Wariner buscará pasar a la historia en Istaf

Transcribimos info desde el sitio de la IAAF:

Wariner set for Return in Berlin - IAAF Golden League

Thursday 13 September 2007
Four of the men who chased Jeremy Wariner in Osaka will give it another try when the two-time World champion returns to the track at the DKB-ISTAF Meeting in Berlin on Sunday, the final leg of the six-meeting IAAF Golden League Series on Sunday.

Wariner, still just 23, moved up to take sole control of the No. 3 position on the all-time World list with his brilliant 43.45 dash in Osaka late last month. In the process he dominated the field, winning by more than half a second. At Berlin's Olympic stadium, the Texan will once again face most of the current crop of leading challengers.

Leading the chase is Wariner's compatriot Angelo Taylor, the Osaka bronze medallist; Frenchman Leslie Djhone, fifth in Osaka; Canadian record holder Tyler Christopher, sixth in Osaka; and Swede Johan Wissman, whose dramatic improvement in the event saw him land in sub-45 territory for the first time at the World Championships. The field also includes Wariner's training partner, Darold Williamson, who ran the third leg on the victorious American 4x400m Relay.

On paper, the nearest threat is Taylor, also the 2000 Olympic gold medallist in the 400m Hurdles, who has clocked 44.05 this season.

But the focus will of course be on Wariner, also the Olympic champion, who continues to chase only his mentor and manager Michael Johnson. Last year in Berlin, Wariner capped a perfect six-for-six Golden League campaign to share a chunk of the $1 million Golden League Jackpot, the sport's biggest prize.

In Osaka, Wariner was the personification of quiet confidence on the track and off the track afterwards.

"I knew I would run a fast time," he said. "I PRd, I surpassed as the lone third person in the world, now I am just looking forward to running faster. All the goals I have for myself – to break the World record, to be the first to go sub 43, and to stay undefeated as much as possible."

Discounting his race at Sheffield in mid-July, where he didn’t move the from the blocks after the sound of the gun, Wariner has remained unbeaten in seven competitions this season, with an impressive streak of fast performances that spans the entire season. In early May, he clocked 44.02 at Nagai Stadium at the Osaka Grand Prix, and as a prelude to the World Championships, clocked a sterling 43.50 in Stockholm, a career best that would last for a mere 26 days.

Wariner has never promised an all-out assault on Johnson’s 43.18 World record prior to any competition, deciding to heed the advice Johnson has given him instead.

“[Johnson] knows it’s going to be broken one day, and he hopes it’s me that breaks it. He gives me tips and advice and encourages me to go out and race at every meet as if I’m going for the World record. Not to just pick one meet.”

And given the training and preparation he receives from coach Clyde Hart, who also guided Johnson through his career, a quick performance could be in the offing in the German capital on Sunday.

“He doesn’t train us to peak for just one meet,” he said. “We train so we can run well and fast all season long.”

Bob Ramsak for the IAAF