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World Record Attempts Set for Ostrava

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DyeStatPRO.com   Jun 15th 2014, 9:48pm
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Three World Record Attempts, Lavillenie and Merritt Highlight Ostrava Meeting

Published by the IAAF on June 15, 2014

Three planned world record assaults and appearances by world leaders Justin Gatlin, Renaud Lavillenie and LaShawn Merritt are just some of the highlights expected at the 53rd Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava, Czech Republic, on Tuesday (17).

However, with the Czech Republic home to the reigning world champion on the men’s side and Olympic champion on the women’s, the infield action most eagerly anticipated in Ostrava comes in the javelin.

Indeed, consistently among the main attractions in Ostrava is Czech heroine Barbora Spotakova, who returned to action this season after maternity leave last year.

The two-time Olympic champion, who has won twice here and is the meeting record holder at 67.78m, has performed admirably already this season, hinting that little, if anything was lost during her time off.

By her own admission faster and slightly slimmer this summer, she won the IAAF Diamond League fixture in Rome earlier this month with a 66.43m effort and took top honours again four days later in Prague where she reached 64.08m.

The toughest challenge should come from Slovenian record holder Martina Ratej, winner at the opening 2014 Diamond League meeting in Doha last month with a good 65.48m effort.

In the competitive men’s event, reigning World and European champion Vítezslav Vesely won’t need to look too far for his primary threat.

Compatriot Petr Frydrych has a career best that’s nearly identical to Vesely’s –88.34m for the latter, 88.23m for the former—and, on current form, owns the best throw of those assembled here, an 85.07m effort from his victory Prague last week.

The field also includes Russia’s Dmitriy Tarabin, bronze medalist at last year’s IAAF World Championships, and London 2012 Olympic Games bronze medallist Antti Ruuskanen, of Finland.

Justin Gatlin, the 100m world leader at 9.87 from the Beijing IAAF World Challenge meeting, and the Moscow 2013 silver medallist, arrives unbeaten in seven starts this spring and has produced the season’s three fastest performances.

“If the weather holds up and if there’s going to be a good fair wind, I think we can go out there do something very special,” said Gatlin, who last raced in Ostrava in 2004.



Read the full article at: www.iaaf.org

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