'50 Years of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships', edited by renowned statistician Mirko Jalava, has been published by World Athletics Heritage as a free to access ebook. There is also a print edition available for purchase.
The 690-page book (A5, paperback) chronicles in editorial and statistics the history of cross country&rsquo;s greatest competition, ever since it came under the stewardship of World Athletics in 1973.
The book is the direct heir to 'The Toughest Race in the World', edited by Mark Butler, which was published in 2003 in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships. Butler&rsquo;s assistance was invaluable in bringing the story up to date in the new publication, which includes all race results from 1973 to 2019.
Simon Turnbull, former athletics correspondent at The Independent on Sunday and The Independent newspapers, has taken the pen from Butler as author of the championship race summaries from 2003 to 2019.
&ldquo;I really love cross country running. It is endurance. It is focus. It is strategy. It is man and woman against the elements and the environment,&rdquo; said World Athletics President Sebastian Coe.
&ldquo;I would like to thank Mirko, Mark and Simon, a triumvirate of much respected athletics specialists, for producing this book which, containing the full results of every world championship race since 1973, is the definitive reference point for what remains one of the world&rsquo;s greatest sporting spectacles.&rdquo;
Given that 20 years have passed since the previous book, and because so much new information has since come to light, the results database has been recreated from scratch. Some numbers have changed drastically as athletes not finishing races have been added, and some, who did not start, have been removed.
All total numbers are drawn from the data we today believe is correct, and no longer correspond with those numbers previously given for single championships or those that appeared in the 2003 edition.
<iframe src="https://player.flipsnack.com?hash=NkJDQkRFNTU2OUIraHAwMTJlNXVuZg==" width="100%" height="480" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" seamless="seamless" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <iframe src="https://player.flipsnack.com?hash=NkJDQkRFNTU2OUIreGNzemUwM3RrNQ==" width="100%" height="480" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" seamless="seamless" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<h3>50 Years of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships (2023) </h3>
Publisher: World Athletics Heritage Editor: Mirko Jalava A5, 690 pages 
A printed version is also available to order:
Paperback Price: US$30 (including postage and packing)
Please send orders to: World Athletics 6-8 Quai Antoine 1er BP 359 MC 98007 Monaco Cedex Tel: (377) 93 10 88 88 Fax: (377) 93 15 95 15 E-mail: <a href="mailto:info@worldathletics.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">info@worldathletics.org</a>

This new edition, edited by renowned statistician Mirko Jalava, has been published by World Athletics Heritage as a free to access ebook

'50 Years of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships' ebook published

The fast and the fierce are set to light up the women&rsquo;s 1500m at the Maurie Plant Meet &ndash; Melbourne, a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold event, with US duo Emma Coburn and Heather MacLean squaring up against an all-star Australian cast at Lakeside Stadium on 23 February.
Joining their US compatriots Fred Kerley and Matthew Centrowitz, who have already been announced for the Melbourne 200m and John Landy Mile, respectively, MacLean and Coburn will take on three of Australia&rsquo;s fastest ever women over the distance. National record-holder Jessica Hull, Australian all-time No.3 Georgia Griffith and Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Abbey Caldwell are all set to toe the line.
World indoor finalist MacLean recently ran a 4:23.42 mile PB at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Boston, while 2017 world 3000m steeplechase champion Coburn crossed the line in 4:28.84 in the same race to place seventh in a tightly contested field.
Both Coburn and MacLean will launch their Australian campaigns as part of the US team&rsquo;s 4x2km mixed relay squad set to compete at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23, where they will size up both Caldwell and Hall in the relay race before flying south to Melbourne.
&ldquo;I am so excited to be heading to Australia to participate in the World Cross Country Championships relay in Bathurst and the Maurie Plant Meet in Melbourne,&rdquo; said Coburn.
&ldquo;Testing my fitness in a 1500m at the Maurie Plant Meet, going against some of the top 1500m runners in the world, will be a fun challenge. I&rsquo;m looking forward to mixing it up and racing in Australia instead of racing the indoor track season in America.&rdquo;
With Hall, Griffith and Caldwell all cementing their spot in the field, the women&rsquo;s 1500m is shaping up to be one of the night&rsquo;s most highly anticipated events. MacLean is the fastest of the talented quintet, sporting a 3:58.76 personal best from last September, but is only marginally quicker than seven-time Australian record-holder Hull, who stormed down the home straight at the Tokyo Olympics in 3:58.81.
For further information on the&nbsp;Maurie Plant Meet &ndash; Melbourne, visit the<a href="https://www.athletics.com.au/events/170956/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">event website</a>.
Organisers for World Athletics

Jessica Hull, Georgia Griffith and Abbey Caldwell will seek strong performances on home soil

Coburn and MacLean to challenge Australian stars in Melbourne 1500m

World pole vault record-holder Mondo Duplantis will aim to add another record to his collection when he returns to the Ostrava Golden Spike, one of this year&rsquo;s 14 World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meetings, on 27 June.
The 23-year-old cleared 5.90m when winning in the Czech city in 2021 and since then he has raised the world record to 6.21m, won Olympic gold and become a world champion indoors and outdoors.
His target when he competes at the Golden Spike this year will be to beat the meeting record of 5.93m set by Sam Kendricks and soar over six metres yet again.
"Let&rsquo;s get that meet record and possibly attack six meters,&rdquo; said Duplantis. &ldquo;This year is very important for me, with the World Championships and making sure I enjoy every competition.&rdquo;
The Swedish athlete enjoyed a strong start to his year, clearing 6.10m&nbsp;in Uppsala&nbsp;for his best ever season opener. He went on to attempt a world record height of 6.22m.
His upcoming events include the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais &ndash; the fifth Gold level meeting in the 2023 World Athletics Indoor Tour series &ndash; on 15 February.
This year's&nbsp;World Athletics Continental Tour offers the biggest calendar yet and includes 14 Gold level events spread across five of the six continental areas. The action kicks off in Melbourne, Australia, on 23 February and runs through to September, when the Memorial Borisa Hanzekovica in Zagreb, Croatia, welcomes athletes on 8-10 September.
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-continental-tour/calendar-results?season=2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-cke-saved-href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-continental-tour/calendar-results?season=2023&amp;competitionSubgroupId=3781">Full 2023 World Athletics Continental Tour calendar</a>

World pole vault record-holder Mondo Duplantis targets the meeting record at the Ostrava Golden Spike

Duplantis targets another record on return to Ostrava

A full 28-strong team has been named to represent USA at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23 on 18 February.
Having secured a decisive win at the USATF Cross Country Championships in January, Ednah Kurgat will lead the women&rsquo;s senior squad on her US team debut.
She will be joined by Allie Buchalski, Katie Izzo, Weini Kelati, Emily Lipari and Makena Morley.
Kurgat&rsquo;s fellow national cross country champion Emmanuel Bor will use his experience from the 2019 World Cross Country Championships to guide the senior men&rsquo;s team that features Reid Buchanan, Sam Chelanga, Andrew Colley, Dillon Maggard and Anthony Rotich.
Emma Coburn, who won the world 3000m steeplechase title in 2017, takes on the mixed 4x2km relay alongside teammates Alec Basten, Heather MacLean and Jordan Mann.
Irene Riggs is joined by Leo Young in heading the U20 squads.
<h2>US team for Bathurst</h2>
Senior women: Allie Buchalski, Katie Izzo, Weini Kelati, Ednah Kurgat, Emily Lipari, Makena Morley
Senior men: Emmanuel Bor, Reid Buchanan, Sam Chelanga, Andrew Colley, Dillon Maggard, Anthony Rotich&nbsp;
Mixed relay: Alec Basten, Emma Coburn, Heather MacLean, Jordan Mann
U20 women: Karrilynn Baloga, Eva Klingbeil, Zariel Macchia, Irene Riggs, Ellie Shea, Allie Zealand
U20 men: Evan Jenkins, Marco Langon, Kole Mathison, Max Sannes, Micah Wilson, Emilio Young

