June 01, 2008	Sunday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 26, 1429

BERLIN, May 31: World champions Jeremy Wariner, Blanka Vlasic, Irving Saladino and Janeth Jepkosgei will launch their bids for the $1 million Golden League Jackpot here on Sunday.

Wariner, the twice world champion, has been the dominant force in the 400 metres since winning the Olympic title four years ago. A winner of a share of the jackpot two years ago, the 24-year-old Texan said the Golden League schedule fitted perfectly into his preparation plans for the US Olympic trials and the Games.

“The way the Golden League is set up this year, we have two big competitions before the trials and two before the Olympic Games,” said Wariner, who ran 43.45 at the world championships last year. “These are great races for me to see where I’m at and get a feel for my competition.”

His primary challenger in Berlin will be fellow American Lashawn Merritt, who finished second to Wariner at last year’s world championships. Merritt has clocked 44.34 this spring, the fastest performance in the world this year.

Vlasic, who claimed the first world championship medal for Croatia last year when she won the high jump, is among the most solid favourites in the jackpot chase. The 25-year-old will bring a 24-meet winning streak to Berlin.

Saladino, the world long jump champion, is also a heavy favourite. At last weekend’s FBK Games in Hengelo, the 25-year-old Panamanian leapt 8.73 metres, the longest in the world for 14 years. He has a 21-meet winning streak.

“In the end it felt easy,” Saladino said of his leap. “It was easy and so I feel that it’s very possible to do an even better job this coming Sunday and go even farther.”

Saladino said that the 8.95 metres world record set my American Mike Powell in 1991 was among his targets this year. “There’s only a little missing for me to achieve the world record, so I’m really going to try and break it in every single competition.”

Jepkosgei won the world 800 metres title last year, clocking 1:56.04 in a thrilling gun-to-tape victory.

Athletes must win their events at each of the six meets to claim a share of the prize, the largest in athletics. The series includes stops at Oslo’s Bislett Games on June 6, Rome’s Golden Gala on July 11, Paris on July 18 and Zurich’s Weltklasse on Aug 29, before concluding in Brussels on Sept 5.

Last year, American 400 metres runner Sanya Richards and world and Olympic pole vault champion Yelena Isinbayeva of Russia each claimed half of the jackpot.—Reuters