IAAF Offers London Warmup Via Istanbul

Billed as a preview for athletics in the London Games, the story lines this summer should include a lot of red, white and blue.

U.S. athletes stormed to the top of the medal standings in Istanbul this weekend, snaring tengolds. And the luck for the U.S. did not run out even when the men’s relay team was disqualified as the race finished. On appeal, the U.S. gold medal was reinstated.

Names to watch in London from the former colonies include sprinters Justin Gatlin, Aries Merritt and Sanya Richards-Ross, distance runner Bernard Legat and Ashton Eaton, world-record setting heptathlete, all gold medalists at the Atakoy Indoor Arena.

Britain won its biggest haul of indoor medals this weekend (nine), including Yamile Aldama’s triple jump. The victory by the Cuban-born athlete will put her in the spotlight in the lead up to the Games. Aldama, who also won medals when she was a Sudanese citizen, has been one of the athletes stuck with the monicker of "Plastic Briton" for their fluid citizenship status. Team GB captain Tiffany Porter, U.S. born, earlier came under criticism when she could not say the words to the British national anthem.

Australians will have reasons to cheer with hurdler Sally Pearson who is now favored for gold in London after a dominating performance in Istanbul. Greek high jumper Dimítrios Chondrokoúkis, competing without the government assistance provided before the financial crisis, won his event regardless.

Turkey was able to win its first ever medals at the indoor championships, silver in the men’s 1500m, bronze for the women’s event, both drawing maybe the loudest cheers of the three-day event. Even sports minister Suat Kilic was on hand Saturday evening to present the medals.

Aman Mohammed of Ethiopia, 18 years old and the 800m champion, is now the youngest gold medalist at an IAAF indoors.

First Inductees for IAAF Hall of Fame

Also in Istanbul, the IAAF revealed the first 12 members of its inaugural Hall of Fame class with another dozen names to be announced throughout the year as part of centenary celebrations.

USA is represented well in this initial batch with Berlin 1936 icon Jesse Owens, discus great Al Oerter, 400m hurdles hero Ed Moses, heptathlon world record holder Jackie Joyner-Kersee as well as nine-time Olympic champion sprinter and long-jumper Carl Lewis.

Rounding out the list are triple-jump specialist Adhemar da Silva of Brazil, back-to-back Olympic marathon winner Abebe Bikila of Ethiopia, London 1948 star Fanny Blankers-Koen of Netherlands, Aussie sprint sensation Betty Cuthbert, Chinese distance champ Wang Junxia, endurance expert Emil Zátopekof Czechoslovakia and "Flying Finn" Paavo Nurmi, a nine-time Olympic gold medalist in middle- and long-distance events.

"Induction into the IAAF Hall of Fame must be seen as the crowning glory of an athlete's career, the highest possible accolade which should rival any medal, trophy and award achieved," IAAF president Lamine Diack said upon unveiling the HOF on the eve of the indoors.

In fact, a candidate must have won at least two Olympic or world championships gold medals and set at least one world record to even be considered for election by the IAAF's selection panel - and that won't happen until an athlete is retired for at least 10 years.

Junxia fits all three criteria but is still considered a controversial choice by some track & field commentators. Though she was never accused of or otherwise associated with doping, her peak years came under the coaching of Ma Junren,who was dropped from the Chinese Olympic team after six of his athletes failed blood tests before Sydney 2000.

Once the Class of 2012 is inducted Nov. 24 at the IAAF Centenary Gala in Barcelona, the selection panel will propose at least 4 new additions per year

Written and reported in Istanbul by Ed Hula

with additional writing by Matthew Grayson.

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