Athletics: Expecting a surprise or two at world champs

By TERRY MADDAFORD

This year's world track and field championships in Paris can justifiably claim to be the biggest. But will quality match quantity?

The feeling is that the last championships, two years ago in Edmonton, Canada, suffered post-Olympic blues. No world records were broken.

But this year's championships, starting tomorrow night, come less than a year out from the Athens Olympics and are seen as a major build-up. More than 1900 competitors from 200 countries will compete at the impressive 70,000-seat Stade de France.

With the world's fastest either not competing (Marion Jones) or struggling to recapture form (Tim Montgomery), the sprints promise a surprise or two. While the parents of eight-week-old Tim Montgomery jnr have had their attention elsewhere, the pretenders to their crowns are all focus.

Zhanna Block (Ukraine) beat Jones in the 100m two years ago but has failed to recapture that form this season. That title is likely to be a contest between US champion Kelli White, Chandra Sturrup (Bahamas) and French runner Christine Arron.

Gail Devers also adds interest but the focus for the double Olympic champion will be on the 100m hurdles in which she will chase a fourth world title.

With Jones not defending her 200m title, another American, Allyson Felix, will go out favourite after running a 22.11s year's best.

Briton Dwain Chambers and US champion Bernard Williams have emerged as the likely contenders for the men's 100m.

Williams beat Montgomery in June to claim the US title and beat a strong international field in Paris last month to underline his readiness.

Three-time defending champion Maurice Greene has been below his best this year and rates no more than a starter's chance.

The two 400m hurdles races will be among the highlights of the nine-day championships.

Felix Sanchez (Dominican Republic) will seek to retain the title he won in Edmonton and Russian Yulia Pechenkina will be out to show her world record run this month was no fluke.

The men's high hurdles should give Allen Johnson his fourth straight world title. The interest will be in how close he can get to Colin Jackson's 10-year-old world record of 12.91s.

Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj has set himself the toughest possible task in attempting the 1500m/5000m double.

As world recordholder over the shorter distance and shooting for his fourth 1500m title, he will go out as a short-priced favourite. His recent win in Zurich in a stunning 3min 29.12s affirmed his ability to defend.

Local hopes rest with French recordholder Mehdi Baala who ran 3min 30.97s at the Stade de France last month. The Kenyan challenge is headed by 2001 silver medallist Bernard Lagat.

The 5000m poses a far greater challenge for El Guerrouj, who announced his attention to chase the double some time ago, hinting strongly he has his sights set on the same challenge at next year's Olympics.

"I'm scared of the 5000m," he admitted. "Not of any particular runner, I'm just scared of the event."

The 5000m heats will be run the day after the 1500m final, making the audacious double an even bigger challenge.

And then, of course, there are the formidable Kenyans and Ethiopians. Veteran Ethiopian Haile Gebrselassie, the world recordholder, adds to the puzzle.

Kenya's hopes of another clean sweep in the 3000m steeplechase have been set back following Stephen Cherono's switch to Qatar. Now known as Saif Saaeed Shaheen, the Commonwealth champion and fastest this year (8m 04.75s), is expected to foil Kenya's long-held domination.

The absence of Britain's Paula Radcliffe has robbed the women's 5000m/10,000m of much interest. She suffered a shin injury in June and bronchitis last month.

The women's 800m shapes as Maria Mutola from Mozambique versus the rest. The world and Olympic champion has held sway at the distance for a decade. Her only rivals appear to be Jolanda Ceplak (Slovenia), Mina Ait Hamou (Morocco) and Austrian Stephanie Graf, the world and Olympic silver medallist.

The 1500m appears wide open, although Turkey's Sureyya Ayhan showed she is primed by running 3m 59.58s this month.