World Athletics Cross Country Championships

A 28-strong team has been named to represent USA

Full US squad set for WXC Bathurst 23

<h2 style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/news/series/50-years-world-cross-country-championships-1973" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1973-1982</a> | <a href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/news/series/50-years-world-cross-country-championships-1983-1992" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1983-1992</a> | 1993-2002</h2>
It was with a view to attracting more middle-distance runners to the World Athletics Cross Country Championships that the sport&rsquo;s governing body decided to introduce short course races. From 1998 onwards, the championships expanded to become a two-day, six-race affair, with a 4km event for senior men and women on either day.
The allure of the truncated race started to revive Sonia O&rsquo;Sullivan&rsquo;s competitive instinct as she strove to rebuild her career, and her shattered confidence, on a four-month-long training trip to Australia.
After her failure to finish the Olympic 5000m final in Atlanta in 1996 and her exit in the 5000m heats at the 1997 World Athletics Championships in Athens, the 28-year-old Irish athlete felt that the novelty of the 4km race would be an ideal target on the road to rehabilitation.
But then the effects of training at altitude and upping her weekly mileage to 120 started to show significant benefits. After clocking 15:03.28 for 5000m in Melbourne, the 1995 world 5000m champion decided to concentrate on the extended 8km long-course race instead.
It was only after emerging victorious from that thrilling contest on the opening day of the landmark 1998 World Athletics Cross Country Championships in Marrakech that O&rsquo;Sullivan decided to also contest the inaugural women&rsquo;s short race on the Sunday.
Even then, it was against the wishes of her coach, and despite a freak injury, that the endearingly-grounded soul from Cobh &ndash; the southern Irish seaport that also produced the engagingly-pugnacious football figure Roy Keane &ndash; came to be the first athlete to achieve a world cross country long and short course double.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63e28661103a9db52ccd1bb8.jpg" alt="Sonia O'Sullivan in action during the 4km race at the 1998 World Cross Country Championships in Marrakech" />
Sonia O'Sullivan in action during the 4km race at the 1998 World Cross Country Championships in Marrakech (&copy; Allsport / Getty Images)
</div>
Such was O&rsquo;Sullivan&rsquo;s new-found strength and speed-endurance, she was comfortably able to keep up with Paula Radcliffe&rsquo;s fierce pace in the long course race before burning off the determined Briton in the closing stages. She even managed to maintain her composure when the marshals forgot to guide the leaders into the finishing straight, squeezing through a gap in the fencing.
Crossing the line three seconds clear of Radcliffe, who had lost by two seconds to Ethiopia&rsquo;s Olympic 10,000m champion Deratu Tulu in Turin 12 months previously, O&rsquo;Sullivan became only the second Irish world cross country champion, following in the footsteps of Olympic marathon silver medallist John Treacy, winner of the senior men&rsquo;s race in 1978 and 1979.
&ldquo;Everyone told me to quit while I was ahead, but I wanted to see what I could do in the shorter race,&rdquo; she subsequently confessed. &ldquo;Even my coach, Alan Storey, told me to go out and have a pint of Guinness to celebrate.&rdquo;
Instead, on the Saturday evening, O&rsquo;Sullivan went out shopping to one of the souks of Marrakech and badly gashed her shin while trying to evade a jewellery vendor who was desperately trying to sell her a bracelet. &ldquo;I walked into a concrete bollard and there was blood everywhere,&rdquo; she said.
Still, needled by the thought that a victory by a rival in the short course race would weaken her claim to be the world cross country champion, O&rsquo;Sullivan jogged to the course for the 4km race on the Sunday.
En route, her mobile telephone rang. It was Storey, the distance guru who guided Britain&rsquo;s Mike McLeod to Olympic 10,000m silver in Los Angeles in 1984. &ldquo;He wasn&rsquo;t happy,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Sullivan recounted, &ldquo;but I told him to imagine I was a tennis player doing the doubles. He said: &lsquo;Thank god, there&rsquo;s no mixed doubles, then&hellip;&rsquo;&rdquo;
The mixed relay was to come to the World Cross Country Championships in Kampala in 2017 but in Marrakech in 1998 O&rsquo;Sullivan proceeded to serve up a historic winning double. Taking on the world for the second time in 24 hours, she cruised home, 14 seconds clear of local hope Zahra Ouaziz.
It earned O&rsquo;Sullivan a second $40,000 prize. Kudos, however, was her principal motivation.
&ldquo;The second victory was 10 times sweeter than the first,&rdquo; she reflected. &ldquo;What if whoever won the short race today had not done the long race? There would have been a question mark.
&ldquo;I was a bit greedy. I did not want to share the honour. Now that I have done it, others might try.&rdquo;
Kenya&rsquo;s John Kibowen, winner of the inaugural men&rsquo;s short course race on the opening day, was content to settle for his single success. Of the few men who did attempt the double in Marrakech, the most successful was Zimbabwe&rsquo;s Kudakwashe Shoko. He finished 32nd in the 4km race and 51st in the 12km event.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63e2876a103a9db52ccd1bbb.jpg" alt="Athletes contest the men's 4km at the 1998 World Cross Country Championships, won by John Kibowen" />
Athletes contest the men's 4km at the 1998 World Cross Country Championships, won by John Kibowen (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
The only athletes other than O&rsquo;Sullivan to have achieved long and short course doubles are two of the Ethiopian all-time greats of the sport: Kenenisa Bekele, who accomplished the feat five times in succession from 2002, and Tirunesh Dibaba, who triumphed in 2005.
Radcliffe and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Gete Wami both came close in the mud-bath of the Wellington Hippodrome in Ostend in 2001. On the Saturday, Radcliffe had her redemption day in the 7700m long race, hauling her way past her long-time track and country nemesis in the closing stages to triumph by three seconds.
It was very nearly double redemption. Radcliffe had victory in sight in the short course race the following day but Wami outsprinted the future marathon world record-holder in the final 50m, winning by a second.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63e28b9a436ab036b2b877c6.jpg" alt="Gete Wami and Paula Radcliffe battle at the 2001 World Cross Country Championships" />
Gete Wami and Paula Radcliffe battle at the 2001 World Cross Country Championships (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
The preceding race on the second day in Ostend was the U20 men&rsquo;s 7700m event. It was won, by a record margin of 33 seconds, by a diminutive 18-year-old Ethiopian called Bekele.&nbsp;
The day before, the 5ft 5in teenager had finished just two seconds down on Kenya&rsquo;s Enock Koech as runner up in the men&rsquo;s short race. So Kenenisa Bekele was already a double medallist before he travelled to Dublin for the 2002 championships.
It was there, at Leopardstown Racecourse in the Irish capital, that Bekele showed his true pedigree as one of the great thoroughbreds of distance running.
On the Saturday, the 19-year-old with the smooth-striding style cantered to a comfortable victory, finishing seven seconds clear of Kenya&rsquo;s Luke Kipkosgei.
The Ethiopian team management had said he would decide after the race whether to contest the longer event. Having amassed a convincing lead, however, Bekele made up his mind before reaching the finish. &ldquo;I eased off to save myself for the long race,&rdquo; he confessed afterwards.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63e28cd6436ab036b2b877c9.jpg" alt="Kenenisa Bekele on his way to a long and short course double at the 2002 World Cross Country Championships " />
Kenenisa Bekele on his way to a long and short course double at the 2002 World Cross Country Championships (&copy; AFP / Getty Images)
</div>
Nobody could match him in the 12km race on the Sunday. Bekele won by six seconds from the Kenyan-based Tanzanian John Yuda. In doing so, he became the first man to complete the long and short course double and also &ndash; with his gold from Ostend the previous year &ndash; the first to secure titles in all three men&rsquo;s races.
He was the first Ethiopian victor in the men&rsquo;s long race since Bekele Debele in 1983, also succeeding his compatriot as the youngest ever winner of the title.
Much more was to follow from the young King Kenny as the World Athletics Cross Country Championships entered a fourth decade. 
<div style="padding: 0px 20px 5px 20px; border: 2px solid #adf375;">
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Third decade of World Cross action</h2>
<h3>1993 Amorebieta, Spain</h3>
William Sigei led a Kenyan sweep of the first five places in the men&rsquo;s race, with Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia a notable seventh. Lynn Jennings of the US finished third in her bid for a hattrick of women&rsquo;s titles, behind Portugal&rsquo;s Maria Albertina Dias and Ireland&rsquo;s Catherina McKiernan, runner-up for the second successive year.
<h3>1994 Budapest, Hungary</h3>
Kenya took seven of the eight titles, Portugal claiming the team prize in a women&rsquo;s race won by Hellen Chepngeno ahead of serial &lsquo;bridesmaid&rsquo; McKiernan. Sigei retained the men&rsquo;s crown, outkicking his compatriot Simon Chemoiywo and, surprisingly, world 10,000m champion Gebrselassie.
<h3>1995 Durham, UK</h3>
McKiernan had to settle for a fourth successive silver after being caught and passed on the final hill by Deratu Tulu, the Ethiopian taking the senior women&rsquo;s title despite having arrived at the course just an hour before the start after being stuck overnight in Athens airport without any sleep. Paul Tergat opened his five-year reign as senior men&rsquo;s champion, the tall Kenyan finishing eight seconds clear of teammate Ismael Kirui, with Morocco&rsquo;s Salah Hissou third and Gebrselassie fourth. Annemari Sandell won the U20 women&rsquo;s race, the first Finnish triumph since Pekka Paivarinta&rsquo;s senior men&rsquo;s victory in 1973.
<h3>1996 Cape Town, South Africa</h3>
Tulu lost 250m when being barged to the ground at the end of the first lap, suffering a cut that required seven stitches. She fought back to finish fourth as her fellow Ethiopian Gete Wami took the senior women&rsquo;s title. Tergat floated to victory in the senior men&rsquo;s race, finishing 12 seconds clear of Hissou.
<h3>1997 Turin, Italy</h3>
Tergat completed a hattrick of titles in a titanic tussle with Hissou, edging the Moroccan by two seconds. Tulu swept past Briton Paula Radcliffe 30m out to regain the senior women&rsquo;s crown, Ethiopia claiming team gold for the first time.
<h3>1998 Marrakech, Morocco</h3>
John Kibowen beat Kenyan teammate and favourite Daniel Komen to win the first ever 4km short course race. Victory in the women&rsquo;s race the following day completed an historic long-short double for Ireland&rsquo;s Sonia O&rsquo;Sullivan, while Tergat made it four consecutive wins in the senior men&rsquo;s long race.
<h3>1999 Belfast, UK</h3>
Tergat stretched his winning run to a fifth year in the men&rsquo;s long course race, finishing four seconds clear of compatriot Patrick Ivuti, Kenya notching a 14th successive team success. Wami secured her second long course victory.
<h3>2000 Vilamoura, Portugal</h3>
After a sleepless night of arguing in the Kenyan camp about the inclusion of Charles Kamathai, Tergat could only finish third in the senior men&rsquo;s long race, the Moroccan-born Belgian Mohammed Mourhit becoming the first European winner since Carlos Lopes in 1985. Tulu completed a hattrick of senior women&rsquo;s long race wins, while Kenya&rsquo;s John Kibowen regained the men&rsquo;s short course crown and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Kutre Dulecha pipped Morocco&rsquo;s Zahra Ouaziz and Margaret Ngotho of Kenya in the women&rsquo;s 4km, all three clocking the same time.
<h3>2001 Ostend, Belgium</h3>
Mourhit retained the men&rsquo;s long course title on home mud, while Kenenisa Bekele won the U20 men&rsquo;s race and finished a close second to Kenya&rsquo;s&nbsp; Enoch Koech in the men&rsquo;s short event. Radcliffe and Wami finished 1-2 in the women&rsquo;s long race, then 2-1 in the 4km event.
<h3>2002 Dublin, Ireland</h3>
Radcliffe retained her long course crown ahead of US marathoner Deena Drossin. Kenya&rsquo;s Edith Masai took the first of her three short race titles. Bekele secured the first men&rsquo;s long-short double.
</div>
Simon Turnbull for World Athletics Heritage

