Meeting International, Montreuil-sous-Bois, France, June 7

Dwain Chambers, having enjoyed his best ever early season form, is faced with his first tough challenge over the dash when he steps on the track of Montreuil-sous-Bois, an eastern suburb of Paris, tomorrow night, shaping a high quality gauge of his build-up towards the World Championships in Daegu.

Among his rivals lining up in the 100m will be new Jamaican sprint sensation Yohan Blake, having run a slightly windy but highly impressive 9.80 secs in Kingston, Berlin fourth placer Daniel Bailey from Antigua and European champion Christophe Lemaitre in their first encounter outdoors since the Europeans in Barcelona last summer.

Chambers avenged himself on the young Frenchman when he beat him on his very home soil in Paris during the European Indoor Championships in March, crossing the line as marginal runner-up in 6.54 secs, but he would definitely fancy even more unsettling his rival for a second straight time on his ground. Their form is very much identical so far so it could go down to details as to who goes ahead in their between them scoreline this season.

But if he gets to claim the scalp of Blake, who was a little shaky over 200m in his last outing, that is going to be a huge boost confidence and a message that he is not to be taken lightly.

Mark Draper is another Brit that is heading to Paris tomorrow while I'll see who else has crossed the channel and keep you up-to-date.

World Indoor record holder Teddy Tamgho will be the top drawer of the meeting when he steps on the triple jump runway, looking to reclaim top spot in the world-rankings from Phillips Idowu.

Meeting website
http://www.camontreuil93.org/actualites

Is Idowu going? And if not why not?

They should be building up a great relationship of competing together, it would be good for the sport.

Remember the Powell/Lewis long jump competitions?

First of all, Ryan, I don't think Phillips should compete in every given meeting on the way *chuckle*! In the same light, why Teddy didn't compete in Rome or won't be competing in New York against him?

It looks like Idowu and Teddy will be competing in New York now! How good is that! Wishes do come true...

Yes, Teddy Tamgho has been signed up late for the men's triple jump in New York raising anticipation and excitement in view of the contest to the roof!

Although this time round I'm backing Phillips to turn last year's result round and I feel this should be the perfect spur to produce the distances he's really capable of this season. Roll on the Big Apple!

http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/dlm/news/newsid=60263.html

My money is on Tamgho going over 18m.

And Philips reaching 17.90m+.

My money is on Phillips to see out the season unbeaten and over 18m! ;-)

Tamgho has reclaimed the world lead from Idowu, with a second round leap at 17m67. His fourth was long too, but was a foul. Enjoying watching some athletics, haven't seen much this season yet. Men's 100 meters dash about to start.

Keep us updated.... i have found nowhere to watch this.... unfortunately.

Blake takes it in 9:95, Lemaitre second in 9:96 which is a new national record. Chambers back in fourth, made a good start but could't quite push on...

it's on French TV Chambers ran 10:09, I suspect he'll be disapointed with that

and on justintv.... lol.... Great run by the french man. never thought he'd run that fast. 9.96 new pb. Blake won in 9.95.

Very dissappointing for chambers.

Has the hop skip and jump finished? I think the frog might win, they're good at jumping.

ryanbailey wrote:Has the hop skip and jump finished? I think the frog might win, they're good at jumping.

They do unfortunately have a tendency to foul on the hop part by landing on more than one leg.

Pretty good jumping by Teddy Tamgho (17.67, WL), just about where I was expecting him to reach today, but nothing there to scare Phillips Idowu ahead of their battle on Saturday.

In fact, the European champion had a huge legal jump wrongly ruled out in Poland last week when an official reaked the sand before it was measured. But that definitely makes for a pulsating tussle in New York.

Dwain will be slightly disappointed with that 10.09 secs for fourth today but then again that was his third 10.0 clocking in the last four races, with a 10.27 into a -2.3m/sec last Sunday, so he's getting there.

I've come to figure out a pattern of cycles of four in his racing this season so he's apparently in the second race of his third (European) cycle now:

- 4 in the States starting from 10.51 and ending off in 10.39 (-2.8m/sec) with an intermediate 10.36 (0.7m/sec)
- 4 in Brasil starting off to 10.16 (0.6m/sec) and ending up in 10.05 (0.0) with an intermediate 10.01 (2.0m/sec)
- 2 so far since he returned from South America so I guess he should have been putting in some training at the start of it, being possibly a little tight midway through.

Therefore, I think he will be possibly peaking in a fourth at the European Cup in this one so we're going to see a much tighter race with Lemaitre there, who seems to have run a superb race today (9.96 secs, NR).

I don't know yet what Mark Draper did at the meeting and I can't find any official results anywhere at the moment....

Mark Draper could not cope with the fast pace yesterday, apparently looking for something in the 13:20s, and came home towards the end of field in 13:49.39. Good for him that he still finished the race even if he slipped off target but sometimes I wonder whether it's better to drop out and save yourself over such distances.

There were some fast times in that race won by Ayele Abayneth (ETH) in 13:11.01 (PB) from Kenyan Yusuf Biwott, who was a narrow second in 13:11.19 - if not mistaken, the very same time he clocked in Hengelo!!! - and also Kenyan Paul Lonyangata in 13:11.22 in a tight finish.

Rob Tobin was third over 400m in 46.09 secs behind Bahamian Michael Mattieu, who got 45.73 secs, and Jamaican Allodin Fothergill (46.04).

Canadian Perdita Felicien won the women's sprint hurdles in 12.73 secs (SB) followed by a 1.3m/sec tailwind while American Joel Brown extended his recent spell of good form to an equal PB of 13.22 (1.0m/sec) in the 110m hurdles, beating Jeff Porter (USA) into second place in 13.34 secs.

Full results:
http://bases.athle.com/asp.net/liste.aspx?frmbase=resultats&frmmode=1&frmespace=0&frmcompetition=086808

2nd Christophe Lemaitre 9.96 FRA SB I think this youngman is going to go sub 9.9 this season with a maximum legal wind.

3rd Jeff Lastennet 1:46.25 FRA PB this guy is definately one to watch next year.

1st Renaud Lavillenie 5.83 FRA SB
2nd Romain Mesnil 5.73 FRA SB

Two outstanding French polevaulters who are defo going to be in with medal chances in the Worlds

2nd Stéphanie Falzon 68.61 FRA

I predict she will be in the mid to low 70s come the worlds.

All in all a good night for the French!

Renaud Lavillenie's 5.83m is the top marker set in the pole vault so far in the world this season, thought that it was mentioned already yesterday.

The EAA report on the meeting in Paris last night where Yohan Blake hardly gets some mere mention despite winning the 100m in a SB of 9.95 secs! He looks like he may have had some slight setback recently and is surging back into his stride now.

http://www.european-athletics.org/3rd-spar-european-athletics-team-championships/lemaitre-100m-in-996-world-leads-for-lavillenie-and-tamgho.html

1st Renaud Lavillenie 5.83 FRA SB
2nd Romain Mesnil 5.73 FRA SB

Two outstanding French polevaulters who are defo going to be in with medal chances in the Worlds

It may have been mentioned yesterday but I just wishe to add my opinion that these two could grab a couple of medals in this event, an event I might add that the French have always been a bit good at, like our middle distance and javelin throwers of the past.