Track Round Up July 2011

Ron Robertson

FRANCE
Diamond League Meeting Areva, Saint Denis Stadium Paris – 8 July 2011
Olympic 1500m silver medallist Nick Willis has qualified for the World Championships after finishing fourth in the Paris Diamond League meeting.
Willis clocked his fastest 1500m in five years running 3m 33.22s, to better the championship standard of 3m 35s.

Amine Laalou of Morocco won in 3m 32.15s.
Willis said it was a relief to get the qualifier out of the way.
“Now seven and a half weeks to Daegu so plenty of work to do still,” he said.
Willis holds the New Zealand national 1500m record of 3m 32.17s set in Paris in 2006.

Valerie Adams set a meeting record of 20.78m to beat arch rival Nadezhda Ostapchuk of Belarus in the shot put.
Ostapchuk was out to 20.49m with Jillian Camarena-Williams of USA third with 20.18m.
Adams said she couldn’t be happier.
“To be quite honest I’m really happy, especially when I’m still in base training and not quite doing the competitive phase at the moment with the world champs being the focus, so extremely happy,” said Adams.

2011 WMA WORLD T & F CHAMPIONSHIPS
Sacramento CA – 6/17 July 2011
Ron Robertson won the M70 8000m cross country in 32m 10s. He also won the M70 5000m in 18m 15.53s. Sally Gibbs won the W45 5000m in 17m 19.43s.
Nyle Sunderland won the W40 5000m track walk in 27m 33.11s. Other placings in the 5000m track walk were Sue Hoskin third in the W60 31m 23.30s, Shirley Barber third in the W65 33m 55.03s and Mike Parker third in the M55 24m 9.00s.
Margaret Peters was third in the W75 100m in 16.98s (+0.0) and Jan Fleming third in the W70 8000m cross country in 49m 20.2s.

GERMANY
LAZ Meeting, Rhede – 8 July 2011
Hamish Carson produced a personal best 3000m by 17 seconds in winning the feature event at the Laz meeting in Germany.
He recorded 7m 49.24s, to rank number seven on the New Zealand all time list headed by Sir John Walker with 7m 37.49s set in London in 1982.
Carson was only entered to run in an earlier 800m and after finishing third in 1m 52.95s asked for a start in the 3000m, an hour and a quarter later. His previous best 3000m was 8m 6.70s in winning the national title in Wellington in January. Elroy Gelant of South Africa was second to Carson in 7m 49.92s.

BELGIUM
Guldensporenmeeting, Kortrijk – 9 July 2011
Andrea  Koenen 100m Hts 7th 12.50s (+1.1), Rochelle Coster 100m Hts 4th 12.11s (+0.3).

Malcolm Hicks 1500m Hts 9th 3m 45.01s, Aaron Pulford 1500m Hts 1st 3m 49.56s PB.

Lucy Van Dalen 1500m Hts 2nd 4m 14.21s, Hannah Newbould 1500m Hts 5th 4m 15.64s,

Rebekah Greene 1500m Hts 8th 4m 21.80s, Angela Smit 1500m Hts 10th 4m 24.37s.

Alex Jordan 400m Hts 4th 48.05s, Shay Taylor 400m hurdles Hts 2nd 54.18s.

GREAT BRITAIN
Diamond League Aviva Birmingham Grand Prix – 10 July 2011
Stuart Farquhar was fourth in the javelin throw with 81.47m [81.47m, 77.64m, 79.26m, x, 77.24m, 78.09m]. Nick Willis was sixth in the 800m in 1m 46.89s. His personal best is 1m 45.54s run in Belgium in 2004. Adrian Blincoe did not finish the 5000m.