A look back at the third decade of World Cross Country action

50 years of the World Cross: long-short doubles

The 2023 World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold series continues on Wednesday (8) with the ORLEN Copernicus Cup.
A world record attempt by Gudaf Tsegay and some high-quality clashes between major medallists are <a href="https://worldathletics.org/news/preview/copernicus-cup-torun-tsegay-swoboda-skrzyszowska-tentoglou" target="_blank" rel="noopener">set to highlight the competition in Torun, Poland</a>. Polish sprint star Ewa Swoboda takes on Switzerland&rsquo;s world indoor champion Mujinga Kambundji in the 60m, while another local favourite, the in-form Pia Skrzyszowska, lines up along with Jamaica&rsquo;s world 100m hurdles silver medallist Britany Anderson in the 60m hurdles. Olympic and world indoor champion Miltiadis Tentoglou competes against Thobias Montler in the long jump, while Keely Hodgkinson, Mary Moraa and Diribe Welteji star in a three-way 800m clash.
Here&rsquo;s how you can follow the action in Torun. 
<h2>Follow and watch</h2>
<a href="https://copernicus.domtel-sport.pl/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Schedule, start lists and results</a> | <a href="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/document/63e2d67d3d55aaeeac0c3cf0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Media information sheets and athlete biographies&nbsp;</a> 
A two-hour live stream of the meeting, on Wednesday 8 February, will be available in a number of territories via the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Athletics YouTube channel</a>. The live stream will start at 18:00 local time (17:00 GMT). 
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/y_srxROxxkU" width="100%" height="475" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
 The YouTube stream will be geoblocked in the following territories: Albania, Anguilla, Antigua &amp; Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Bolivia, Bosnia &amp; Herzegovina, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Caribbean Netherlands, Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cura&ccedil;ao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Finland, Greece, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Montenegro, Montserrat, Netherlands, Nicaragua, North Macedonia, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, St Barth&eacute;lemy, St Kitts &amp; Nevis, St Lucia, St Martin, St Vincent &amp; the Grenadines, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad &amp; Tobago, Turks &amp; Caicos Islands, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela
 Coverage of the meeting will be available in the territories listed below. Be sure to check local listings - some broadcasts may be live while others will consist of highlights.
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; border-color: #333333; border-style: solid;" border="1" width="80%" cellpadding="2">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">OverSport (OverSport 4)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Albania, Kosovo</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 67px;">
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%; height: 67px;" valign="top">Flow Sports</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%; height: 67px;" valign="top">Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadaloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Martin, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">DirecTV (VC 619 SD)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top"><a href="https://flosports.link/3gSnV66" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FloSports (FloTrack)</a> </td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Australia, Canada, USA</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">ESPN (STAR+)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Brazil, Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Arena Sport (AS2)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Arena Sport (AS2)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Croatia</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">MTV (CMore Sport 1)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Finland</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Cosmote (COSMOTE Sport 8HD)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Greece</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Charlton (Sport 2)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Israel</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Sky (Sky Sport Arena / channel 204)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Italy</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Ziggo (Ziggo Sport Docu)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Netherlands</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Polsat</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Poland</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">SPORT.TV (SPORT.TV5)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Portugal</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Match TV (ARENA)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Russia</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Arena Sport (AS3)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Slovenia</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">TVE (Teledeporte)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Spain</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">SVT (SVT2)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Sweden</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Swiss Sport TV</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Switzerland</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Poverkhnost (Sport 1)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Ukraine</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Viaplay (Viaplay UK)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">United Kingdom</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
&nbsp;
<h2>Social media</h2>
- World Athletics: <a href="https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/worldathletics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>&nbsp;| <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@worldathletics?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TikTok</a> - ORLEN Copernicus Cup: <a href="copernicuscup.pl/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">website</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/CopernicusCup" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/copernicuscup/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/copernicus_cup/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>
&nbsp;

Catch all the action from the ORLEN Copernicus Cup.

