Two Olympic champions and a World champion – – Osenberg: “High quality sport guaranteeing new World best marks this year“

The 3rd International Athletics PSD Bank Meeting Düsseldorf 2008“ can boast two Olympic champions, one World champion and three World’s best athletes this year on the coming Friday (20:00 hrs, live on Eurosport). “We may look forward to high quality sport and a few new World best marks this year”, meeting director Marc Osenberg promises.

“It is our aim to maintain last year’s sporting level and perhaps to even improve it a bit.” Then the top athletes set four global best marks for that year. The event eventually was ranked seventh in the world among the indoor meeting, an improvement by six places compared to the inauguration in 2006 (13th).
Russia’s 800m Olympic champion Yuri Borsakovsky

The stars of the meeting in the Olympic year 2008 are Russia’s 800m Olympic champion Yuri Borsakovsky, the USA’s Olympice pole vault gold medallist Tim Mack, and Cuba’s World triple jump champion Yargelis Savigne. While 35-year-old Mack is still trying to get back into shape, Borsakovsky, 26, is already leading this year’s World rankings since clocking 1.45,48 minutes in Stuttgart last Saturday.  Savigne, 23, will compete in her first triple jump competition this year in Duesseldorf, but she has already left her mark in the long jump and is currently ranked eighth in the world with 6.77m. Besides Borsakovsky, 25-year-old 60m sprinter Tahesia Harrigan of the British Virgin Islands (7.16sec) and Cuba’s World’s Final champion in the 60m hurdles, Dayron Robles (7.36sec) will compete in the capital of North-Rhine Westphalia as this year’s World’s top athletes.

21-year-old Robles missed the 60m hurdles World record of 7.30 seconds, set in 1994 by Great Britain’s Colin Jackson, by just six hundredths of a second in Stuttgart. “Dayron is our iron in the fire for a World record. He has proved last weekend that he is in the right shape for such a feat”, meeting director Osenberg says.

In addition, there will be three 2006 European champions of Gothenburg competing: Germany’s Jan Fitschen in the 3,000m, Latvia’s Stanislavs Olijars in the 60m hurdles, and Russia’s  Olga Kotlyarova in the 800m. “I think our field of entries is something to be proud of”, Osenberg says. He is particularly looking forward to the German top stars such as pole vaulters Tim Lobinger, Fabian Schulze and Bjoern Otto, shot put European Cup champion Peter Sack, 60m hurdles European silver medallist Thomas Blaschek, Sabrina Mockenhaupt, the winner of the Cologne Marathon, in the 3,000m, former 400m European champion Ingo Schultz, and as Borsakovsky challengers in the 800m, German champion Rene Herms, Ronbin Schembera, third in the European Cup, and the German indoor youth record holder Sebastian Keiner.

The PSD Bank Meeting boasts the much sought-after “EAA Status“ of the European Athletics Federation and is considered an important test for the 2008 World Indoor Championships in Valencia, Spain, the following months (March 7-9). Eurosport will broadcast live for two hours.

A survey of the individual events:

Men:

60m: Slovenia’s Matic Osovnikar, last year’s fastest white sprinter, will compete in Duesseldorf. He was the only non-coloured athlete in the 100m World Championship final in Osaka. Among others, his opponents are US American Michael Rodgers (6.60sec), ranked ninth in the world and a German trio with U20 double European champion Julian Reus, Ronny Ostwald and Alexander Kosenkow, who both finished sixth in the World Championship relay.

400m: Germany’s 2002 European champion is the favourite in the race over two indoor rounds and will meet Falco Lausecker, currently Germany’s best athlete this year.

800m: Olympic champion Yuri Borsakovsky will be challenged by a German trio consisting of Rene Herms, Sebastian Keiner and Robin Schembera.

3,000m: 10,000m European champion Jan Fitschen’s top opponent is last year’s winner Ismael Kombich, of Kenya.

60m hurdles: As last Saturday in Stuttgart, Cuba’s World’s Final champion Dayron Robles will try to improve the indoor World record of 7.30 seconds. He should be pushed to achieve this aim by his opponents, Latvia’s European champion Stanislavs Olijars and Germany’s European runner-up, Thomas Blaschek.

Pole vault: There is no other event where there is such a broad top is as in pole vault. From Germany alone there are three athletes competing who have cleared 5.70m and higher this year, German record holder Tim Lobinger, Bjoern Otto, fifth at the World Championships, and World student champion Alexander Straub. Further competitors are US veteran Jeff Hartwig, who has set a series of World records for the over 40-year-olds. And, of course, Olympic champion Tim Mack, also of the United States.

Shot put: European Cup champion Peter Sack will meet last year’s winner Dan Taylor of the USA.

Women:

60m: Last year’s winner Laverne Jones of the Virgin Islands will have to fight against two-time 100m World silver medallist Angela Williams, of the USA, and Tahesia Harrigan, of the British Virgin Islands, the fastest this year.

800m: European champion Olga Kotlyarova will meet Ukraine’s European indoor silver medallist Tetyana Petlyuk and German champion Monika Gradzki.

3,000m: Kenya’s Sylvia Kibet finished fourth in the 5,000m at the World Championships in Osaka. Her opponents are Cologne Marathon winner Sabrina Mockenhaupt, who entered at short notice; Slovenia’s  Sonja Roman and Germany’s Antje Moeldner, who used to run the 1,500 metres but is currently preparing to switch to the 3,000m steeple chase.

60m hurdles: Last year’s winner Lolo Jones, USA, is currently in second place in the year’s World rankings and thus will be the hunted competitor. Among others, her opponents are Jamaica’s Vonette Dixon, fourth in the world this year, and Cuba’s Anay Tejeda, sixth in the world, from Dayon Robles training group.

Triple jump: World champion and last year’s winner Yargelis Savigne is once again the top favourite.