Gold medallists: Where are they now?
Eurosport - Thu, 01 May 14:27:00 2008
With the Beijing Olympics fast approaching , we take a look at all of the reigning gold-medallists from 2004 and see where they are now.
Of all the medals that will be on offer, only Jeremy Wariner, Yelena Isinbayeva, Kenenisa Bekele and Meseret Defar can be marked out as clear favourites to retain their titles.
Three events are guaranteed to have a new champion this summer, with Kelly Holmes, Hicham El Guerrouj and Robert Korzeniowski all retiring from their respective events, while question marks over the fitness of Tonique Williams-Darling and Natalya Sadova may prevent them from holding onto their titles.
Carolina Kluft, having dominated the heptathlon for several years, has decided not to enter this time around as she concentrates on the long jump and triple jump.
Justin Gatlin is the only champion who will be absent due to a doping ban.
MEN
100m: Justin Gatlin is waiting for his hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport to appeal his four-year for doping handed to him in 2006.
200m: Shawn Crawford is not in the same shape as he was in 2004 and is yet to compete this year. He will reportedly try to qualify to defend his crown, after finishing 7th in the US Championships last year.
400m: Jeremy Wariner has only improved since winning gold in 2004, going on to collect two world titles. Edging ever closer to the world record, he is the clear favourite for this event.
800m: Since he won his Olympic title, Russia’s Yuriy Borzakovskiy has won medals at next two world championships and showed good form during the indoor season, having lost only one race. A sure bet for a podium place.
1500m and 5000m: Morrocan double-winner Hicham El Guerrouj officially retired in 2006 and no other past winners are going to compete. That means that these two events are open for new names to be added to the list of Olympic winners.
10,000m: Kenenisa Bekele, like Wariner, is the undisputed king of his event, winning won both world championships since Athens, and is one of the top names expected to retain his gold medal.
Marathon: Italian Stefano Baldini wants to run in Beijing despite a minor injury, but will have it tough against strong runners from Kenya, Morocco.
Steeplechase: Kenyan Ezekiel Kemboi won silver in Osaka last year, but he still needs to qualify through his national trials, which will feature a typically tough field. Should he reach Beijing, he will then have to contend with world record-holder Saif Saeed Shaheen.
110m Hurdles: Liu Xiang will want to defend his title at home with his billion compatriots watching. If he can handle the pressure, he can do it.
400m Hurdles: After injury troubles in the 2005/06 season, Felix Sanchez achieved silver in Osaka, and is contender again this time around.
High Jump: Stefan Holm of Sweden is course to defend his title, after which he is considering retirement. Won world indoor gold in March.
Pole Vault: Tim Mack was struggling with injuries recently, but should recover in time. His first task, however, is to qualify from the US Olympic Trials.
Long Jump: Dwight Phillips followed up his Olympic win with victory at the next world championships in Helsinki. He is the favourite, but emerging names such as Irving Saladino will make it tough for him. Has already jumped 8.24m this year.
Triple Jump: Christian Olsson of Sweden missed both world championships since 2004 through injury, but won the Europeans in 2006 on home soil.
Shot Put: Ukrainian Yuri Belonog has not win any medals since 2004 and has also not hit the 21m+ mark since then.
Discus: Lithuanian Virgilijus Alekna is the only one of the Sydney individual male winners who has a realistic chance of a third consecutive gold after winning in Athens too. He started the year with a 68m+ throw and his goal is clear - to beat Gerd Kanter, the world champion.
Javelin: Norwegian Andreas Thorkildsen was European Champion in 2006 and twice world silver medalist after his olympic win. Is joint favourite with world champion Tero Pitkamäki of Finland.
Hammer: Although defending champion Koji Murofushi has had injury problems in the past, he remains one to watch, though Belarussian Ivan Tikhon has won all the titles since Athens.
Decathlon: Czech Roman Sebrle is currently injured but hopes to be ready to defend his title, and add a second Olympic gold to the world title he has also won.
20km walk: Italian Ivano Brugnetti has not had the best of times since 2004 with only one major podium place, at the 2007 European Cup, to speak of.
