The Diamond League off to bad start?

[gh]

See press release now posted to front page. Berlin says it won't join.

[croflash]

Apparently they wanted to be assured that TV would continue to broadcast the meetings, since the new negotations are after the WC in Berlin they didn't feel secure enough financially to join. It's a major bummer considering that the WC would have been a terrific building block to use for the future and jumpstart the process of establishing more T&F in the media and public.

[Taliban]

I thought there would be an Asian or an African stop on the schedule.

[Rineanna]

I thought there would be an Asian or an African stop on the schedule.

Doha.

[jamaicantrackfan]

I thought there would be an Asian or an African stop on the schedule.

Shanghai (CHN) is one of the stops

[Vault-emort]

It was off to a bad start when they called it the Diamond League - heck Golden League was bad enough....

If they HAD to call it sumthin else, what's wrong with sumthin like the "IAAF World Series" no matter whether the prizes are golden, diamond or plain hard cash???

[jamaicantrackfan]

I think Berlin may have dug their own grave here.

Firstly, by not offering appearance fees(only meet that I am aware of that does this) at this year's GL meet and now, not agreeing to join the DL.

Unless Berlin plans something spectacular next year, not too many big name athletes will be participating there and the meet may eventually get canceled.

[Taliban]

I thought there would be an Asian or an African stop on the schedule.

Doha.

Qatar is not in Africa....I completely overlooked Shanghai. I think they should use the Bird's Nest again but who I am.

[Powell]

I thought there would be an Asian or an African stop on the schedule.

Doha.

Qatar is not in Africa....

Of course not, but it's in Asia.

[Rineanna]

I thought there would be an Asian or an African stop on the schedule.

Doha.

Qatar is not in Africa....I completely overlooked Shanghai. I think they should use the Bird's Nest again but who I am.

You said 'Asian or African', and as Powell pointed out, Doha fulfills that criteria, as does Shanghai which I overlooked.

[gh]

The 14 cities that re in:

Monte-Carlo – It has been agreed that the IAAF Diamond League will be composed of 14 cities across the globe in America, Asia, Middle East and Europe.

Yesterday at a meeting of the General Assembly of IAAF Diamond League held in Berlin, Germany, the 2010 Calendar was confirmed.

As well as the 12 meetings which were confirmed in Monte-Carlo on 2 March when the new circuit of elite Athletics Meetings was originally announced, at the time there were 3 other cities, Berlin, Doha and Rome which had expressed an interest in becoming part of the IAAF Diamond League. Of this trio, the meetings in Doha and Rome fulfilled the necessary criteria of membership and were accepted into the IAAF Diamond League.

Work is on-going on a slightly altered distribution of events amongst the 14 meetings, and this schedule will be communicated at a later date.

An official launch of the 2010 IAAF Diamond League will take place on Saturday 22 August in Berlin, the penultimate day of the 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics (15-23 Aug 2009).

IAAF Diamond League

2010 Calendar

Doha (QAT) – Fri 14 May
Shanghai (CHN) – Sun 23 May
Oslo (NOR) – Fri 4 June
Rome (ITA) – Thu 10 June
New York (USA) – Sat 19 June
Eugene (USA) – Sat 3 July
Lausanne (SUI) – Thu 8 July
Gateshead (GBR) – Sun 11 July
Paris (FRA) – Fri 16 July
Monaco (MON) – Thu 22 July
Stockholm (SWE) – Fri 6 Aug
London (GBR) – Fri 13 and Sat 14 Aug
Zürich (SUI) – Thu 19 Aug
Brussels (BEL) – Fri 27 Aug

[gh]

Meanwhile, in the spin department---

Berlin says
<<we have decided to not join the Diamond League >>

IAAF says
<<the meetings in Doha and Rome fulfilled the necessary criteria of membership and were accepted into the IAAF Diamond League.>>


(not taking sides; no idea where the real truth lies here)

[Taliban]

I thought there would be an Asian or an African stop on the schedule.

Doha.

Qatar is not in Africa....

Of course not, but it's in Asia.

True I should have said Eastern Asia....

[gh]

I thought there would be an Asian or an African stop on the schedule.

Doha.

Qatar is not in Africa....I completely overlooked Shanghai. I think they should use the Bird's Nest again but who I am.

Bird's Nest faaaarrrrrr too large; crowd would just rattle around in there.

Shanghai already has decent history of putting on a world-class meet and selling tickets to it. (Although one does wonder what happens when Xiang Liu is no longer part of the equation.)

[tandfman]

With any luck at all Liu will be back on the track next year, and the stadium in Shanghai will be packed. I think there may be a few other Shanghai-based athletes who could be drawing cards as well and it's possible that even non-Shanghai Chinese athletes competing against Europeans, Americans etc. could attract a good crowd.