DOHA // David Rudisha, the 800 metres world record holder, and Abubaker Kaki, his main challenger, dealt the IAAF Diamond League a huge blow yesterday by withdrawing from the first meeting of the year to be held in Doha tomorrow.
Rudisha, the 2010 World Athlete of the Year, is yet to fully recover from a leg injury while double world indoor champion Kaki suffered leg cramps during training.
"I'm very disappointed not to be able to run in Doha, where I've opened my summer racing season for the last four years," Rudisha said. The Kenyan world record holder started 2011 at the Melbourne Track Classic in March, clocking 1min 43.88secs, the fastest in the world this year.
Kaki pulled out due to a problem the Sudanese athlete's team said was discovered when "a leg cramp while training revealed a small muscular injury".
With several top athletes missing Qatar as they bid to peak for the World Championships in Daegu in South Korea later this year, the field looks depleted.
The 100m is not part of the official 16-event meeting but is included as an additional race at the discretion of local organisers. However, the absences of Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay mean it is unlikely to attract the attention of fans.
The men's shot put will now take on more significance with world indoor and outdoor champion Christian Cantwell of the United States facing perennial foes Reese Hoffa and Poland's Tomasz Majewski, the Olympic champion.
Teddy Tamgho, the world and European indoor champion, is the favourite to win the men's triple jump. "I'm extremely happy to come back to Doha," the Frenchman said. "It's here my career really started to progress, so I decided to start my season here. The crowd in Doha at the World Indoor Championships last year was magnificent and I hope to perform well on Friday."
The Doha Diamond League kicks off a 14-meeting season which bridges the August 27 to September 4 World Championships.
This year's event takes part in the 15,000-seat Qatar Sports Club, with the men competing in the 100m, 800m, 5000m, 400m hurdles, high jump, pole vault, triple jump, shot put and javelin.
Women will take part in the 200m, 400m, 1500m, 3000m steeplechase, 100m hurdles, long jump and discus.