The 8th IAAF World Championships in Athletics - Edmonton 2001

It was in 2001 that North America welcomed the IAAF World Championships. For the first time in IAAF history the event traveled overseas, and was welcomed in Edmonton, Canada the capital of Alberta.

Poster



Emblem & Mascot



Established as a fur trading town in the 18^th century the city experienced explosive growth after the discovery of oil in the mid 20^th century. Now the capital city of Alberta and the 6^th largest metropolitan city in Canada the city is now known as the “City of Champions” and the “Oil Capital of Canada.”

The Commonwealth Stadium was chosen as the host venue for this edition of the Championships. As the second largest stadium in the nation, the 60,000 seat multi-purpose stadium built in 1978 as the home stadium of Edmonton Eskimos of the CFL. This stadium also welcomed the 1983 Summer Universiade.

This event was a great success as 1,677 athletes competed in the 46 events (Men’s 24, Women’s 22) of the Championships. Perhaps the most exiting event was the rivalry showdown of teammates Maurice Greene (USA) and Tim Montgomery (USA), as both athletes were thought to be strong competitors for the title of World Champion. In the Women’s 100m the world was on pins and needles to see if USA’s Marion Jones would earn her third consecutive gold medals in Women’s 100m.

In regards to the Men’s 100m, Maurice Greene came out on top as he achieved his third consecutive title as World Champion, and though Tim Montgomery finished in second place, he was later disqualified  was disqualified although he was second in 100m.

You will notice that there is no record of Marion Jones any Olympic or World Championships event after 1999. This is because she, along with her husband at the time Tim Montgomery, was stripped of their titles and after the BALCO scandal which rocked the sports world in 2006. After admitting to her steroid use, the United States Anti-Doping Agency stripped her of all medals and records since 2000 and she was sentenced 6 months in prison by a district court. Her partner and husband Tim Montgomery was also indicted on the same charges and was also stripped of his medals and records, to include a World Record in the 100m.

This year Korea sent another hopeful, but this time in the Men’s Marathon. Edmonton welcomed Boston Marathon winner Bong-Ju Lee. Sadly was not able to finish the race but the 1996 Olympic Silver medalist is still regarded as a national hero in Korea.

That’s it for see you next time in Paris, France!