EIGHTEEN GLOBAL CHAMPIONS, FOUR DIAMOND LEAGUE AMBASSADORS ADDED TO ADIDAS GRAND PRIX ATHLETE FIELD
Veronica Campbell-Brown, Allyson Felix to headline women’s 200 meters on June 12
Press Release
NEW YORK (May 12, 2010) — Recently crowned world indoor champion Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica and American sprinter Allyson Felix are among the 18
Olympic and World champions and four IAAF Diamond League ambassadors
added to the lineup of athletes slated to compete at the adidas Grand
Prix on Saturday, June 12, organizers announced Wednesday. The adidas
Grand Prix, held at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island, will be the
fifth stop on the inaugural 14-meet, international Diamond League
circuit.
In addition to Felix in the women’s 200 meters, other Diamond League ambassadors added to the field include Norway’s Andreas Thorkildsen and Finland’s Tero Pitkämäki in the men’s javelin and Valerie Vili
of New Zealand in the women’s shot put. The other two ambassadors
already announced for the New York meeting are Jamaican sprint
sensation Usain Bolt and Australian pole vault king Steve Hooker. A total of 32 Olympians from 16 different countries have been announced.
Campbell-Brown and Felix will meet at 200m for the first time on U.S.
soil. The two have raced eight times at the distance with Felix holding
the 6-2 advantage. However, both of Campbell-Brown’s victories came in
Olympic finals.
“New York is one of those cities you just love to compete in; after
all, it is the ‘world capital,’” Campbell-Brown said. “I especially
love the world-renowned Jamaican track fans that are always in
attendance.”
Campbell-Brown, 27, made headlines recently with her victory in the
women’s 60m dash at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Doha in
early March. It was her first World Indoor title and her first major
championship title since earning gold at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
Campbell-Brown is a four-time Olympic medalist—including two individual
golds in the 200m—and a seven-time World Championship medalist.
Felix, 24, of Santa Clarita, Calif., won Olympic gold in 2008 in the
4x400m and is a two-time Olympic 200m silver medalist. She is the
reigning three-time World champion at 200m. One of 14 official IAAF
Diamond League ambassadors, Felix will open her Diamond League season
in Doha on May 14.
Also lining up for the women’s 200m are Americans Carmelita Jeter and
Marshevet Myers (née Hooker). Jeter, 30, of Gardena, Calif., is known
for her prowess at 100m distance as the reigning two-time World Outdoor
Championship bronze medalist and as the second-fastest woman ever over
100m (10.64 seconds). She last raced at 200m in May 2009. Myers, 25, of
Grand Prairie, Texas, was a 2008 Olympic finalist at 200m.
Intriguing match-ups are expected for each event in this year’s edition of the adidas Grand Prix:
The men’s javelin will pit Thorkildsen vs. Pitkämäki—two-time Olympic
champion and 2009 World champion vs. Olympic bronze medalist and 2007
World champion—as both compete for the first time in the United States.
Thorkildsen, 28, has established himself as one of the most
accomplished javelin throwers in history, while Pitkämäki, 27, has
proved himself a worthy competitor. The two will first go head-to-head
in Diamond League competition in Oslo on June 4.
Olympic silver medalist Richard Thompson, 24, of Trinidad
and Tobago, will face off against Bolt, the reigning Olympic champion
and world record holder, and his previously announced Caribbean
training partners Yohan Blake (JAM) and Daniel Bailey (ANT)
in the 100m, the marquee men’s event. Thompson, who competed for
Louisiana State University, was the 2008 NCAA 100m champion.
In the men’s 1500m, Ethiopian middle distance star Deresse Mekonnen,
22, the reigning two-time World Indoor champion and 2009 World Outdoor
Championships silver medalist, will once again compete against
previously announced American distance star Bernard Lagat. The two raced over 1500m in Birmingham in February, and Mekonnen notched the eighth-fastest time in history (3:33.10), making him the fifth-fastest performer of all time.
Javier Culson, from Puerto Rico, will clash against American Olympic bronze medalist Bershawn Jackson in the men’s 400m
hurdles. Culson, 25, is on fire after running a world leading and
national record time of 47.72 at the Ponce Grand Prix on May 8.
Jackson, 27, of Champaign, Ill., owns the third-fastest time in the
world this year (48.36). Both finished on the podium at the 2009 World
Championships, with Culson claiming the silver medal and Jackson
earning bronze. Jackson was the 2005 World champion in this event.
Brimin Kipruto and Paul Kipsiele Koech, both Kenyan
Olympic medalists, will renew their rivalry in the 3000m steeplechase.
Kipruto, 24, won Olympic gold in 2008 and the World title in 2007.
Koech, 28, was the 2004 Olympic bronze medalist and was ranked No. 1 in
the world from 2007-08. He was the 2008 Reebok Grand Prix champion in
this event, winning in 8:01.85, the fastest time ever on U.S. soil.
In the men’s triple jump, recent World Indoor champion Teddy Tamgho of France will compete against two-time U.S. Olympian Walter Davis.
Tamgho, 20, set a new world indoor record of 17.90m in winning his
first World title in Doha in March. Davis, 30, of Baton Rouge, La., was
the 2005 World champion and 2006 World Indoor champion in this event.
South Africa’s Mbulaeni Mulaudzi, 29, is the top entrant in the men’s 800m. He is the reigning 2009 World champion and 2004 Olympic silver medalist at 800m.
