Kenyans sweep the distance in Doha

Fresh from their impressive performances at the 16th African Athletics championships in Addis Ababa last week, Kenyan athletes stormed to victories in the 800, 3000 and 3000m Steeplechase at the IAAF Super Grand Prix meeting in Doha, Qatar on a night when David Oliver (12.95 personal best) and Allyson Felix 100m and 400m double in 10.93 and 49.83 respectively dazzle the world with 2008 bests.

Osaka bronze medalist, Richard Mateelong's posted a 3000m s/c win in 8.07.64 (another world lead), NewAfrican champion David Rudisha out-foxed all comers with a 1.44.36 win in the 800m, whilst Augustine Kiprono Choge took the 3000m in 7.32.01 ahead of compatriot Edwin Cheruiyot Soi, Ugandan Moses Kipsiro and another Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge.

African champions Amantle Montsho of Botswana and Olusoji Fasuba of Nigeria suffered from their exhaustive performances in Addis Ababa and could only stumbled home 7th and last in 51.87 in the women's 400m and 6th in the men's 100m with 10.27 respectively.

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SA wins African championships in Addis 2008

South Africa bagged 22 medals (12 gold, two silver and eight bronze medals) to become the top nation, out of 46 African countries, at the 16th CAA African Athletics Championships which ended in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia tonight.

Nigeria and Ethiopia rank second and third with 19 (seven gold, seven silver and five bronze) and 15 (six gold, six silver and three bronze) medals respectively, while Kenya and Egypt follow at fourth and fifth.

Ethiopian Olympic and world 10000m champion Kenenisa Bekele comfortably defended his African 5000m title with an outstanding sprint finish to win in 13:49.67 ahead of Kenyan Isaac Songok (13:49.91) on the final day of the championships.

Kenyan 19-year-old Pamela Chelimo (1:58.70) caused the biggest upset of the day after beating Mozambique’s former Olympic and multiple world 800m champion Maria Mutola in the final of the women’s 800m.

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Kenya, SA sweep in Addis2008 - Day3

Kenya and South Africa achieved a clean sweep of the medals in the men’s 3000m steeplechase and the women’s high jump today, Day three, at the 16th CAA African Athletics Championships in Addis Ababa.

Kenyan World championship bronze medallist Richard Mateelong (8:31.86) led Michael Kipyego (8:32.94) and All-African Games champion Willy Komen (8:41.98) to a clean sweep of the men’s 3000m steeplechase, whilst South Africa's Anika Smit jumped 1.88m to clinch gold ahead of compatriots Marcoleen Pretorius and Marizca Gertenbach (both cleared 1.84m)in the women’s high jump.

Also Kenya’s world junior 800m champion, David Rudisha won the men’s 800m final in a new world lead and African championship record in 1:44.20. Sudanese Ismail Ahmed Ismail clinched the silver medal with 1:45.41 ahead of another Kenyan Asbel Kiprop took bronze in 1:46.02.

All-Africa Games 400m hurdles champion Louis Van Zyl of South Africa won comfortably in 48.91 seconds, with Algeria's Hamad Abderahmane taking the silver and Mali’s Ibrahim Abdoulaye winning bronze with both timed at 49.84 seconds.

Ethiopia’s Gelete Burka stormed to a championship record time of 4:08.25 to win the women's 1,500m gold ahead of Meskerem Assefa (4:13.91)and Namibia’s Agnes Samaria (4:16.19).

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Nigerians sweep the sprints in Addis 2008

Nigeria's World Indoor champion Olusoji Fasuba and Damola Osayemi won the men’s and women’s 100m today at the 16th CAA African Athletics Championships.

In the men’s 100m, Nigeria’s Olusoji Fasuba comfortably defended his African title thanks to a 10.10 performance ahead of compatriot Uchenna Emedolu with South African Hannes Dreyer, the fastest qualifier in yesterday’s heats, beating Burkina Faso’s medal hopeful Idrissa Sanou to bronze.

While 22-years-old Damola Osayemi, who is the All-African Games 100m/200m double champion, took victory in 11.22 seconds ahead of Ghana’s defending champion Vida Anim and Cameroon’s Delphine Atangana.

