IAAF Grand Prix FinalProspects for
overall awards
Mark Butler for the IAAF
Unlike 1998, it is not a forgone conclusion that the IAAF Golden League Jackpot winners will also take the overall IAAF Grand Prix titles. In fact, both Wilson Kipketer (DEN) and Gabriela Szabo (ROM) have concentrated solely on the seven Golden League meetings and have not taken the chance to claim maximum Grand Prix points from eight meetings this year.
Men's Events
Bernard Barmasai (KEN) is in the best position to win the overall men's title. In spite of his loss in Berlin, the Kenyan's other Golden League performances, plus a Grand Prix II victory, give him a two-point lead in the standings with 87 points prior to the IAAF Grand Prix Final. Barmasai's closest challenger on 85 is javelin thrower Kóstas Gatsioúdis (GRE). Close behind are Kipketer and pole vaulter Maksim Tarasov (RUS) on 84 and 83 points respectively.If Barmasai wins in Münich, he can only be overtaken if one of his close challengers in the standings sets a world record - and therefore take bonus points - in the IAAF Grand Prix Final. If the Kenyan places second, as in Berlin, Gatsioúdis can overtake Barmasai for the overall title if he is victorious. This is because a win in Munich is worth 24 points with 21 for second place. Third place by Barmasai in the Grand Prix final (18 points) would allow Kipketer and Tarasov to beat the Kenyan on points, should they each win.
Women's events
The IAAF Scoring Tables (1998 revised edition) may not be
required to determine the men's champion, but they probably will be needed to decide the
overall women's champion for 1999. This is because Maria Mutola (MOZ) and Szabo share the
lead in the standings on 84 points. If both win in Munich, the title will go to the woman
who has the best performance on the day according to the tables. The scores appear to give
Szabo a slight advantage, as shown by this comparison of their season's bests:
Mutola 800m 1:56.04 worth 1224 points
Szabo 3000m 8:25.03 worth 1240 points
Szabo is timetabled to perform after Mutola's
race, so will be able to look up exactly the time she needs in order to outscore the
Mozambique runner's effort. If one of the two principals is defeated in Munich then the
other will claim the title. But if both Mutola or Szabo lose then the door opens for
Russia's Svetlana Masterkova (800m). At 81 points she is three behind the leading duo and
can close this gap if she wins and they are each second in their respective races. In
which case all three women would be on 105 points, so scoring tables would be needed to
analyse their Munich performances. Deon Hemmings (JAM) is fourth in the pre-Münich
standings on 80 points. The three women above her would need to be defeated for the
Jamaican to climb higher in the rankings.