How to follow and watch the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Torun

A world record attempt by Gudaf Tsegay and some high-quality clashes between major medallists are set to highlight the ORLEN Copernicus Cup, this season&rsquo;s third World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting, in Torun, Poland, on Wednesday (8).
Polish sprint star Ewa Swoboda takes on Switzerland&rsquo;s world indoor champion Mujinga Kambundji in the 60m, while another local favourite, the in-form Pia Skrzyszowska, lines up along with Jamaica&rsquo;s world 100m hurdles silver medallist Britany Anderson in the 60m hurdles. Olympic and world indoor champion Miltiadis Tentoglou competes against Thobias Montler in the long jump, while Keely Hodgkinson, Mary Moraa and Diribe Welteji star in a three-way 800m clash.
After breaking the world indoor 1500m record with a 3:53.09 run at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Lievin in 2021, Ethiopia&rsquo;s Tsegay targeted the world indoor mile record of 4:13.31, set by Genzebe Dibaba in 2016, when she returned to the French town in 2022. A fall put paid to those plans and although she still won in 4:21.72, she was never on pace to threaten the global mark.
Now, making her season debut as the world 5000m champion and world indoor 1500m gold medallist, the 26-year-old is ready to give it another go.
Dibaba clocked 3:56.46 for 1500m en route to her 4:13.31 world mile record and as well as her 3:53.09 from Lievin two years ago, Tsegay ran 3:54.77 when winning the 1500m in Torun last year and has gone sub-3:55 for the distance on four occasions outdoors, one of those being at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22, where she ran 3:54.52 for silver five days before winning her 5000m title.
Joining her on the start line in the women&rsquo;s mile in Torun will be Jamaica&rsquo;s Adelle Tracey and Polish indoor 3000m champion Eliza Megger.
While Tsegay looks to race the clock, strong competition is set for the women&rsquo;s 800m as Hodgkinson, Moraa and Welteji take to the track for their first indoor three-way battle. Britain&rsquo;s world and Olympic silver medallist Hodgkinson secured a strong start to her season at the end of last month, breaking the world indoor 600m best with a 1:23.41 run in Manchester, and now she makes her season 800m debut.
The 20-year-old won European indoor gold in Torun in 2021 and only has one loss over 800m indoors on her CV so far, but Kenya&rsquo;s Moraa &ndash; who makes her indoor debut in Torun &ndash; beat Hodgkinson at the Commonwealth Games and Diamond League Final last year. Like Hodgkinson, Ethiopia&rsquo;s world fourth-place finisher Welteji started her season with a win, the 20-year-old clocking 8:33.44 for 3000m in Meeting de l'Eure on Saturday despite stopping a lap too soon, sitting on the track and then getting back up to complete the race.
It might not only be a three-way fight to the finish, however, as the entry list also includes Uganda&rsquo;s 2019 world champion Halimah Nakaayi, world leader Noelie Yarigo of Benin and Slovenia&rsquo;s Anita Horvat, who won at this season&rsquo;s opening World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe in a 2:00.44 indoor PB.
"I have very good memories from Torun, from two years ago, and I&rsquo;m happy to come here for my first 800m of the season. I have heard the track is really fast so I&rsquo;m looking forward to putting down a good marker, hopefully something like I did last year in my season opener," said Hodgkinson, who set a national record of 1:57.20 &ndash; a mark that puts her sixth on the world indoor all-time list &ndash; in her first race of 2022 in Birmingham.
"The 600m (in Manchester) went really well, but the 600m and 800m are very different, there&rsquo;s a whole extra 200m, which I&rsquo;d argue is the hardest 200m. I&rsquo;m just looking forward to opening up my season with some good competition. Mary Moraa and Diribe Welteji are racing, so it&rsquo;s not going to be easy, but hopefully I can put down a strong marker and build on that for the European Indoor Championships."
The men&rsquo;s 800m features Kenya&rsquo;s Collins Kipruto and Sweden&rsquo;s Andreas Kramer, who opened their seasons with times just 0.01 apart - 1:45.89 for Kipruto in Luxembourg and 1:45.90 for world indoor fifth-place finisher Kramer in Stockholm. Poland&rsquo;s Olympic bronze medallist Patryk Dobek, who also won the European indoor title in 2021, will be hoping to build on his season opener when he races in front of a home crowd, while Britain&rsquo;s Guy Learmonth and Jamie Webb also compete.
In the men&rsquo;s 1500m, Britain&rsquo;s George Mills seeks more success after his win in Karlsruhe in a 3:35.88 indoor PB as he goes up against athletes including Spain&rsquo;s European indoor 1500m bronze medallist Jesus Gomez and Poland&rsquo;s Olympic finalist Michal Rozmys.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63d6dca908229f8507e32be5.jpg" alt="George Mills win the 1500m at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe" />
George Mills win the 1500m at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
Ethiopia&rsquo;s world indoor champion Lemlem Hailu is among the headliners in a deep women&rsquo;s 3000m field. The 21-year-old, who won in Karlsruhe in 8:37.55, is again taking on her compatriot Ejgayehu Taye, the world 5km record-holder who claimed world indoor 3000m bronze behind Hailu in Belgrade and moved to fifth on the world 5000m all-time list with her world-leading 14:12.98 outdoors last year.
Ethiopia&rsquo;s world 3000m steeplechase silver medallist Werkuha Getachew and world indoor 800m silver medallist Freweyni Hailu, who was second in the 800m in Karlsruhe and will be stepping up to contest her farthest ever race, add further strength to the field and are joined by athletes including Uganda&rsquo;s Winnie Nanyondo, Maureen Koster of the Netherlands and Poland&rsquo;s Martyna Galant and Alicja Konieczek.
<h2>Sprint spotlight on Swoboda, Kambundji and Skrzyszowska</h2>
Poland&rsquo;s world indoor fourth-place finisher Swoboda returns to defend her Copernicus Cup 60m title, back in the city where she stormed under seven seconds with a 6.99 PB to win another national title last March. The 25-year-old has had a strong start to 2023, winning two of her three finals and setting her season&rsquo;s best of 7.09 when finishing second to Dina Asher-Smith in Karlsruhe.
Swoboda finished 0.02 ahead of Kambundji on that occasion, while Britain&rsquo;s Daryll Neita was fourth, and the trio clash again, this time joined by athletes including USA&rsquo;s Kayla White, who was fourth at this season&rsquo;s second World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Boston on Saturday, plus Switzerland&rsquo;s Geraldine Frey and Spain&rsquo;s Maria Isabel Perez.
Swoboda and Kambundji are evenly matched when it comes to their head-to-head record in 60m finals, which stands at 4-4. The competition in Karlsruhe was Kambundji&rsquo;s season opener.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6223b9610f3d1e1cb7d3d7bb.jpg" alt="Ewa Swoboda runs 6.99 for 60m at the Polish Indoor Championships" />
Ewa Swoboda runs 6.99 for 60m at the Polish Indoor Championships (&copy; Marta Gorczynska)
</div>
Another exciting head-to-head is expected in the women&rsquo;s 60m hurdles. Again, the home crowd will have a leading contender to cheer for, 21-year-old Skrzyszowska having built on her 2022 breakthrough with another series of PBs already this season. Her 7.78 achieved in Lodz on Saturday threatened the almost 43-year-old Polish record of 7.77 and put her within the top 20 on the world all-time list.
The European 100m hurdles champion also won in Dusseldorf in a then PB of 7.84 and this time she faces Anderson for the first time indoors. The Jamaican was fourth in the world indoor final last year and makes her season debut in Torun.
Netherlands&rsquo; two-time European indoor champion Nadine Visser has a PB that matches the Polish record and will be looking to build on her best so far this year of 7.86. They will be joined by Visser&rsquo;s compatriot Zoe Sedney, Switzerland&rsquo;s 100m hurdles bronze medallist Ditaji Kambundji, Finland&rsquo;s Reetta Hurske and Poland&rsquo;s world indoor pentathlon silver medallist Adrianna Sulek, who achieved a 4702-point pentathlon win in Tallinn at the weekend.
"The field is very strong and there will be some very fast running," said&nbsp;Skrzyszowska. "This can help me to start well, because in Lodz I lost a lot (at the start of the race)."
A home star will also be on show in the men&rsquo;s event as world 110m hurdles fourth-place finisher Damian Czykier goes up against USA&rsquo;s Daniel Roberts, who ran his second-fastest ever time &ndash; 7.46 &ndash; to finish second behind Grant Holloway in Boston over the weekend. France&rsquo;s Olympic and world indoor medallist Dimitri Bascou is also among the entries, along with Spain&rsquo;s Karlsruhe winner Enrique Llopis, Czech Republic&rsquo;s Petr Svoboda and Britain&rsquo;s David King.
Netherlands' world indoor and outdoor relay medallist Lieke Klaver, who opened her season with a 51.00 PB win in Ostrava, goes in the 400m against multiple Czech champion Lada Vondrova, the European U23 champion, who improved her indoor PB to 51.57 behind&nbsp;Klaver at the&nbsp;Czech Indoor Gala.
In the men&rsquo;s 400m, Denmark&rsquo;s world indoor fourth-place finisher Benjamin Lobo Vedel and Spain&rsquo;s European indoor champion Oscar Husillos will clash again after their 1-2 in Karlsruhe. Sweden&rsquo;s world indoor bronze medallist Carl Bengtstrom has run 46.26 this season and is back in action.
<h2>Global medallists collide</h2>
World and Olympic medallists feature in each of the three field events. The men&rsquo;s long jump is led by Tentoglou, who claimed his Olympic gold in 2021 and the world indoor title last year. The 24-year-old also secured world silver in Oregon last year before taking the Wanda Diamond League trophy at the end of the season and in 2023 he has picked up from where he left off, opening his year with a leap of 8.12m to win in Gothenburg.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63e145e54d4ad0c5966b3e3a.png" alt="Miltiadis Tentoglou in action at the World Indoor Tour meeting in Madrid" />
Miltiadis Tentoglou in action at the World Indoor Tour meeting in Madrid (&copy; Jean-Pierre Durand)
</div>
Sweden&rsquo;s world indoor silver medallist Montler has so far gone seven centimetres farther than that this year, and that pair will line up alongside USA&rsquo;s three-time world medallist Marquis Dendy, Cuba&rsquo;s Olympic bronze medallist Maykel Masso and Spain&rsquo;s Eusebio Caceres.
"I have been here in Poland for three weeks now, as I was on a training camp in Spala," said&nbsp;Tentoglou, who won the second of his two European indoor titles in Torun in 2021. "The stadium in Torun is one of my favourite indoor stadiums because the track is amazing. Two years ago we jumped fantastic here and I think tomorrow will also be nice. I feel very strong, so I hope we can do a great job, me and the other jumpers."
In the men&rsquo;s pole vault, Philippines&rsquo; world bronze medallist Ernest John Obiena will hope to make another statement after matching his national indoor record with 5.91m in Uppsala last week. The 27-year-old has already competed five times in 2023, finishing in the top three in each of those contests, and this time he takes on Brazil&rsquo;s 2016 Olympic gold medallist Thiago Braz and home favourite Piotr Lisek, the five-time world medallist.
New Zealand&rsquo;s world indoor high jump bronze medallist Hamish Kerr is back in action, fresh from his win in Hustopece with a 2.30m clearance, just a single centimetre off his PB. Australia&rsquo;s Brandon Starc improved his indoor PB to 2.27m in that competition and multiple Polish indoor champion Norbert Kobielski will be among the athletes looking to challenge that duo in Torun.
Jess Whittington for World Athletics

