US sprinter Tyson Gay during a press conference in this file photo. The American clinched three golds at the Osaka World Championships in 2007 (100, 200 and 4x100m) and two years later in Berlin, won silver medal in the 100m. RALEIGH, North Carolina:  Former world sprint title holder Tyson Gay has a lofty goal in mind for August’s global championships - three trips to the podi

KINGSTON: Jamaica’s 200 metres world champion Veronica Campbell-Brown has tested positive for a banned diuretic, sources close to Jamaican athletics said. The sources said the doping violation occurred at the Jamaica International Invitational meeting on May 4 in Kingston. Campbell-Brown, who won the Olympic 200 title in 2004 and 2008, is Jamaica’s most successful female ath

OSLO: Usain Bolt dispelled any concerns over his early-season form by blasting to a convincing victory in the 200m at the Bislett Games. But the Jamaican sprint star, a six-time Olympic gold medallist and world record holder in both the 100 and 200m, faces the daunting prospect of having to negotiate the Jamaican national trials to compete in the 100m in the August 10-18 World Athletic

Sprint  champion Usain Bolt of Jamaica speaks during a news conference at the Russian embassy in this June 11, 2013, file photo.  KINGSTON: Usain Bolt will have to qualify for the 100 metres at this year’s world championships after Jamaican officials decided the country’s automatic entry into the race should go to his training partner Yohan Blake. But Bolt was g

OSLO: Jamaican sprint star Usain Bolt is aiming to become the first male athlete to dip under 20 seconds for the 200m this season when he takes to the track in today’s Bislett Games. After being beaten last week at the Rome leg of the 14-meet Diamond League, Bolt is keen to bounce back with a victory before heading home for his national trials ahead of the August 10-18 World Athlet

KINGSTON: Reigning 100m world champion Yohan Blake made a cautious but successful return to competition yesterday, winning a 200m race at a low-key all-comers meet, held at the national stadium. Blake, who ran out of lane six, was in control of the race, leading off the bend to clock a relatively slow 20.72 seconds in a wind of 1.6m/sec. He beat hard-charging world junior champion Delan

LONDON: Triple jumper Phillips Idowu  has angrily criticised former UK Athletics (UKA) coach Charles van Commenee over the British athlete’s preparations for last year’s London Olympics. Van Commenee accused Idowu of turning his back on UKA in the build-up to the event, after he failed to report for a pre-Olympic training camp in Portugal and was slow to provide details of

ROME: Olympic champion Usain Bolt’s rare defeat over 100 metres in Rome late on Thursday was not down to a flare-up of the hamstring injury which has hampered his start to the season.  Bolt was beaten into second place at the Diamond League meeting, 0.01 seconds behind London Games bronze medallist Justin Gatlin who won in 9.94. Despite a good start, world record holder Bolt

ROME: Six-time Olympic champion Usain Bolt said he is ready to put his injury woes behind him when he lines up at the Rome Golden Gala for his first appearance of the year in Europe tomorrow. Bolt’s start to the season has been hampered by hamstring problems and, a month ago, American rival Justin Gatlin posted an impressive time of 9.97sec at the opening Diamond League event of

PARIS: Yohan Blake, Tyson Gay, Justin Gatlin and Asafa Powell are all set to take part in the 100m at the Lausanne Diamond League meeting scheduled for July 4, organisers revealed yesterday. Blake, the reigning world champion over the distance, ran the second-fastest 100m in history in Lausanne last year, in a time of 9.69sec. However, organisers say that he is not absolutely certain to

Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar celebrates after he cleared the bar to win the Men’s High Jump on the final day of the Prefontaine Classic at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, yesterday. EUGENE, Oregon: Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim posted the best outdoor high jump since 2000 yesterday with a winning leap of 2.40m at the Prefontaine Classic Diamond League meeting. The Qatari&rsq

EUGENE, Oregon: World record long-distance runner Kenenisa Bekele led an Ethiopian sweep in the 10,000 metres of the 2013 Prefontaine Classic, edging out Imane Merga yesterday at Hayward Field stadium. Bekele finished in 27 minutes, 12.08 seconds to beat out Merga (27:12.37) and Abera Kuma who finished third in a personal best 27:13.10. “It is very important. I am happy I win agai

  NEW DELHI: India’s western city of Pune has been named as the new venue for the Asian Athletics Championships in July, a top official said yesterday. “The championships will now be held in Pune and the dates will remain the same (July 3 to 7),” Athletics Federation of India president Adille Sumariwalla said yesterday. The southern city of Chennai had been du

Egyptian Basma Ahmed poses with her 5 gold medals during the Arab Asian Weightlifting Championships at Al Sadd Stadium in Doha yesterday. CENTRE: Qatari weight lifter Salaah Alyazioi in action. RIGHT: Hicham Moum of Morocco successfully completes his routine during one of the competitions yesterday. The event ends on June 2nd.PICTURES: SHAIVAL DALAL

  LONDON: London’s Olympic Stadium is set for a major refurbishment after the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) approved plans for a £429m ($650m, 500m euros) makeover yesterday. The east London venue, which witnessed Olympic successes by athletes such as Usain Bolt and Mo Farah last year, is to have its capacity reduced from 80,000 to 60,000 in works that we

SHANGHAI: In front of thousands of fans in a cavernous Shanghai Stadium, long jumper Li Jinzhe thundered down the track before soaring 8.34 metres to victory, sending his supporters into a patriotic frenzy. Li is one of a new wave of foreign-coached track and field stars who are making China an emerging athletics force -- but their independent attitude is putting pressure on the countr

  BY RIZWAN REHMAT DOHA: Two Qatari track and field stars yesterday bagged gold medals as the host nation added to their bulging overall tally on the last day of the 18th Arab Athletics Championships. Musaeb Abdulrahman Balla won the gold in the 800m men’s final with a time of 1:45.90, finishing the long distance race ahead of Ibrahim Wutashi of Bahrain and Abdulazzi

Moroccan athletes celebrate after clinching gold medal in the Women’s 4x100m final at the 18th Arab Athletics Championships in Doha, yesterday. RIGHT: Rashid Ahmed of Qatar competes in the triple jump final. The Qatari won a silver medal. BY RIZWAN REHMAT DOHA: Qatari athletes Rashid Ahmed and Mohammed Ebrahim picked up a silver each as the hosts added a couple of medals to its

Samuel Francis of Qatar (third left) competes in the men’s 100m final at the 18th Arab Athletics Championships at the Suheim Bin Hamad Stadium, yesterday. Francis won the race with a timing of 10:31secs.  PICTURES BY: MOHAMMED FARAJ   BY RIZWAN REHMAT DOHA: Asia’s fastest man Samuel Francis of Qatar yesterday made the most of two false starts by his

Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim competes in the men’s high jump event on day one of the 18th Arab Athletics Championships at Suheim Bin Hamad Stadium, yesterday. Barshim recorded an impressive height of 2:30m to win the gold medal. Sudan’s Mohammed Younis bagged the silver (2:24) while Nawaf Ahmed of Saudi Arabia picked up the bronze (2:18). RIGHT: Barshim celebrates his win i