canberra on the weekend and are ready to take on the world’s best on their home turf.
Johnson and Crawford will go head-to-head in Sydney and Melbourne. At the World Athletics Tour in Melbourne, the duo will race in the Peter Norman Memorial 200m – named in honour of 1968 Olympic silver medallist Peter Norman who passed away suddenly last October.
Crawford is a sprinter of the highest quality, bursting onto the scene in 2001 to capture the world indoor title, before winning bronze at the World Outdoor Championships in Edmonton, the gold medal at the Goodwill Games in Brisbane and IAAF Grand Prix Final at Olympic Park– all over the 200m distance.
Crawford, 28, is famous in America for his 2003 race against a giraffe and zebra. Check it out here.
He is a character of the highest order; is self-coached and refers to himself as the ‘Cheetah Man’.
In 2002 at a meet in Milan, Italy, Crawford ran the 200m in a ‘Phantom of the Opera’ mask which became dislodged and obstructed his vision, causing him to run out of his lane and be disqualified. Crawford claimed to have tested the mask in advance by sticking his head out of a car window while wearing it.
In January 2003, Crawford starred in an episode of the FOX TV show ‘Man vs. Beast,’ in which he raced a zebra and a giraffe over 100m. Crawford easily beat the giraffe (which was separated from him by a metal fence). After losing to the zebra, Crawford accused the beast of a false start and demanded a re-match, but was easily beaten in the re-run after the zebra broke 10 seconds.
In 2004, Crawford displayed his full potential, finishing fourth in the 100m final in Athens running 9.89 before winning the gold medal in the 200m. In the first round of the 100m, Crawford raced in a cap – speeding to the line in 10.02 – the fastest ever first round 100m in Olympic history and the fastest ever 100m by a man in a hat.
In the 200m final, Crawford wore one black shoe and one white shoe, dominating the race to record a personal best of 19.79 seconds to lead a U.S-sweep.
Johnson said he was looking forward to the challenge of taking on the ‘Cheetah Man’.
“That’s sensational. We don’t get the chance to race against that sort of quality that often unless we are overseas so I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
“He can be a bit on and off but when he’s on he can fly and he obviously from what he ran on the weekend he’s in shape,” Johnson said from the AIS in Canberra.
Michelle Perry, 27, turned her attention from the heptathlon to the 100m hurdles in 2005 with stunning success. After finishing 14th in the heptathlon in Athens, Perry focused on the hurdles and ended 2005 as both the U.S. and the world champion.
Coached by legendary American track and field coach Bobby Kersee, she boasts a personal best of 12.43 seconds. She ended 2006 as the number one sprint hurdler in the world, after claiming World Athletics Tour wins in Brussels, Lausanne and Stockholm.
Perry will provide further opportunities for Australia’s rising star Sally McLellan who produced a stunning 12.88 in Canberra on the weekend, only to be denied a new Australian record by an illegal tail wind.
"I’ve never raced her so its great news that one of the world champions is coming to Australia to race. I learnt a lot last year at the Commonwealth Games and the World Cup on how to approach racing the best in the world; I’ve still got a way to go to be up with them, but it’s fantastic to get another opportunity before the World Championships,” McLellan said.
Long jumper John Moffitt, 26, had a stellar year in 2004 – winning the silver medal in Athens with a fifth round personal best of 8.47m after winning NCAA indoor and outdoor titles for Louisiana State University.
He will line up against young guns Chris Noffke and Robbie Crowther, who along with Tim Parravicini, John Thornell and Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Fabrice Lapierre, who is also returning from America where he is based at Texas A&M, will make for an entertaining battle in Sydney and Melbourne.
LaShawn Merritt, 20, is one of the best young athletes in America. After winning the 400m at the World Junior Championships in 2004, and a World Championships gold in Helsinki as part of the U.S. 4x400m relay squad, Merritt produced his best season ever in 2006 with wins in Oregon, Monaco and the IAAF World Cup in Athens. At the World Athletics Final in Stuttgart he finished third to set a 400m personal best of 44.14 to end the year ranked at number three on the IAAF world rankings.
Merritt will focus on the 400m whilst in Australia.
The Telstra A-Series continues in Sydney on Saturday, February 17 and moves to Melbourne for the opening leg of the IAAF’s World Athletics Tour on Friday, March 2.
SHAWN CRAWFORD
PB’s: 100m - 9.88 (2004); 200m - 19.79 (2004)
LaSHAWN MERRITT
PB’s: 200m - 20.10 (2006); 400m - 44.14 (2006)
MICHELLE PERRY
PB’s: 6,126 points (2004); 100mH - 12.43 (2005)
JOHN MOFFITT
PB’s: LJ 8.29m/27-2.50 (2004) TJ 16.53m/54-2.75 (2003)
Tickets for the Telstra A-Series in Sydney and the World Athletics Tour in Melbourne are on sale now from Ticketek at www.ticketek.com.au or 132 849 or at Ticketek outlets.