A world record attempt by Gudaf Tsegay and some high-quality clashes between major medallists are set to highlight the ORLEN Copernicus Cup

Tsegay targets world record, top talent to tussle in Torun

Athlete Refugee Team member Angelina Nadai Lohalith claimed a shock win at the European Champion Clubs Cup Cross Country in Castellon, Spain, on Sunday (05), marking the first time that an athlete in the World Athletics refugee team programme notched a victory in an international competition.
Lohalith, a native of South Sudan who is based in Kenya, surged from the field after four laps of the five-lap contest, clocking 27:55 over the 8.7km course to secure a five-second victory. Running confidently at the head of the pack from the gun, Lohalith pulled ahead after three laps and extended her lead to six seconds after the fourth lap before crossing the line unchallenged.
Lohalith, who was a member of the 2016 and 2021 Olympic Refugee Teams, was competing in Castellon as a guest for Tel Aviv&rsquo;s Alley Runners Club, where several other Athlete Refugee Team members are based.
The 28-year-old is the Athlete Refugee Team&rsquo;s most experienced runner.
Lohalith made her Athlete Refugee Team (ART) debut at the 2017 World Championships in London and in 2022 represented the Athlete Refugee Team at the World Indoor Championships Belgrade 22, the African Championships and the World Athletics Championships Oregon 22, competing over 1500m.
Lohalith's next international appearance will come at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23, where she will compete with an ART quartet in the mixed relay.
Her appearance in Castellon was her first over a distance longer than 1500m, boding well for her planned transition to the 5000m and 10,000m events.
"After the World Championships in Oregon I came back to Kenya and I started to work harder towards my goal to succeed as a long distance runner,&rdquo; Lohalith said.
&ldquo;I am training hard all week &ndash; only training and sleeping. Even during Christmas, when all the athletes in the camp travelled back home, I stayed in the camp for training alone. I don't see my son and parents too often because I have a goal to improve further at the Olympics in Paris next year.&rdquo;
Lohalith fled from her village in South Sudan at nine, settled in the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya in 2002 and later began taking part in running competitions at her high school in the camp. Coaches for the Tegla Loroupe Foundation spotted her talent and invited her to join a training camp in Ngong, just outside Nairobi. In 2016, she was one of 10 refugee athletes selected to compete at the Rio Olympic Games under the Refugee Team flag, a selection that set the course for her steady rise since.
Bob Ramsak for World Athletics

Athlete Refugee Team member Angelina Nadai Lohalith claimed a shock win at the European Champion Clubs Cup Cross Country in Castellon

Lohalith takes surprise win in Castellon, marking first international victory for Athlete Refugee Team

