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A very long day, splendidly concluded with Giorgi's bronze. But let's start from the beginning. At the airport I meet three members of the Italian team: Pedroso, an athlete I am not sure I have recognized (and therefore I don't name, to avoid fooling) and a girl I don't know, probably not an athlete. Upon arrival, I find out that they and I are the only ones staying in Doha, out of over 200 passengers on the plane. This gives me a further idea of the interest these worlds arouse.
When leaving for the stadium, there are two people who leave with me, a Nigerian and a Japanese, but decline the offer to share the taxi. Then I will discover that the Bahamas team is in my hotel. On the taxi, I find that I have forgotten the ticket at the hotel, but since I am already late and there is a lot of traffic I think that rather than going back, I will buy a new one. Arrived, I think to show it on my phone: they would accept it, but the file does not open. I really have to buy it again. Already to enter I had to go around almost half the stadium, because before there were so many entrances not open to the public. There was a group with me, I think of Britons, and we all cursed the organizers and IAAF who had assigned the World Championships to them.
Until the entrance to the stadium, no sound can be heard coming from inside, as if it were empty. Once inside, I discover that it is not as empty as I feared: the arrival area is full (only the area not the whole straight), the opposite straight enough. Of course, also considering that the stadium is not huge, there may be 10,000 people or a little more, always few for World Championships. I am just before the second bend: behind me a group of Canadians. At the beginning the few spectators are also quiet: you can hear incitements only for the British, so much so that I wonder if athletics is not becoming like speed ice skating. There, in fact, wherever in the world races are, it is as if one were always in Holland, because one hears more their support, here it will be the same with Great Britain.
I'm going to eat before the mixed relay. In po1e vault 14 are left and Stecchi made 5.70 on second attempt: it should be enough, but after Trost yesterday you never know. I will miss his 5.75. On leaving, the volunteer boy who shows me the way, knowing that I am Italian and Inter fan, tells me he is a Juventus fan. To eat, you have to move away from the stadium a lot: there are kiosks from all over the world, but hardly anyone exposes the menu. I eat a Indian dish, spicy, but by their standards not even that much.
As the final of the 10,000 approaches, we note that two "bends" of Kenya and Ethiopia have formed (actually at the two ends of the opposite straight: the bends are almost empty). This is the positive news of these world championships: a composition of the public different from the usual, with more representation of Africa.
The 10,000 race is over, waiting for 100 long jump is left. Very tight race: I always think that in the end Echeverria will find the decisive leap, instead Gayle finds it with 8.69. We arrive at the 100 final . At the presentation of the athletes tthey urn off the lights, and for each (Tortu is the first) illuminate the edges of the lanes with its national colors and on each side appears the writing with its name. Tortu does what he can: I had the impression that he had gone slightly better than 7th place, but that's fine. After the races at the stadium, there is the problem of reaching the Corniche (the waterfront) for the walking race. I see that there is a metro station, but it does not work, it is used only as a subway. I think it closes early, but instead I will discover that it has not yet come into operation. Too bad, because it also passed near my hotel. While I think about how to do it, I am offered a "limousine service" and I accept. It leaves me where the Corniche begins to be closed to traffic, but to get to the race course it still takes quite a while: it takes me about twenty minutes and I arrive sweaty, since the humidity (more than the heat itself) is devastating. Fortunately, after an hour, it will pass and you will be pretty well.
There is a beautiful permanent stand (usually used for other purposes, I think parades) of a thousand places. Unfortunately it is reserved for VIPs and will never host more than 20 people. The common spectators, including athletes and coaches (I see Damilano, former Italian coach Locatelli, then also president Giomi) are without water (there are no refreshments of any kind), without toilets and with only steps to sit on. Sometimes we are sent away from the track: it is not clear if it is always forbidden to stay attached to the barriers or only in certain sections. Among the events where the common spectator was seen with annoyance (which inspired the name of this blog) this one beats them all: we really had the impression that for the organizers it would have been better if we had not been there!
The races are really fought, also thanks to the climate. The men's one, from the 15th km, after the collapse of Diniz looks like a lonely walk of the Japanese Suzuki, instead 5-6 km from the end he gets into crisis: he takes longer and longer breaks at the sponging, his 3 minutes of lead become 2, then less than 1. He wins only because the second one will break out worse than him: the Portuguese who only one kilometer from the end was third very detached will be second, only 43 " behind.
Among the women a group of 4 is immediately made: Giorgi, two Chinese and one Portuguese. Then the Chinese will remain alone, at a certain point Giorgi remains detached also from the Portuguese, then she recovers and the Portuguese collapses until she retires. A Ukrainian will go back up to 18 ", then she will burst. Giorgi arrives with two flags, one in each hand, on request I would have given her mine too.
