07/29/2021 15:00
Clarín.com
sports
Updated 7/29/2021 3:09 PM
Tokyo 2020 will be the first Olympic event of
the post
Usain Bolt era. The
Jamaican Ray
, who retired four years ago after the 2017 World Cup in London, played his last Games in Rio de Janeiro, where he wrote his last golden chapter in the most important event in world sport by conquering the golds in the 100 and 200 meters and at the 4x100 post. And since he lowered the curtain on his career, athletics - which will open its competition in Tokyo on the Argentine night this Thursday - has been
looking for a successor, but has not yet found one.
The first impulse was, of course, to look towards the men's speed events, in which Bolt had built
an unparalleled hegemony
with eight Olympic golds (that of the 2008 Beijing 4x100 relay was taken away in 2017 by the doping of one of his teammates) .
But in recent years, no figure has emerged in those distances with the talent and charisma to even approach the legacy of Kingston, despite the achievements of figures such as the American
Noah Lyles
, world gold in 200 and 4x100 meters in 2019, or
Trayvon Bromell
, the fastest man of this 2021 with 9s77.
Attention shifted,
then,
to other evidence
, which, with new and already established star athletes, sports have kept "in good health" as he said more than once
Sebastian Coe
, chairman of World Athletics.
One of them is the
triple jump
, dominated in recent seasons by
Yulimar Rojas
, South American flag bearer in Tokyo.
The Venezuelan will be one of the great attractions in the Japanese Games and will be accompanied by other great names on the international scene.
Here is a review of five that will be worth following closely.
Karsten warholm
Warholm broke the world record for 400 meters hurdles at the beginning of July in Oslo with a mark of 46.70.
Photo Fredrik Hagen / NTB via AP
Norwegian
Karsten Warholm
, 25, will seek his first Olympic medal in the
400m hurdles
in what will be his second Games. In Rio de Janeiro 2016 he could not advance beyond the semifinal, but today he is a more mature and experienced athlete. Since his Olympic debut, he has added to his record the European titles of 2018 and 2019 (the latter, indoors) and was world champion in London 2017 and Doha 2019.
In Tokyo he arrived with confidence through the roof, after
beating
the world record
in early July in Oslo
with a mark of 46s70
, knocking down a record that had been standing since the 1992 Barcelona Games. Warholm's merit is even greater having taking into account that he competes against rivals with spectacular brands such as the American
Rai Benjamin
and the Qatari
Abderrahman Samba
, world silver and bronze in 2019, respectively, or the Brazilian
Alison Dos Santos
, Pan American champion in Lima 2019.
Armand Duplantis
Duplantis is the owner of the world record in pole vault, which he achieved in September 2020. Photo Vincenzo PINTO / AFP
Armand Duplantis
, a young
pole vault
prodigy
, also landed in Tokyo with the favorite backpack. The 21-year-old Swede
spent 2020 breaking world records.
On February 8, he jumped 6.17 meters and improved the absolute indoor record set by Frenchman
Renaud Lavillenie
(6.16). Two weeks later, he improved his own record to
6.18
. And in September, at the Golden Gala in Rome, he achieved the best outdoor record of all time with a jump of
6.15
, surpassing the 6.14 that
Sergei Bubka
had held
since 1994.
"In a dream world, I would like to go to Tokyo and win with a world record,
do something legendary
for the Olympics, but they are my first Games, I just want to win. That is what I have in mind," he said.
Sifan Hassan
Hassan will look for the golden triplet at 1,500, 5,000 and 10,000 meters, something that no one has ever achieved until now.
Photo EFE / EPA / VINCENT JANNINK
The Dutch
Sifan Hassan
- born in Ethiopia 28 years ago - wants to make history in the Japanese capital, where she will look for
the golden triplet
in the
1,500, 5,000 and 10,000 meters
tests
, something that no one has ever achieved
until now.
"Life is not just medals. It also has to do with history," he commented a few weeks ago.
Do you have a chance to achieve that unprecedented achievement?
Yes,
credentials are left over.
Hassan leads the world rankings at 1,500 and 10,000 and is second in the 5,000 rankings, behind Kenyan
Hellen Obiri
.
And she is the current world champion in those first two distances.
In this 2021, with little competition, it had its peak at the Hengelo meeting, at the beginning of June, when it ran the 10 thousand in
29m06s82, improving the world record
29m17s45 that the Ethiopian
Almaz Ayana
had achieved in Rio 2016. Her record lasted just two days: it was surpassed by the Ethiopian
Letesenbet Gidey
by scoring 29m01s03 in the same meeting.
But still, it served to win the candidate for Tokyo badge.
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce
Fraser Pryce wants to become the first woman to win three golds in the 100 meters.
Photo Jewel SAMAD / AFP
The Jamaican
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce
, 34, is already an old acquaintance in the world of athletics, but her name still appears in the discussion when talking about possible successors of Bolt, with whom she shares nationality and also specialty.
Owner of
nine world titles
- four in 100 meters, one in 200 and another four in the 4x100 post - she wants to add in Tokyo her third gold medal in the hectometer, which she already won in Beijing 2008 and London 2012.
If she succeeds, she will will become the first woman in history to conquer that triplet
.
In great physical shape, after her return to the slopes after a momentary retirement to be a mother in 2017, her main rival will be her compatriot
Elaine Thompson Herah
, gold in 100 and 200 in Rio.
Joshua Cheptegei
Cheptegei owns the world records of 5 thousand and 10 thousand meters.
Photo Valery HACHE / AFP
The Ugandan
Joshua Cheptegei
will be the man to beat in the
5,000 and 10,000 meters
, events in which he holds
world records
since last year, when he improved the marks of Ethiopian
Kenenisa Bekele
.
The one with the shortest distance (12m35s36) was achieved on August 14 in Monaco.
The longest (26m11s00), in which he is the current world champion, on October 7 in Valencia.
"My dream is to win the gold medal in Tokyo, but it will be one of the
most difficult
races
in the history of mankind
. I have the privilege of preparing well and hopefully my dream will come true," he said a few months ago.
AFP
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