The World Athletics Doping Review Board (DRB) has agreed that the applications of six (6) Russian athletes have met the exceptional eligibility criteria to compete in international competition as neutral athletes (ANA) under eligibility rule 3.2 while the Russian national federation (RusAF) remains suspended.
In approving these six applications, the Doping Review Board noted that, according to World Athletics&rsquo; decision of 1 March 2022, all athletes, support personnel and officials from Russia were excluded from all World Athletics Series events for the foreseeable future as a consequence of Russia&rsquo;s invasion of Ukraine.
Furthermore, the Wanda Diamond League subsequently took the decision to exclude Russian athletes from competing in its meetings. In addition, the Doping Review Board understands that individual organisers of the Continental Tour are not inviting Russian athletes to their meetings.
Furthermore, in December 2022, World Athletics advised the Russian Athletics Federation that the 2022 ANA process would continue until such time as the World Athletics Council decides otherwise.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the DRB considered and approved the following applications under rule 3.2 of the eligibility rules for exceptional eligibility to compete in international competitions until the World Athletics Council Meeting in March 2023 as a Neutral Athlete, to the extent such competitions are open to athletes from Russia.
Furthermore, any athlete who was granted ANA status for the 2022 season may continue to compete until Council&rsquo;s decision.
The six athletes who have now met the exceptional eligibility criteria are:
Nikita Anishchenkov (high jump) Artem Chermoshanskiy (long jump) Maksim Pianzin (Pyanzin) (race walking) Nikita Kurbanov (high jump) Danil Chechela (long jump) Marina Kovaleva (long distance)
<h3>Requirements for ANA athletes</h3>
Further to the World Athletics Council decision on 1 December 2021 to approve amendments to the Authorised Neutral Athlete (ANA) programme on the recommendation of the Russian Taskforce, the Doping Review Board (DRB) reviewed and revised the process and the criteria for ANA applications.
Athletes will need to follow the procedures set out in the guidance documents and all applications must be forwarded to World Athletics through RusAF.
Applications must be submitted no later than four weeks before the entry deadline for the international competition for which eligibility is sought and the Doping Review Board may require an applicant to undergo additional testing prior to granting him or her ANA status.
<h3>2022 authorised neutral athletes who may compete until the World Athletics Council Meeting in March 2023 (73 athletes)</h3>
Announced on 22 January 2022: Dina Aleksandrova (800m, 1500m, 5000m), Svetlana Aplachkina (1500m, 3000m, 5000m), Yelizaveta Bondarenko (pole vault), Aleksandr Buyanovskiy (400m), Vera Chalaya (400m hurdles, 400m), Timofey Chalyy (400m hurdles, 400m), Alexey Fyodorov (triple jump), Ilya Ivanyuk (high jump), Polina Knoroz (pole vault), Mariya Kochanova (high jump), Aleksandr Komarov (decathlon, heptathlon), Kseniya Labygina (60m hurdles), Mariya Lasitskene (high jump), Artyom Makarenko (combined events, 60m hurdles, 110m hurdles), Polina Miller (400m), Vasiliy Mizinov (race walking), Valeriy Pronkin (hammer), Anzhelika Sidorova (pole vault), Oleg Spiridonov (60m hurdles, 110m hurdles), Natalya Spiridonova (long jump, high jump), Yaroslav Tkalich (sprints, 400m or less), Anna Tropina (3000m steeplechase, 1500m, 5000m, cross country).
Announced on 17 February 2022: Veronika Arkhipova (400m or less), Rinas Akhmadeyev (3000m, 5000m, 10,000m, half marathon), Semen Borodayev (shot put, discus), Iurii (Yuri) Chechun (marathon), Elvira Chepareva (Khasanova) (race walk), Aksana Gataullina (pole vault), Darya Golubechkova (race walk), Dmitriy Gramachkov (race walk), Konstantin Kholmogorov (800m), Stepan Kiselev (marathon), Kristina Koroleva (high jump), Mikhail Kulkov (marathon), Aleksandr Lesnoy (shot put), Denis Lukyanov (hammer), Alena Lutkovskaia (pole vault), Alena Lysenko (hammer), Kristina Makarenko, n&eacute;e Sivkova (50m, 100m, 200m), Timur Morgunov (pole vault), Olga Mullina (pole vault), Sofiya Palkina (hammer), Yekaterina Petrova (5000m race walk, 10,000m race walk), Mariya Privalova (triple jump, long jump), Andrey Romanov (hammer), Yelena Sborets (race walk), Nadezhda Sergeeva (race walk), Konstantin Shabanov (60m hurdles, 110m hurdles), Fedor Shutov (marathon, half marathon), Kirill Shutov (race walk), Yelena Sokolova (long jump), Snezhana Trofimets (shot put), Yuliya Turova (race walk), Matvey Tychinkin (high jump), Viktoriya Vaseykina (heptathlon, pentathlon)
Announced on 8 July 2022: Irina Baulina (400m, 400m hurdles), Arseniy Elfimov (combined events), Maksim Fediaev (200m, 400m), Ekaterina Fediaeva (200m, 400m), Dmitrii Kachanov (pole vault), Stepan Kekin (combined events), Evgenii Kunc (1500m, 5000m) , Natalya Leontyeva (5000m,, 10,000m, half marathon, cross country), Liliia Mendaeva (1500m, 3000m, 5000m), Anna Minullina (3000m), Ildar Nadyrov (steeplechase, cross country), Olga Onufrienko (800m, 1500m), Daria Osipova (sprints, hurdles, relays &ndash; U20 only), Viktor Pintusov (pole vault), Valeria Putilina (javelin), Iuliia Sokhatskaia (combined events, long jump), Elizaveta Tsareva (hammer), Anna Vikulova (10,000m, half marathon, marathon)

Athletes, officials and support personnel from Russia remain excluded from World Athletics Series events

World Athletics approves the applications of six Russians to compete as neutral athletes

France's Yann Schrub and Kenya's Nancy Chepleting were victorious at the Gran Premio C&aacute;ceres Campo a Traves &ndash; the last Spanish leg in this season's World Athletics Cross Country Tour Gold series &ndash; on a sunny day in Calzadilla on Sunday (5).
The men&rsquo;s 10km race opened at a moderate rhythm with Kenya&rsquo;s Peter Kiriuki doing most of the early pacing duties, closely followed by Belgium&rsquo;s European cross-country bronze medallist Isaac Kimeli and Spain&rsquo;s Abdessamad Oukhelfen, while Schrub positioned himself in the middle of the 12-man lead group.
Before the fourth kilometre, the leading pack had been whittled down to seven men: Kiriuki, Kimeli, Oukhelfen, Schrub, his compatriot Valentin Gondouin, Uruguay&rsquo;s Santiago Catrofe and Spain&rsquo;s Fernando Carro. After successive laps covered in the 4:12/4:15 range, first Kimeli and then Catrofe took command of the race, but their leads were short-lived as Schrub moved to the front with determination with 18 minutes on the clock, leaving behind Gondouin, Carro and Kiriuki in a matter of few hundred metres.
Schrub&rsquo;s antepenultimate loop was covered in a quicker 4:09 to force his pursuers &ndash; Kimeli, Oukhelfen and Catrofe &ndash; to run in single file behind him. After a brisk 4:06 lap, the European 10,000m bronze medallist reached the bell before Kimeli made a surge and joined Schrub, the pair opening a sizeable margin on Oukhelfen and Catrofe. The showdown between Kimeli and Schrub only lasted about 300 metres as Schrub found another gear to break away with incredible ease from the Belgian who later began to falter and was caught by Catrofe.
Schrub crossed the finish line in 27:43 to Catrofe&rsquo;s 27:49, the Uruguayan another six seconds faster than Kimeli who had to hold off the pressure of Oukhelfen.
<h2>Chepleting prevails over Bakken</h2>
Right from the start of the women's 10km contest, Chepleting was joined by Dutch duo Veerle Bakken and Silke Jonkman. Spain&rsquo;s Laura Luengo hesitated to join the heading trio but finally opted to run alone a few metres behind. The leading trio covered the first 1.5km lap in 4:50 and shortly afterwards the 21-year-old Kenyan stepped up her cadence to leave behind Bakken and Jonkman.
After a 4:48 lap, Chepleting led by three seconds while Jonkman pushed hard and managed to break away from Bakken, who began to be threatened by Luengo at halfway.
Chepleting maintained her pace over the following few laps and built a five-second advantage on Jonkman, herself three seconds clear of Bakken and seven ahead of Luengo who was passionately cheered for the home crowd.
The respective gaps between the first four increased with Chepleting building up a comfortable 10-second margin on Bakken who had bounced back and overtaken her Dutch compatriot while Luengo remained in fourth.
Chepleting kept Bakken at bay on the closing laps, while Luengo began to close on Jonkman. Chepleting held on to win in 32:41, six seconds ahead of Bakken. Luengo overtook Jonkman to claim the third spot on the podium.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m quite satisfied with my Spanish tour over the last four weeks,&rdquo; said Chepleting. &ldquo;I have set two PBs (in the 10km and half marathon) and managed two victories.&rdquo;
Emeterio Valiente for World Athletics
<h3>Leading results</h3>
Women (10km) 1 Nancy Chepleting (KEN) 32:41 2 Veerle Bakken (NED) 32:47 3 Laura Luengo (ESP) 32:53 4 Silke Jonkman (NED) 33:11 5 Edymar Brea (VEN) 33:24 6 Katherine Tisalema (ECU) 34:24 7 Blanca Fernandez (ESP) 34:47 8 Almi Nerurkar (GBR) 34:57 9 Clara Vinaras (ESP) 35:13 10 Diana Mart&iacute;n (ESP) 35:23
Men (10km) 1 Yann Schrub (FRA) 27:43 2 Santiago Catrofe (URU) 27:49 3 Isaac Kimeli (BEL) 27:55 4 Abdessamad Oukhelfen (ESP) 27:57 5 Peter Kiriuki (KEN) 28:08 6 Fernando Carro (ESP) 28:18 7 Valentin Gondouin (FRA) 28:32 8 Houssame Benabbou (ESP) 28:55 9 David Bascu&ntilde;ana (ESP) 28:57 10 Lahcen Ait Alibou (ESP) 29:07

