World-class athletes to gather in Daegu for int'l event

Usain Bolt, Yelena Isinbayeva, Asafa Powell and other world-class athletes will gather in Daegu next month to take part in the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Championships.

About 2,400 athletes from 207 countries will compete at the 13th IAAF Championships, one of the world's three major sporting events, along with the Olympics and the World Cup soccer finals. It will be held from Aug. 27 to Sept. 4.

It appears appropriate that this major sporting event should be held in Korea as the nation recently won the right to host the 2018 Winter Olympics in the alpine town of PyeongChang.

Though it still remains days before the final Aug. 15 deadline, 207 countries out of the 212 IAAF members have so far decided to participate in the upcoming event.

The event has attracted many star athletes from around the world especially since it could provide a great chance for them to gauge the opposition ahead of the Olympics in London to be held next year.

Drawing the majority of the spotlight is Jamaica’s "Thunderbolt" Usain Bolt, who conquered the world in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2009 World Championships in Athletics in Berlin. The fastest sprinter on earth is also known as a man of records as he has broken world records whenever he participates in a competition. All ears and eyes are now on whether he will break his own 100-meter record of 9.58 seconds again this time.

In the popular women's pole vault, superstar Yelena Isinbayeva will also likely dominate media and public attention. The world-record holder, who is often compared to Serhiy Bubka in the men's pole vault, is regarded as the queen of athletics for her outstanding beauty and great performances. So far she has broken the world record 27 times.

Asafa Powell, who reined in the men's 100-meters before Usain Bolt came along, will also likely provide much excitement. Whilst his participation in the 100-meters will draw huge attention, it would be no less exciting to watch him in the 400-meter relay, along with his hometown rival Bolt, against the U.S.’ competitors.

Female sprinter Allyson Felix of the U.S. and male long-distance runner Kenenisa Bekele of Ethiopia are also cited as strong candidates for championships. Caster Semenya, who was once suspected to be a man, and the "Blade Runner" Oscar Pistorius, who holds world-class records for running on artificial limbs but continues to cause controversy, will also demand attention.

Despite the participation of so many athletics stars, the success of the event will depend heavily on the competing Korean athletes since it will be almost impossible to draw interest from the public if the host country does not perform well. South Korea’s athletes have worked very hard not to disappoint the local crowds during the first IAAF championships to be held in their home country. They plan to participate in at least 10 areas with their main focus to be placed in the marathon, long jump, triple jump, walking, javelin, pole vault, hurdles and 400-meter relay.

Daegu City Mayor Kim Bum-il, who also heads its Organizing Committee, said, “All preparations in terms of hardware have been completed. Now is the time to focus on drawing public interest in athletics.”