Hurdler Liu Xiang will enjoy hometown advantage when his rivalry
with rising star Dayron Robles grows even fiercer at the 2007
Shanghai Golden Grand Prix in September.
China's 110m flyer, who split titles with the 20-year-old Cuban
in their two indoor duels earlier this season, was defeated by
Robles a few weeks ago at the Paris Golden League, where Liu
finished an uncharacteristic third behind Anwar Moore of the United
States.
China's Athens Olympics champ hoped to avenge that loss only to
be disappointed when Robles opted to rest from this month's
races.
The youngster paid for the time off this week when he slipped
from equal first on the latest International Associations of
Athletics Federations' (IAAF) rankings.
A three-point deduction saw the Cuban missile, who joined Liu at
the summit of world athletics after the previous IAAF update, sink
to second place.
The arch rivals will most certainly go head to head again at the
August World Championships in Osaka before the Shanghai flash gets
his chance to perform in front of his home crowd the following
month.
Liu is scheduled to arrive in Beijing later this week to start
preparation for the Japan showdown.
"I still have not won a world championship title yet. I am
looking forward to the race in Osaka because it is a lucky place
for me as I have never lost there," the four-time winner of the
Osaka IAAF Grand Prix said.
But Liu and his coach know how difficult the task will be in
Osaka despite a successful European tour of two wins and a third in
July.
Mentor Sun Haiping played down the victories insisting his
charge's main challenges will come from Robles and world champion
Ladji Doucoure of France - both absent during Liu's two recent wins
- rather than any Americans at the world titles and next year's
Olympics.
"Liu has to run between 12.90-12.95 if he wants to defend his
gold medal at the Beijing Games," Sun said.
"Robles and Doucoure are young and have best times within 13
seconds. They are the most dangerous rivals in the future."
Invitation from Austria
Liu's popularity has attracted numerous invitations to
prestigious overseas competitions and paved the way to another
likely showdown with Robles at Austria's illustrious Gugl-Meeting
in September .
Organizers of Austria's biggest one-day meet have invited Liu to
the country's athletics showpiece in Linz, according to local media
reports.
The who's who of past athletics stars all have won plaudits at
Gugl-Meetings - Carl Lewis, Colin Jackson and Marion Jones among
them.
When Liu's name appears on the program in two month's time at
the 20th event, he will be right at home in the pantheon of
greats.
Meet manager Harald Edletzberger said he had talked with Liu's
manager, who he claims "expressed interest in this event".
"We expected the contest between Liu and Cuban Dayron Robles,
who had decided to attend the event," Edletzberger said, adding
that past Gugl-Meetings were remembered for scintillating 100m
sprint and long jump duels.
This year, however, Liu and Robles' clash promises to be the
big-ticket item.
(Xinhua News Agency July 27, 2007)