France's Yann Schrub and Kenya's Nancy Chepleting were comfortable winners at the Gran Premio Cáceres Campo a Traves

Schrub and Chepleting reign in Calzadilla

Noah Lyles and Aleia Hobbs stormed to 60m success, Femke Bol made a statement with a world 500m best and Grant Holloway maintained a remarkable 60m hurdles win streak at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, this season&rsquo;s second World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting, in Boston on Saturday (4).
But it wasn&rsquo;t just the sprint events that thrilled the sell-out crowd as the meeting made its debut at the TRACK at New Balance in Brighton, Massachusetts. Local star Heather MacLean and Neil Gourley gained last-gasp wins in the mile, while Woody Kincaid used his trademark kick to surge to 3000m triumph and Mariano Garcia became a back-to-back winner in the 800m.
The men&rsquo;s 60m was billed as a head-to-head between Lyles and 2016 world indoor champion Trayvon Bromell and so it proved, two-time world 200m champion Lyles holding off his US compatriot by just 0.002 with a performance that got him the PB he had been craving.
In a photo finish to separate their 6.51 runs, Lyles clocked 6.507 and Bromell 6.509 and once the result was confirmed on the scoreboard, Lyles did another sprint the wrong way down the track in celebration.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been waiting on this PR for a long time,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Now I&rsquo;ve got a PR that is that close to 6.40, next meet I feel like I can definitely get below that."
Lyles had been 0.01 off his PB of 6.55 when winning his heat, while Bromell took the second heat in 6.61. Behind them in the final was Ghana&rsquo;s Benjamin Azamati in 6.62.
Hobbs used a strong start and an even stronger finish to prevail in the women&rsquo;s 60m. Having begun her season with a world-leading 6.98 in Fayetteville, the US 26-year-old carried that form to Boston, breaking the meeting record with a 7.02 run &ndash; the second-fastest 60m performance of her career so far and a time that only 19 other athletes have ever eclipsed.
Hobbs held off her training partner Mikiah Brisco, the world indoor silver medallist, to triumph by 0.08 as Celera Barnes completed a US top three, clocking 7.21.
&ldquo;It didn&rsquo;t feel fast but my as coach said, if it feels easy then that&rsquo;s when you know you&rsquo;re running fast,&rdquo; said Hobbs, who moved to joint ninth on the world all-time list with her 6.98 run. &ldquo;We had different blocks here, so I was a little nervous about that, but I was able to make it work.&rdquo;
In her first ever 60m race, world 400m hurdles record-holder Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone clocked 7.33 to finish fifth in the first heat and miss out on the final by 0.01. World 200m champion Shericka Jackson was also testing her speed in Boston and ran 7.34, finishing fifth in her own heat. Hobbs and Brisco eased to respective first-round wins of 7.08 and 7.15.
In the women's 500m, Bol started her season with a bang and broke the 17-year-old world indoor best with a dominant 1:05.63 run.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63df0d669318faa3bf4ba6e4.jpg" alt="Femke Bol in 500m action in Boston" />
Femke Bol in 500m action in Boston (&copy; Dan Vernon)
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In the pre-event press conference, the Olympic and world 400m hurdles medallist had given a smile and a simple &ldquo;yes&rdquo; in reply when asked if she knew the splits she would need to hit in order to launch herself to the top of the all-time list. And on Saturday she ticked them off in controlled fashion before storming over the finish line to take 0.68 off the previous best of 1:06.31 set in January 2006. Behind her, Jamaica&rsquo;s Leah Anderson claimed the runner-up spot in 1:08.34.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m just super happy to have it worked out like this,&rdquo; said Bol after racing over the distance for the first time. &ldquo;No, I&rsquo;m not planning to go further than 500m. Now I&rsquo;m moving to some 400s before I do the European Indoor Championships.&rdquo;
The other non-championship event was won by Olympic 200m bronze medallist Gabby Thomas, who clocked 36.31 in the 300m to claim her fifth consecutive win at the meeting. Poland&rsquo;s Anna Kielbasinska was second in 36.41.
The men&rsquo;s 400m was almost as close as the 60m, USA&rsquo;s Noah Williams finding space on the inside to edge past Trinidad and Tobago&rsquo;s world indoor champion Jereem Richards and take the win by four thousandths of a second, both athletes recording 45.88.
But there was no question as to the winner in the men&rsquo;s 60m hurdles, world record-holder Holloway further extending an indoor sprint hurdles win streak that started in 2014, when he was 16 years old.
The world indoor champion and two-time world 110m hurdles gold medallist started his campaign with a 7.39 heat win before going 0.01 faster to win the final. He has now dipped under 7.40 in a total of 16 races so far in his career.
In a US top three, Daniel Roberts was second in 7.46 after a 7.52 heat win and Freddie Crittenden was third in 7.55.
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&ldquo;It felt good,&rdquo; said Holloway. &ldquo;A couple of technical errors that I could clean up but you know, it was my second race of the season, so I&rsquo;m excited to see what happens in two weeks and then in four. It&rsquo;s a new year, so the record is 0-0 and the main goal is to get to Budapest (for the World Championships).&rdquo;
Another global medallist won the women&rsquo;s 60m hurdles, Bahamas&rsquo; world indoor silver medallist Devynne Charlton striding ahead to triumph in 7.87 ahead of USA&rsquo;s Sharika Nelvis in 7.93 and Australia&rsquo;s Celeste Mucci in a 7.95 PB.
<h2>Mile magic for MacLean and Gourley</h2>
MacLean and Gourley were not willing to give up in the mile races and it paid off as they claimed respective PB wins of 4:23.42 and 3:52.84. On her home track, USA&rsquo;s NACAC 1500m champion MacLean battled with Canada&rsquo;s Lucia Stafford, who the weekend before had broken the area 1000m record in Boston. MacLean led through half way in 2:11.59 and while Stafford attacked on the final bend her rival had enough left to fight back and pip her on the line. Esther Guerrero set a Spanish record of 4:24.92 to finish third.
&ldquo;I decided to take the initiative, which if you know me as a racer, I haven&rsquo;t been known to do in the past,&rdquo; said MacLean, whose performance broke the meeting record set by Stafford's older sister, Gabriela DeBues-Stafford, in 2019. &ldquo;I was happy to have the extra little push to get to the finish line.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63df0da49318faa3bf4ba6e7.jpg" alt="Heather MacLean leads the women's mile in Boston" />
Heather MacLean leads the women's mile in Boston (&copy; Dan Vernon)
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Gourley also had a powerful finish in a men&rsquo;s mile race that came down to a home straight sprint. Fiercely chasing New Zealand&rsquo;s Sam Tanner, they were both rewarded with PBs and were separated by just 0.01. USA&rsquo;s Sam Prakel was third in 3:53.58.
Kincaid was another athlete to show a strong finishing kick, but he used his from much further out in the men&rsquo;s 3000m. Taking the lead at the bell, the 30-year-old &ndash; who ran 12:51.61 for 5000m last week to break the North American indoor record &ndash; again finished like a train and a 25.79 last lap carried him to a 7:40.71 PB for an almost two-second victory ahead of his compatriot Christian Noble (7:42.55). The top eight all ran PBs while the first six finished under 7:44.
World and Olympic 1500m medallist Laura Muir was making her US indoor race debut in Boston and started with a win, clocking 8:40.34 to lead a British top four in the women&rsquo;s 3000m. Following the pacemaker through 1000m in 2:51.09, Muir and Melissa Courtney-Bryant were more than five seconds ahead of the chase group, led by Ireland&rsquo;s Ciara Mageean, an advantage they had taken to around 15 seconds by 2000m. Mageean later pulled up and the chase group closed on the leading duo but Muir still held on for victory, with Courtney-Bryant second in 8:41.09, Katie Snowden third in a PB of 8:47.41 and Hannah Nuttall fourth in a PB of 8:47.72.
Garcia ran a Spanish indoor record of 1:45.12 to win the 800m at this meeting last year. Returning as the world indoor champion, he repeated the feat and came close to that mark with 1:45.26 to hold off USA&rsquo;s Isaiah Jewett in a 1:45.75 PB. Ireland&rsquo;s Mark English was third in 1:46.57 and USA&rsquo;s world indoor bronze medallist Bryce Hoppel a further 0.01 back in fourth.
USA&rsquo;s Ajee Wilson was another athlete to extend their win streak, hers dating back to March 2018. Running 2:00.45, the world indoor champion's well-judged race saw her move past her compatriot Kaela Edwards in the closing stages, Edwards being rewarded with a 2:01.09 PB for the runner-up spot.
There was a significant personal best performance for Bridget Williams in the women&rsquo;s pole vault as the 26-year old added six centimetres to her previous best when clearing 4.77m to beat a field featuring two Olympic gold medallists in Katie Moon and Katerina Stefanidi. It was Williams&rsquo; US compatriot Gabriela Leon who claimed the runner-up spot with an indoor PB of 4.55m, while Stefanidi was third and Moon fourth.
Encouraging the crowd to show their support in the first event of the meeting, India&rsquo;s Commonwealth bronze medallist Tejaswin Shankar was cheered to a faultless performance up to his winning height of 2.26m in the men&rsquo;s high jump.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63df0def9318faa3bf4ba6ea.jpg" alt="Tejaswin Shankar celebrates his high jump win in Boston" />
Tejaswin Shankar celebrates his high jump win in Boston (&copy; Dan Vernon)
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In his first competition out of college, the 24-year-old, who won his second NCAA title for Kansas State last year, cleared 2.14m, 2.19m, 2.23m and 2.26m on his first attempts before taking three attempts at a would-be PB of 2.30m.
Bahamas&rsquo; 2007 world champion Donald Thomas was second with 2.23m.
Jess Whittington for World Athletics

