The Weltklasse Grand Prix in Zurich plays host this evening to the latest stop in the $1 million Golden League series, but perhaps more importantly for the elite athletes taking part, it will provide the final tune-up for the World Championships in Seville which begin in just 10 days time.
Widely regarded as the largest one-day athletics meeting in the world, the Weltklasse will see American sprint queen Marion Jones hoping to stay in the running for a share of the $1 million jackpot along with the three other contenders - Wilson Kipketer of Denmark, Gabriela Szabo of Romania and Bernard Barmasai of Kenya.
Jones will focus her efforts on the 200 metres tonight, seeking her 21st consecutive win. World record holder Barmasai has looked invincible in the 3,000 metres steeplechase and remains the only athlete to go under eight minutes this season while recording the year's four best times. That leaves Kipketer, world 800 metres record holder, and Szabo, who is racing in the 3,000 metres, the other two competitors chasing a share of the jackpot in the Golden League series.
Ireland's Peter Coghlan made a hurried dash to the Swiss city yesterday after being granted a late entry in one of the 110 metres hurdles races. The young Dubliner has been showing remarkable progression this season and set a new record of 13.30 seconds in Hectal last weekend, but won't know until today whether he runs in the A or B race.
The other Irish interest concerns Mark Carroll, who will also have his final run over 5,000 metres ahead of the World Championships. Carroll pulled out of the British Grand Prix last weekend still fatigued from his Irish 3,000 metres record in Monaco three days previously. But with this race billed as yet another world record attempt by Ethiopia's Haile Gebrselassie, Carroll should be guaranteed a fast race at the very least.
The showcase race is the 1,500 metres with a high-quality field that includes Moroccan world record holder Hicham El Guerrouj, former record holder and Olympic champion Noureddine Morceli and Kenyan sensation Noah Ngeny, who pushed El Guerrouj to the mile world record earlier this year. Spain's Fermin Cacho, the 1992 Olympic champion and European record holder, Daniel Komen the 5,000 metres world champion and 3,000 metres world record holder are also included.
The men's 100 metres will see American world record holder Maurice Greene line up against training partner and 200 metres world champion Ato Boldon, who returns after injury. The race could mark the end of the season for former world record holder Donovan Bailey, who has struggled to return from a ruptured Achilles tendon.
Meanwhile, world pole vault record holder Sergei Bubka, the only track and field athlete to win six straight gold medals at the world championships, will miss the event at Seville due to injury.
