Kvitova, Sabalenka Through to Last-16 in Wuhan
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ATHLETICSATHLETICS| Page 2 RUGBY | Page 3 Farah’s absence Early blitz makes 5,000m lift s Wales very diffi cult to win over to predict Georgia Tuesday, September 24, 2019 FOOTBALL Muharram 25, 1441 AH Neymar winner GULF TIMES sends PSG three points clear SPORT Page 7 SPOTLIGHT Messi, Rapinoe crowned world’s best by FIFA AFP Milan ionel Messi won the FIFA Men’s Play- er of the Year award yesterday with Megan Rapinoe bagging the women’s prize to cap a historic year for the LUnited States’ World Cup icon. Barcelona striker Messi’s victory in Milan was a surprise as he edged out Virgil Van Dijk, who won the UEFA player’s award last month after helping Liverpool to the Champions League last season. Both Messi and Van Dijk are now in the running for the coveted Ballon d’Or which will be announced on December 2. Juventus’s forward Cristiano Ronaldo had also been shortlisted for the award. Rapinoe beat fellow World Cup winner Alex Morgan and England’s Lucy Bronze to the women’s title. The 34-year-old won the Golden Boot for being top scorer and the Golden Ball for the best player at the World Cup, and also be- FIFA President Gianni Infantino presents FC Barcelona’s Lionel Messi (L) with the Best FIFA Men’s player award came the face of the tournament for her out- Lionel Messi (L) shakes hand with US and Reign FC midfielder Megan Rapinoe as Best FIFA as presenters Ilaria D’Amico and Ruud Gullit look on in Milan yesterday. spoken views on US president Donald Trump. Women’s Coach, USA’s Jill Ellis, looks on in Milan yesterday. ATHLETICS Russia to miss Doha Worlds aft er IAAF ban is extended ‘The responsibility of an international federation is to maintain Another feather in where possible the level playing field in competition’ Qatar’s sporting cap Reuters Doha ussia will miss the IAAF World Championships for the second time in a row after the sport’s Rgoverning body the IAAF ex- tended the ban against country’s he president of the sive sporting cap, following federation yesterday. International Associa- the 2006 Asian Games, worlds The IAAF confi rmed the de- tion of Athletics Fed- in handball (2015), boxing cision four days before the start erations, Sebastian (2015) cycling (2016), gymnas- of the competition in Qatar af- T Coe, praised Qatar’s organisa- tics (2018), and the upcoming ter hearing a report from its Task tional capabilities as they get swimming worlds in 2023. Force (TF) overseeing Russia’s re- ready to host the 2019 World The Aspire Sports Academy in instatement eff orts. Athletics Championships. Doha is a popular training site Earlier yesterday, the World Coe said yesterday that for athletes and teams from Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Doha has a strong history within the country and abroad. revealed that historical data sup- of hosting major sporting Arguably Qatar’s best-known plied by the country’s anti-dop- events. He expressed con- athlete is Mutaz Essa Barshim, ing authority contained “incon- fidence that Doha will once the reigning high-jump world sistencies”, also putting Russia’s again deliver an outstanding champion and 2016 Olympics participation at the Tokyo Olym- event. About 2,000 athletes silver medallist. pics under threat. from 209 countries are taking Barshim will be a medal hope “We are aware of the allegations part this year. The champi- along with 400m hurdler Ab- of manipulation of the data and onships will be broadcast derrahman Samba, one of only that an investigation is ongoing,” to about one billion people three men to have run faster said Rune Andersen, head of the around the world. than 47 seconds over IAAF Task Force. “In the light of “Doha is well-prepared for the distance. that the task force recommended the event. I spoke to the head The biggest event in the coun- that RUSAF (the Russian athletics of the Local Organising Com- try is, however, still to come, federation) not be reinstated and mitteee Dahlan al-Hamad the 2022 FIFA World Cup. the IAAF council unanimously and my competition team Doha was awarded the athlet- agreed.” here. Everything is in place,” ics showpiece in November Some Russians with no dop- Coe said. “Now it’s up to the 2014 ing history, including high jumper athletes to excel. I hope they Qatar’s climate with intense Maria Lasitskene who is Russia’s will inspire a whole genera- summer heat has led to the only track and fi eld athlete cur- tion of young athletes in the championships being held rently holding a world title, have region.” The world athletics very late in the season, and been cleared to compete interna- chief welcomed the athletes marathons and race walks in tionally as neutrals. International