Shanghai Diamond League 2010 Men 110mH

23rd May 2010, Diamond League Shanghai: David Oliver runs sub 13 in the 110m hurdles with a headwind to claim Shanghai victory.

Nine Topics in 2009

400 Meter Showdown
What are you wishing for in 2009?

On the latest episode of PreRaceJitter’s Track and Field Radio Show, John W. Davis and I count down our 2009 track and field resolutions.

LaShawn Merritt and Jeremy Wariner will waste no time getting back to their rivalry.  Last season ended with Merritt winning Olympic gold, while Wariner drew some major wins against Merritt at Grand Prix meets.  Can Wariner take back the mantle this year?

Usain Bolt
The most pressing matter for Usain Bolt in 2009 is will the 100-meter world record get lowered.  Biomechanics favor Bolt, while the fleet-footed Tyson Gay is seeking to return to top form after not fully recovering from a hamstring injury hampered his Olympic performance in Beijing.

Sanya Richards and Christine Ohuruogu
Will Sanya Richards get in the way of Christine Ohuruogu’s plans of taking another world championship in ’09? There could be sparks if Richards displays translates the success of the Grand Prix circuit at the World Championships in Berlin.

Tyson Gay
Tyson is preparing to mount a challenge to Usain Bolt in ’09. The 2007 world champion at 100 and 200 meters is seeking to return to top form.  Attaining top speed is certainly needed as the winning in Berlin may certainly require a new world record at 100 meters.

Pamela Jelimo
How fast can she go this year? The Kenyan Olympic champion is still relatively inexperienced at 800 meters, with a major upside.

Liu Xiang’s Comeback
After a disappointing withdraw from the Beijing Games, Xiang subsequently underwent surgery successful surgery in December to repair the injured Achilles injury.

World Championships
Jesse Owens made history at the legendary Berlin stadium.  The World Championships return to Berlin from August 15 – 23, as today’s athletes hope to make their historical impact on the sport.

Lolo Jones
Hurdles and heartbreak go together like peanut and jelly. This season Lolo Jones will be seeking to stand at the top of the medal stand, thus elevating the 100 meter hurdles status in the sport.

National Championships
Having hosted one of the most memorable  U.S. Trials in recent history, it seems that Eugene, Oregon will be seeking to fight off a sophomore slump

2008: Heroes and Heartbreaks

This year was another success on the track, highlighted by incredible performances delivering fast times and fierce competition.

Which races will you be talking about in 20 years?

Usain Bolt, Young At Heart
It’s no stretch to say that Bolt was as much a dominant force as a sprinter in track this year as Wilt Chamberlin was a scorer in basketball.  The 22-year-old Jamaican was so hot that he accelerated global warming.

Yelena Isinbayeva, High Flying Act
The pole vault final in Beijing matched up reigning champion Yelena Isinbayeva and challenger Jennifer Stuczynski. Facing down each other, freshly minted American Record Holder Isinbayeva soared over the bar at 16 feet, 7 inches, increasing her own world record while securing her second Olympic gold.

Liu Xiang, Failure To Launch
Can you imagine the sight of Liu Xiang lined up in 110-meter hurdles in front of his countrymen? Fans were so shocked after the defending Olympic and former world record holder walked off the track after that false start.

Angelo Taylor, Leads Sweep
Team USA got off to a slow start, however in exactly 47.25 seconds, the 1-2-3 finish changes their fortunes. Taylor regaining the 400-meter hurdle title ahead of Kerron Clement and Bershawn Jackson after taking gold in 2000 Sydney revived the spirits of Team USA.

Lolo Jones, Top of the Class
Dignity is not something easily imitated or duplicated. Lolo maybe the top athlete that fans are rooting for after running into the hurdle. She left the games champion, no one showed more class than Lolo Jones in Beijing.

Bryan Clay, Larger Than Life
The 5 foot, 10 inch and 185 pound Hawaiian may have been overshadowed by Michael Phelps and the Jamaicans, but his timing could not have been more on to achieve the status as the ‘World’s Greatest Athlete’. Battling through asthma in winning the decathlon gold.

Stephanie Brown Trafton, Season’s Biggest Surprise
There is no coronation in track & field, you play to win the competition. Brown Trafton surprised everyone in Beijing in becoming the first U.S. woman in 76 years to win the discus.

Dayron Robles, Solid Gold Performance
A ruthless competitor over the hurdles. The Cuban hurdle star rolled 12.87 in Ostrava, Czech Republic establishing a new 110 meter world record.