50km walk: Polish great Robert Korzeniowski retired after Athens 2004 and now works as coach and organiser on the walking scene.
WOMEN
100m: Belarussian Yulia Nesterenko was in the finals of 2005 Worlds and 2006 Europeans, but did not compete at all in 2007 due to health problems. She is yet to recapture her sub-11 second form of 2004.
200m: Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica won the global title to add to her Olympic one last year. She is a name to watch in China.
400m: Tonique Williams-Darling of the Bahamas has virtually disappeared from the track, possibly into retirement, since 2006. This is yet to be confirmed, however.
800m and 1500m: Dame Kelly Holmes retired in 2005 and is currently active in different projects including media and charity work.
5000m: Meseret Defar has grown over the last four years into one of the most popular women of track and field. She has broken several world records, won world titles and was voted Athlete of the Year in 2007. Belongs to the small group of clear favourites for gold.
10,000m: Chinese Xing Huina will have home advantage, but first she must definitely qualify. The selection procedure in China is not clear and with many other top runners aiming competing she may not make it to the finals.
Marathon: Japanese Mizuki Noguchi qualified after last November’s win in Tokyo and could be the first female marathon winner to take two Olympic golds.
Steeplechase: The debut for this event at on the Olympic stage. It will be an open field too, with strong contenders from Russia and Africa.
100 m Hurdles: Joanna Hayes has struggled for the last two years and may find it tough to qualify in Eugene. Her only major participation after the Olympic win was at World Championships 2005.
400 m Hurdles: Greek Fani Halkia had her biggest post-Olympic moment at European Championships 2006, getting the silver. Last year in Osaka she did not make it to finals and generally had difficulties with injuries, mainly her back.
High Jump: Russian Yelena Slesarenko has won indoor world medals, but has struggled at outside events. With Blanka Vlasic in form it might be difficult for her to retain her title.
Pole Vault: Since her Olympic win, Yelena Isinbayeva has won everything and broke the elusive five metre-mark. In all that time she has lost only two competitions in which she achieved a result. Possibly the biggest favourite for any event in Beijing.
Long Jump: Another Russian, Tatyana Lebedeva, had a surgery on her Achilles last autumn, and is now back in training with a view to competing again in the coming weeks. After winning in Osaka last year, has the chance to become the second woman in history with two long jump Olympic golds, after Heike Drechsler.
Triple Jump: Cameroon’s surprise winner Francoise Mbango has not competed at any big championships since her Olympic title win and made only a few meetings in 2005. She has reportedly jumped 14.50 in her Olympic preparations this time around, so she may again be peaking at the right time.
Shot Put: The 33-year-old Cuban Yumileidi Cumba, who claimed Olympic gold after the doping disqualification of another athlete) has not bettered her best marks since 2004. At the last two world championships she was 6th and 12th.
Discus Throw: Title defender Natalya Sadova is coming out of a two-year doping ban and should be ready to compete in July with enough time to qualify for the games. She will be 36 when she competes in Beijing.
Hammer Throw: Russian Olga Kuzenkova was only the second Olympic female hammer winner and in 2005 also got the world title. She did not make it to the world championship finals in Osaka after returning from having a child. In the wake of the recent Russian hammer doping cases, she should easily qualify and try to defend her title.
Javelin Throw: Cuban Osleidis Menendez also won the world title in 2005 and still holds the world record. But injury problems have seen her form dip and although she won at last year’s Pan Am Games she was unable to compete in Osaka.
Heptathlon: Swedish megastar Carolina Kluft (pictured, right) won everything after her 2004 triumph, and has decided she wants to try something different and will not defend her title in this event, meaning British pair Jessica Ennis and Kelly Sotherton (pictured, left) are the favourites.
20 km walk: Surprise 2004 winner Athanasia Tsoumeleka of Greece returned after a maternity break last year and this March came fourth at the IAAF Challenge event in Rio Maior, Portugal. The World Cup in May will show if she is still up with the medal candidates.
EME / Eurosport