Full Results

WOMEN
1. 5 322 Damola OSAYOMI - 11.22
2. 4 154 Vida ANIM - 11.43
3. 8 57 Delphine ATANGANA - 11.46
4. 1 323 Franca IDOKO - 11.47
5. 6 324 Gloria KEMASOUDE - 11.47
6. 7 444 Geraldine PILLAY - 11.53
7. 2 58 Myriam Leonie MANI - 11.60

MEN

1. 6 350 Olusoji FASUBA - 10.10
2. 5 354 Uchenna EMEDOLU - 10.21
3. 3 472 Hannes DREYER - 10.24
4. 4 858 Idrissa SANOU - 10.41
5. 1 312 Kaanjuka HITJIVIRUE - 10.50
6. 8 142 Wilfried BINGANGOYE - 10.54
7. 7 759 Aziz OUHADI - 11.13

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Ethiopia dominates day one in Addis 2008

Ethiopia top the medals table at the end of day one of the 16th CAA African Athletics Championships in Addis Ababa, despite the absense of three-time 10000m champion, and defending champion Kenenisa Bekele.

Gebregziabher Gebremariam, 25, led Ethiopian compatriots Ibrahim Jeylan and Eshetu Wondimu to an Ethiopian clean sweep of the men’s 10000m race yesterday.

Gebremarian who had disastrous outing at the 36th IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh a month ago where he finished 17th, won in 28:17.11 with world junior XCC champion Ibrahim Jeylan (28:30.66) taking silver ahead of national champion Eshetu Wondimu (28:56.36).

It was Gebremariam’s first track victory on home soil since 2005 where he took a 5000m/10000m double at the 2005 Ethiopian Championships.

However, all the favourites have made it through to the semifinals in the 100m men and women. Nigeria’s defending All-African Games champion Damola Osayemi won the women's Semi-Final 1 easily in 11.41 seconds followed by Senegal's Aminata Diouf in 11.46 seconds. Ghana’s defending champion Vida Anim cruised through Semi-Final 2 the same time of 11.41 second, follwed by former Nigeria champion Gloria Kemasuode in 11.48 seconds.

Also through are South Africa's Geraldine Pillay (11.58) Nigeria’s Franca Idoko (11.61), Cameroon’s pair of Delphine Atangana (11.49), and Myriam Leonie Mani (11.59)seconds.

In the men’s 100m. World indoor 60m champion Olusoji Fasuba won Semi-Final 1 in 10.27 seconds with his closest challenger being compatriot's Uchenna Emedolu, who won Semi-Final 2 and South African Hannes Dreyer, who won Semi-Final 1 respectively in 10.36 seconds.

The championships continues today...

Shame! No Nigerian in African Hall of Fame?

Oh what a shame! whatever happened to Nigerian Athletics stars of the 80s and 90s.

I was reading through the list of inductees to the 1st ever Confederation of Africa Athletics (CAA) Athletes Hall of fame and to my shock there was no Nigerian on the list.

There were many worthy athletes that have done Africa proud in the past, those with outstanding achievements - Olympic, World and African titles - on the list, but you also have athletes with barely any known achievements on the continent inducted.

It will interest me greatly to know the criteria CAA had used to select the list of thirty-five (35) great African athletes of our generation without the inclusion of long time African 100m champion in the late 80s and early 90s, Chidi Imoh, African queen of the track, and Olympic 200m bronze medallist Mary Onyali, Olympic 400m silver medallist Falilat Ogunkoya or Olapade Adeniken. These are athletes who dominated the All African Games for many years and won laurels for Africa at the World cup.

I know former Olympic Long Jump Champion Chioma Ajunwa's name was mentioned in the press a couple of months back as a potential inductee, but even her name was missing. Ajunwa's case is understandable, taken into consideration her ban for drug use in the past, so her omission is a legitimate one, but what of others?

So what's the criteria for selecting an African Athletes Hall of Fame? World and Olympics gold medals won or contributions to the continent in terms of performance at the All African Games and African Athletics Championships?

Over to you, let's know what you think?

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