Kenenisa Bekele, Double The Pleasure
Reassuring proof that the Ethiopians have a stranglehold on the distance events. Bekele led all the way, sprinting to an Olympic record over 5,000 meters, just days after winning the 10,000 meters.

American Women’s 4×400-meter relay, Thrilling Come-From-Behind Victory
After the come-from-behind victory over the Russians on the anchor leg, the scene could have ended with Sanya Richards being carried off the track on the shoulders off Mary Wineberg, Allyson Felix and Monique Henderson.

Kicks: Nike Air Max 90 iD Liu Xiang

The new Nike iD Studio options for Fall 2008 and the models available. Shown above is the outcome of a pair iD-ed and received.

The kicks feature distressed metallic gold, metallic silver and the Liu Xiang graphic on the toebox. Other availale options include premium leathers with up to twelve colors to choose from, including the three hot colors of the Olymics, gold, silver and bronze distressed metallics.

For fabrics, three options are available, mesh in black, white and grey. The second option is a floral jaquard in two colors. The third is a “hero” option, which is a graphic inspired by Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang (only on the Air Max 90) available for use on the toebox, upper heel, tongue and lining.

Liu Xiang pulled out of the Olympics due to an injury, but is arguably remains one of the track biggest stars in the world.

Style Is King In Beijing–Liu Xiang Has A Shoe

In China Liu Xiang and Yao Ming are national heroes. As the summer track and field Olympic events in Beijing approach, Nike is honoring Chinese track and field athlete Liu Xiang with a pair of Dunk Premium Lows with gold accents. Via [Nike-Dunks.net]

Liu Xiang Will Need All The Help He Can Get

Hurdling is an art made of sprinting and jumping. Liu Xiang is carrying the weight of a country on his shoulders. The Chinese hurdler is almost on superhero status in his native country as he attempts to defend his Olympic title at the 110-hurdles.

Three years ago, Xiang partnered with Nike to have a shoe specifically designed for this historical run. A task force was assigned spikes for Liu, which normally is a privilege reserved for Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant, and Lance Armstrong.

Xiang will need everything to go his way. He is no longer the world record holder. In June, Dayron Robles of Cuba broke Xiang’s record by running 12.87 in Ostrava, Czech Republic. David Oliver of the U.S. is another contender that the China superstar will have to deal with in the hurdle finals.

For Liu’s Beijing shoe, Nike will combine the two designs that Liu wore when he won the Olympics and broke a world record. They will be a pair of spikes, colored bright yellow with a scarlet out-sole. They are called the Zoom Aerofly LX. To protect his right foot - the one attacking the hurdlers and landing first - Liu requested more thickness and padding at the heel.

The Zoom Aerofly LX is a revolutionary spike utilizing the innovative Flywire Technology in combination with a special synthetic leather in order to provide Liu Xiang with a featherlight shoe that provides maximum support.

If the Chinese hurdle star makes the medal stand, he will have to perform a quick clothes change. Adidas is the sponsor of the Chinese Olympic Association, so all Chinese athletes will wear the adidas “podium suit”, even if they are wearing Nike gear underneath.

Americans Just Don’t Get It…

Liu Xiang has insured his legs for a cool $13.3 million. Say what?

By definition, insurance is protection coverage against specified loss. Normally losses would include fire, flooding and major accidents.

More and more celebrities are taking out policies for their most bankable body parts – Heidi Klum’s legs are worth $1.96 million, J Lo’s body is worth $1 billion – so why not high-performance athletes?

The 110-meter hurdle world record holder and world champion is prepared for the worst case scenario. A recent MSNBC.com story says that a sponsor took out the multi-million dollar policy for Liu Xiang.

In other words, Liu is worth stacks of cash. At a glance the policy appears extreme, but a closer look reveals that it’s a brilliant idea.

Millions of Chinese nationals are expected to watch their countrymen race in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Any catastrophe keeping Lui off the track would cost him millions and alter his career off its meteoric path. This way he gets paid one way or the other.

Americans just don’t get it. In the U.S., these sort of sweetheart deals are reserved for Tom Brady and LeBron James. The average American has no clue about how big track and field is on the international stage.

Internationally track and field is wildly popular – and not just during Olympic years when most Americans have any real exposure to the sport.

Every meet is an event – millions watch on tv, thousands pack the stadiums and countless sponsors fork over big bucks to be down with track.

U.S. Track fans are waiting for a track revolution. A time when we can watch sport while we eat grossly over-priced food in luxury suite boxes in gaudy track stadiums financed by tax payer dollars.

A time when one of our own gets their legs insured for almost as much as Heidi Klum’s.

A man can dream…

Jay Hicks