Vlasic, Demus join stars in Shanghai
By Ni Yinbin |
May 5, 2011, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
CROATIAN high jump queen Blanka Vlasic and American 400m hurdles specialist Lashinda Demus have joined the cast of Olympic and world champions who will take part in the Dunlop Golden Grand Prix in Shanghai on May 15.
Vlasic, the current world and European champion and the only athlete last year to complete a full-set of Diamond League victories, will once again embark on her quest to break the 24-year-old world record of 2.09 meters held by Bulgaria's Stefka Kostadinova.
Vlasic came closest two years ago when she set her lifetime best of 2.08 meters and is targeting a hat-trick of world titles this year after her victories in Osaka and Berlin. The Croat is undefeated in major championships over the last four years, the only blot on her copybook coming at the Beijing Olympics where a magnificent clearance of 2.05 meters was good enough only for silver.
In Shanghai, Vlasic will come up against an old foe - Russia's Yelena Slesarenko, the Athens Olympic champion - who is on the comeback trail from injury.
It was Slesarenko who snatched the world indoor gold medal from the Croat's grasp in Moscow five years ago, but she has been no match for the Croat since.
In the one-lap hurdles, Demus came close to world gold medal on the last two occasions, but had to settle for silver. After topping the world lists last year with 52.82 seconds the American will be hoping to go one better this year.
Last year at the Shanghai stadium, she set a meeting record of 53.24 and will need to repeat that dose if she wants to hold off the challenge of Jamaica's Kaliese Spencer, who in 2010 dipped under 54 seconds six times to the American's three.
Amongst the array of track stars who have already confirmed their participation are Asafa Powell, Liu Xiang, David Oliver, Dwight Phillips, Andreas Thorkildsen, Tero Pitkamaki, Carmelita Jeter and Veronica Campbell-Brown.
Vlasic, the current world and European champion and the only athlete last year to complete a full-set of Diamond League victories, will once again embark on her quest to break the 24-year-old world record of 2.09 meters held by Bulgaria's Stefka Kostadinova.
Vlasic came closest two years ago when she set her lifetime best of 2.08 meters and is targeting a hat-trick of world titles this year after her victories in Osaka and Berlin. The Croat is undefeated in major championships over the last four years, the only blot on her copybook coming at the Beijing Olympics where a magnificent clearance of 2.05 meters was good enough only for silver.
In Shanghai, Vlasic will come up against an old foe - Russia's Yelena Slesarenko, the Athens Olympic champion - who is on the comeback trail from injury.
It was Slesarenko who snatched the world indoor gold medal from the Croat's grasp in Moscow five years ago, but she has been no match for the Croat since.
In the one-lap hurdles, Demus came close to world gold medal on the last two occasions, but had to settle for silver. After topping the world lists last year with 52.82 seconds the American will be hoping to go one better this year.
Last year at the Shanghai stadium, she set a meeting record of 53.24 and will need to repeat that dose if she wants to hold off the challenge of Jamaica's Kaliese Spencer, who in 2010 dipped under 54 seconds six times to the American's three.
Amongst the array of track stars who have already confirmed their participation are Asafa Powell, Liu Xiang, David Oliver, Dwight Phillips, Andreas Thorkildsen, Tero Pitkamaki, Carmelita Jeter and Veronica Campbell-Brown.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