Top performances across the board at this season’s second World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting

Lyles and Hobbs star in 60m showdowns, Bol breaks world best in Boston

Faith Kipyegon delighted fans with a dominant women&rsquo;s race win, while Charles Lokir triumphed to take the men&rsquo;s title at the Sirikwa Cross Country Classic &ndash; a World Athletics Cross Country Tour Gold event &ndash; at the Lobo village in Eldoret on Saturday (4).
The high altitude, hot weather and gusts of wind, which provided a bit of relief from the heat but raised some dust and resistance, meant conditions were challenging, leading to some interesting races.
In the women&rsquo;s 10km event, Kipyegon put on a spectacular show of great form and strength after she overtook Jackline Chepkoech, who had taken an early lead, and continued to create a gap at the front.
With one lap to go, Kipyegon was around 400m ahead of the rest of the field and the multiple world and Olympic 1500m champion raced to the sound of loud cheering along the course, as fans celebrated their golden girl displaying a great run on home soil.
Kipyegon, who said during the pre-race press conference that she wasn&rsquo;t under any pressure to win given the other strong women in the field, was more than a minute ahead of her rivals as she crossed the finish line in 33:50.
Chepkoech, the 2021 world U20 steeplechase gold medallist and 2022 Commonwealth Games champion, managed to maintain her second-place position throughout the race to finish in 34:52.
Zenah Jemutai Yego, the 2021 world U20 3000m silver medallist, finished third in 35:08.
The win for Kipyegon is confirmation that she has found the endurance she had been working on ahead of the track season, and that everything is going well in training.
&ldquo;I am glad to be back,&rdquo; she said. Asked in the pre-event press conference about her plans to go for the world 1500m record this year, she replied: &ldquo;We shall go to the drawing board with my coach and see how we go towards the world record.&rdquo;
The senior men&rsquo;s 10km race, on the other hand, seemed to usher in a new crop of relatively new middle and long distance runners.
After exchanging the lead with a small group of contenders in the second half of the race, Lokir surprised his competitors with&nbsp;a well-calculated move&nbsp;on the last hill. Sprinting past, he rapidly grew a gap without looking back until he crossed the finish line in 30:14.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63de8e955314494fd8ccfd55.jpg" alt="Charles Lokir celebrates his win at the Sirikwa Cross Country Classic" />
Charles Lokir celebrates his win at the Sirikwa Cross Country Classic (&copy; Organisers)
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Josephat Kiprotich followed him to take second place in 30:19, while Dennis Kipngetich, who had finished second at the national championships, was this time one place back and finished third in 30:21.
The reigning national champion and newly crowned Sirikwa Classic champion now focuses on the 10,000m, an event in which he hopes to qualify to represent Kenya at the World Championships in Budapest later this year.
The winner of the men&rsquo;s U20 8km was also a newly crowned national champion.
Just like he did at the national championships, Samuel Kibathi Wanjiru comfortably won in an almost repeat performance of that race two weeks ago. Running alone in the final stages, he crossed the finish line in 24:20, 20 seconds ahead of Kelvin Kiprop. Gideon Kipngetich was a further five seconds back.
Lucy Nduta won the women&rsquo;s U20 race after sprinting ahead of Maurine Jepkoech in the last 500m of the race, as the latter tried vainly to keep up with her. The two had been running shoulder to shoulder ahead of the rest over the last lap of the 2km loop. Nduta eventually finished in 21:13, just one second ahead of Jepkoech. Debora Jemutai finished third in 21:41.
In another successful event, thousands of local fans turned up to watch current stars in action and meet some legendary runners. They were also able to learn about the cultural heritage of the region, where men and women dressed in traditional attire showed off instruments used in the past, and shared dances and music.
Justin Lagat for World Athletics

Faith Kipyegon delighted fans with a dominant women’s race win, while Charles Lokir triumphed to take the men’s title at the World Athletics Cross Country Tour Gold event