Association of Athletics Federations president Sebastian Coe (L) and the head of IAAF Inspection Team, Rune Andersen, address to Doha, expressing his belief the city will start just before However, the Russian fl ag can- the media ahead of the IAAF World Championships yesterday. The IAAF said it would maintain a ban on the Russian athletics federation that Doha 2019 World Athlet- midnight local time. not be fl own nor the national an- pending analysis of data from the Russian anti-doping laboratory covering the 2011-2015 period when state-sponsored doping was prevalent. ics Championships will be an In the stadium, cooling sys- them be played. IAAF president event to remember. tems will ease the heat prob- Sebastian Coe said that feeling mendation we have probably had missioned by WADA found evi- with anti-doping procedures and banned Russian coaches were still He expressed his excite- lem for athletes and fans was “very strong” among coun- thus far that the Russian federa- dence of widespread doping in the covering up positive tests. working with athletes would be ment to be introducing the Successful worlds, and then cil members that the suspension tion remain suspended.” sport. Russian authorities have Eff orts to have the federation investigated. sport to a new audience in the football World Cup, could should continue. “No one coun- “The responsibility of an inter- denied the existence of a state- reinstated have been hindered by In September last year, WADA the Middle East, and reserved also bring Qatar closer to the try is bigger than the champion- national federation is to maintain sponsored doping programme in reports of mismanagement and voted to reinstate the Russian special praise for Khalifa ultimate goal of hosting the ships,” he told a media conference. where possible the level playing the country but have accepted doping violations. Anti-Doping Agency RUSADA, International Stadium. Olympics, after unsuccessful “It does not remotely surprise fi eld in competition.” that some senior offi cials were The IAAF previously extended clearing the way for the country The championships are the lat- bids for the 2016 and 2020 me that the council unanimously RUSAF was suspended in No- involved in providing banned Russia’s suspension in June and to compete at the Olympic games est feather in Qatar’s impres- Games. endorsed the strongest recom- vember 2015 after a report com- substances to athletes, interfering said a Reuters report that showed in Tokyo next year. Gulf Times 2 Tuesday, September 24, 2019 ATHLETICS FOCUS SPOTLIGHT Women marathon runners set for Farah’s absence midnight test in a world fi rst IAAF this year, and Eunice Chumba’s Doha best of 2:24:27 is only marginally makes 5,000m slower than the defending cham- pion’s. t will be the women mara- Given their greater experience thon runners who are fi rst to of weather conditions in the re- experience unique circum- gion, you have to say that Bah- stances for a championship rain’s runners have very strong Irace in Doha. credentials for making the po- At midnight on day one, a fi eld dium. diffi cult to predict of about 70 runners will set off That said, two familiar groups under fl oodlighting on a looped head up this year’s world list – course along the waterfront of the Kenyans, and the Ethiopians. Several athletes will also be doubling up in either the 1,500m or 10,000m Doha’s famous Corniche con- Kenya’s 25-year-old Ruth necting Doha Bay and Doha City Chepngetich won this year’s Centre, set against the capital Dubai Marathon in 2:17:08 – the city’s towering skyline. third fastest time ever recorded The temperature by that time behind Paula Radcliff e’s world is expected to have dropped from record of 2:15:25 and the 2:17:01 the predicted daytime range of recorded by Kenya’s Mary Kei- 35C and above. tany in winning the 2017 London Many of the runners will be Marathon. used to running in hot condi- Her teammates can also shift. tions, but none will have run a Visiline Jepkesho has run 2:21:37, championship marathon at such and 2:22.58, while Kiplagat, who a time, fi nishing in the early has a best of 2:19:50, is back to hours of the morning. Mentally, seek a third world title at the age physically, physiologically it is of 39. going to be a new test for all. Ethiopia is represented by the What can be predicted with runners who stand third and some reasoning, however, is that, fourth on the entry list behind similarly to the men’s race, the Chepngetich – Ruti Aga, who has women’s contest at the IAAF run 2:20:40 this year and has a World Athletics Championships best of 2:18:34, and Roza Dereje, Doha 2019 is most likely to be who has run 2:20:51 this year and won by an African or Asian run- has a best of 2:19:17.