The women’s 1500m is stacked from top-to-bottom with all three medalists from the 2009 World Championships—reigning champion Maryam Yusuf Jamal of Bahrain, silver medalist Lisa Dobriskey of Great Britain and bronze medalist Shannon Rowbury of the United States—in addition to 2008 World Indoor champion Gelete Burka of Ethiopia and American Olympic finalist Anna Pierce (née
Willard). Jamal, 25, set the Asian indoor record in the mile at
Birmingham in February and had the fastest time in the world last year
over 1500m (3:56.55). Dobriskey, 26, was the 2006 Commonwealth Games
gold medalist at 1500m. Rowbury, 25, of San Francisco, finished seventh
in the 1500m at the 2008 Olympic Games, the best finish ever by an
American woman. Burka, 24, was the bronze medalist at the 2010 World
Indoor Championships. Pierce, 26, of Mammoth Lakes, Calif., was the
fastest American at 1500m in 2009 and was ranked No. 2 in the world at
800m.
The women’s 100m hurdles is packed with talent, as 2008 Olympic champion Dawn Harper will line up against Sweden’s Susanna Kallur and previously announced American Lolo Jones and Jamaican Delloreen Ennis-London.
Harper, 26, of Los Angeles, Calif., won Olympic gold when Jones, the
top-ranked American in 2008, tripped on the ninth hurdle in the Olympic
final. Kallur, 29, was the 2006 European champion and is the current
world record holder at 60m hurdles indoors.
The women’s field events will be a championship affair, with Vili, the
Olympic and World champion, headlining the shot put; and American Chelsea Johnson taking on previously announced Jenn Suhr (née
Stuczynski) in the pole vault. Vili, 25, dominated the international
scene as the No. 1-ranked shot putter from 2007-09 and is a three-time
World champion. Johnson, 26, of Atascadero, Calif., was the 2009 World
Championship silver medalist.
Media interested in covering the event can access the accreditation application at www.adidasgrandprix.com.
The deadline for applying is Friday, June 4. Updates, photos, and
additional information can found at the adidas Grand Prix pages on
Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/
The adidas Grand Prix, in its sixth year, is the nation’s premier
outdoor track & field invitational meet. It features Olympic stars,
the Jim Ryun High School Dream Mile for top high school athletes and
the Mayor’s Cup Fastest Kid competition for youth in the tristate area.
Increased and upgraded backstretch seating at track level is being
added to accommodate the growing demand and interest from fans in the
New York area. Tickets and transportation information is available now
at www.adidasgrandprix.com or by calling 1-877-TIX-TRAC.
***
All athletes announced for the adidas Grand Prix (as of May 12) include:
MEN
Daniel Bailey (ANT): men’s 100m; World Championship bronze medalist
Yohan Blake (JAM): men’s 100m; World Junior Championship bronze medalist
Usain Bolt (JAM): men’s 100m; three-time Olympic and World champion
Richard Thompson (TRI): men’s 100m; Olympic silver medalist
Mbulaeni Mulaudzi (RSA): men’s 800m; two-time World champion and Olympic silver medalist
Bernard Lagat (USA): men’s 1500m; four-time World champion and two-time Olympic medalist
Deresse Mekonnen (ETH): men’s 1500m; two-time World champion
Javier Culson (PUR): men’s 400m hurdles; World Championship silver medalist
Bershawn Jackson (USA): men’s 400m hurdles; World champion and Olympic and World medalist
Danny McFarlane (JAM): men’s 400m hurdles; two-time Olympic silver medalist
Isa Phillips (JAM): men’s 400m hurdles; Olympian
Brimin Kipruto (KEN): men’s steeplechase; Olympic and World champion
Paul Kipsiele Koech (KEN): men’s steeplechase; Olympic bronze medalist
Teddy Tamgho (FRA): men’s triple jump; World champion
Walter Davis (USA): men’s triple jump; two-time World champion
Steve Hooker (AUS): men’s pole vault: Olympic and World champion
Tero Pitkämäki (FIN): men’s javelin; World champion and Olympic bronze medalist
Andreas Thorkildsen (NOR): men’s javelin; Olympic, World and European champion
WOMEN
Kelly-Ann Baptiste (TRI): women’s 200m; Olympian
Veronica Campbell-Brown (JAM): women’s 200m; two-time Olympic and two-time World champion
Allyson Felix (USA): women’s 200m; three-time World champion and two-time Olympic silver medalist
Carmelita Jeter (USA): women’s 200m; three-time World Championship bronze medalist
Marshevet Myers (USA): women’s 200m; Olympic finalist
Gelete Burka (ETH): women’s 1500m; two-time World champion
Lisa Dobriskey (GBR): women’s 1500m; World Championship silver medalist
Maryam Yusuf Jamal (BRN): women’s 1500m; two-time World champion
Anna Pierce (USA): women’s 1500m; Olympic finalist
Shannon Rowbury (USA): women’s 1500m; World Championship bronze medalist
Delloreen Ennis-London (JAM): women’s 100m hurdles; three-time World Championship medalist
Dawn Harper (USA): women’s 100m hurdles; Olympic champion
Lolo Jones (USA): women’s 100m hurdles; two-time World champion
Susanna Kallur (SWE): women’s 100m hurdles; European champion
Chelsea Johnson (USA): women’s pole vault; World Championship silver medalist
Jenn Suhr (USA): women’s pole vault; Olympic and World Championship silver medalist
Valerie Vili (NZL): women’s shot put; Olympic, World and Commonwealth champion
Jessica Ennis (GBR): women’s multi; two-time World champion
Hyleas Fountain (USA): women’s multi; Olympic silver medalist
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