It was hard, but it was really worth it.
When leaving for the stadium, there are two people who leave with me, a Nigerian and a Japanese, but decline the offer to share the taxi. Then I will discover that the Bahamas team is in my hotel. On the taxi, I find that I have forgotten the ticket at the hotel, but since I am already late and there is a lot of traffic I think that rather than going back, I will buy a new one. Arrived, I think to show it on my phone: they would accept it, but the file does not open. I really have to buy it again. Already to enter I had to go around almost half the stadium, because before there were so many entrances not open to the public. There was a group with me, I think of Britons, and we all cursed the organizers and IAAF who had assigned the World Championships to them.
Until the entrance to the stadium, no sound can be heard coming from inside, as if it were empty. Once inside, I discover that it is not as empty as I feared: the arrival area is full (only the area not the whole straight), the opposite straight enough. Of course, also considering that the stadium is not huge, there may be 10,000 people or a little more, always few for World Championships. I am just before the second bend: behind me a group of Canadians. At the beginning the few spectators are also quiet: you can hear incitements only for the British, so much so that I wonder if athletics is not becoming like speed ice skating. There, in fact, wherever in the world races are, it is as if one were always in Holland, because one hears more their support, here it will be the same with Great Britain.
I'm going to eat before the mixed relay. In po1e vault 14 are left and Stecchi made 5.70 on second attempt: it should be enough, but after Trost yesterday you never know. I will miss his 5.75. On leaving, the volunteer boy who shows me the way, knowing that I am Italian and Inter fan, tells me he is a Juventus fan. To eat, you have to move away from the stadium a lot: there are kiosks from all over the world, but hardly anyone exposes the menu. I eat a Indian dish, spicy, but by their standards not even that much.
As the final of the 10,000 approaches, we note that two "bends" of Kenya and Ethiopia have formed (actually at the two ends of the opposite straight: the bends are almost empty). This is the positive news of these world championships: a composition of the public different from the usual, with more representation of Africa.
The 10,000 race is over, waiting for 100 long jump is left. Very tight race: I always think that in the end Echeverria will find the decisive leap, instead Gayle finds it with 8.69. We arrive at the 100 final . At the presentation of the athletes tthey urn off the lights, and for each (Tortu is the first) illuminate the edges of the lanes with its national colors and on each side appears the writing with its name. Tortu does what he can: I had the impression that he had gone slightly better than 7th place, but that's fine. After the races at the stadium, there is the problem of reaching the Corniche (the waterfront) for the walking race. I see that there is a metro station, but it does not work, it is used only as a subway. I think it closes early, but instead I will discover that it has not yet come into operation. Too bad, because it also passed near my hotel. While I think about how to do it, I am offered a "limousine service" and I accept. It leaves me where the Corniche begins to be closed to traffic, but to get to the race course it still takes quite a while: it takes me about twenty minutes and I arrive sweaty, since the humidity (more than the heat itself) is devastating. Fortunately, after an hour, it will pass and you will be pretty well.
There is a beautiful permanent stand (usually used for other purposes, I think parades) of a thousand places. Unfortunately it is reserved for VIPs and will never host more than 20 people. The common spectators, including athletes and coaches (I see Damilano, former Italian coach Locatelli, then also president Giomi) are without water (there are no refreshments of any kind), without toilets and with only steps to sit on. Sometimes we are sent away from the track: it is not clear if it is always forbidden to stay attached to the barriers or only in certain sections. Among the events where the common spectator was seen with annoyance (which inspired the name of this blog) this one beats them all: we really had the impression that for the organizers it would have been better if we had not been there!
The races are really fought, also thanks to the climate. The men's one, from the 15th km, after the collapse of Diniz looks like a lonely walk of the Japanese Suzuki, instead 5-6 km from the end he gets into crisis: he takes longer and longer breaks at the sponging, his 3 minutes of lead become 2, then less than 1. He wins only because the second one will break out worse than him: the Portuguese who only one kilometer from the end was third very detached will be second, only 43 " behind.
Among the women a group of 4 is immediately made: Giorgi, two Chinese and one Portuguese. Then the Chinese will remain alone, at a certain point Giorgi remains detached also from the Portuguese, then she recovers and the Portuguese collapses until she retires. A Ukrainian will go back up to 18 ", then she will burst. Giorgi arrives with two flags, one in each hand, on request I would have given her mine too.
It was hard, but it was really worth it.
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