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IAAF DIAMOND LEAGUE AMBASSADORS TO COMPETE AT PRE - preclassic.com
Published by
Mar 4th 2010, 4:43pm
March 4, 2010 For Immediate Release IAAF DIAMOND LEAGUE
AMBASSADORS TO COMPETE AT PRE Eugene, Oregon--Four of the superstars in the sport of
track & field--Kenenisa Bekele, Yelena Isinbayeva, Tyson Gay, and
Sanya Richards--will compete in the 36th annual
Prefontaine Classic on
Saturday, July 3rd at historic Hayward Field. These Fabulous Four are
Ambassadors of the inaugural IAAF
Diamond League circuit that kicks off in Doha, Qatar on May 14th and
arrives in Eugene the first weekend in July (www.diamondleague.com). Bekele and Isinbayeva, in particular, have dominated their events
during the first decade of the new millennium, and each was recently
named Athlete of the Decade by Track & Field News magazine.
- Bekele, the 27-year-old from Ethiopia, has won three
Olympic and five
outdoor World Championships gold medals, 11 IAAF Cross Country
Championships,
and perhaps most significantly, currently holds the world records in
the outdoor 5,000 and 10,000 meters. In 2008, Bekele ran the 4th
fastest 10,000 of all-time (26:25.97) at the Pre Classic; he will race
in the 5k at this year's meet.
- Isinbayeva, also 27, has won two Olympic
and five indoor or outdoor World Championships golds for Russia, and
has set 17 indoor and outdoor world records in the pole vault. The 2010
Prefontaine Classic will be Isinbayeva's first appearance outdoors in
the United States as she continues her climb towards becoming history's
first female 17-foot vaulter.
- Gay was the double gold
medalist at 100 and 200 meters at the 2007 Osaka World Championships.
He has set three American Records in the 100, including the current AR
of 9.69 seconds, and
has the third fastest-time ever in the 200 meters, the distance he will
race in Eugene.
- Richards won World Championships gold in the 400 this past year
in Berlin, and has been ranked No. 1 in the world at the 400
five times by Track & Field News. The Pre Classic
favorite, who just turned 25 last week, has run under
50-seconds an astonishing 41 times, more than any other one-lapper in
history.
The NIKE Prefontaine Classic will be broadcast live on
NBC in the U.S., and will be seen by an international television
audience in 130 countries worldwide. More
people will watch this year's Prefontaine Classic at Hayward Field on
the University of Oregon campus than
any other event to originate in Eugene--ever. Tickets for the meet go
on sale Friday, March 5th at 9 a.m. Pacific Time from 1-800-WEBFOOT,
www.goducks.com,
or in person at the Casanova Center ticket office.
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