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Driving vehicles at night without turning on the lights is a traffic offence, the Ministry of Interior (MoI) has said. “Kindly turn your lights and ensure their proper functioning before driving at night to keep you and others safe,” MoI’s guidelines shared on its official X account said, explaining that it’s a violation according to Article 70 of the Traffic Law. “Turning your lights on before driving at night is vital to ensuring traffic safety,” the post added.

Doha: Global high jump superstar Mutaz Barshim feels fit ahead of the new season’s opening competition today but the 32-year-old has his eyes fixed on another gold medal at this year’s Paris Olympic Games.The tall Qatari, who famously shared the high jump gold with Italian Gianmarco Tamberi at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, today faces world indoor champion Hamish Kerr in the men’s high jump in Chinese city of Xiamen.In a candid chat with the international media ahead of the opening round of the 2024 Wanda Diamond League, the three-time world high jump champion on Friday confidently said he can’t wait for the new season to commence.Excerpts from a Q&A session with Barshim:Q: It’s been six months since we last saw you compete. You were at the 2023 Asian Games in Guangzhou, China. How has it been for you since your last competition?A: As you said my last competition was the (2023) Asian Games here in China. It was an amazing atmosphere then. It was a great competition. I really loved it. I am really happy to be back in China, competing again. It is a very important season. It is the Olympics season. The last six months were more of a relaxing time, to be honest. I was doing my recovery. I had plans to compete indoors but then I had some (injury) issues so we decided not to risk it. Now I am feeling healthy again. My training has been going well. I am happy where I am at the moment. But it’s my first meet of the season and I want to go out there and see what I can do. I am excited to compete.Q: Is there a certain height you would be happy with in the new season?A: It’s still April so I don’t know. I will be very happy if I win (in Xiamen). I want to push myself. I want to jump high. How high? I don’t know (smiles). I will go tomorrow (today) and see. I want to go and put on a good show.Q: Paris will be your fourth Olympics. Does it feel different or is it just another Olympics for you?A: My fourth Olympics, wow! It’s crazy. Definitely (it) feels different. For me, (competing at) Olympics was a dream, you know. I remember watching the Olympics on TV. I wanted to be there (competing) so bad. I told myself one day I will be there. Here I am - I have been to three Olympics. One silver, one gold and going for my fourth Olympics. You still get that tingle ‘it is an Olympics year’. So, it definitely feels different. I am just going to prepare myself to be ready to fight and hopefully be on the podium.Q: Did you enjoy the Asian Games last year?A: Yes, I definitely enjoyed the Asian Games last year. It was really amazing competing in China. The crowds were packed at the venue. The fans were really supportive, I loved it. Everything was really top-notch. Since then I have been having my break. It was like an off-season break with my family. Then I started my training again. I didn’t do the indoors because I had some minor injuries. I have overcome everything. So yeah, I feel good and feel healthy. When I feel good, I can jump. In terms of training. Because of injuries, I couldn’t do my regular training. I know I have a lot of work coming. I am really excited. The training is going how I want it to go. I had a lower back pain and a hip injury. They were not big injuries. I didn’t want to risk it. I am a smart athlete now. If I have a small niggle, I know I have to take care of it. I don’t want to miss three four months of action because of injuries that I didn’t take care of. I am older, wiser (laughs).Q: Your good friend Gianmarco Tamberi, the high jumper, could be the flag-bearer for Italy at the Paris Olympics. How do you see that?A: Oh yes, why not? He’s a great athlete. He is the Olympic champion. That would be really nice to see (smiles).

Christian Coleman admitted on Friday to being more focused on safely negotiating the notoriously tough US trials than the actual Paris Olympics, where he hopes he will bid for a sprint double. Coleman, who beat teammate Noah Lyles to 60 metres gold in the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow in February, had to sit out the Covid-delayed Tokyo Games after missing a drugs test. He donned a US vest at the 2016 Rio Olympics, where he ran the heats for the Justin Gatlin-led 4x100m relay squad that was eventually disqualified in the final won by Usain Bolt’s Jamaica. “I can’t even think past June right now, just focused on being our absolute best when we need to be at the trials,” Coleman said ahead of the opening Diamond League meeting of the season in the Chinese city of Xiamen. “If you’re not at your best there then the season’s all for nought, really. “That’s what makes it so special to be on the American team - the fact it’s so hard to make it.” Coleman, along with teammate Fred Kerley - the 2022 world champion and Olympic silver medallist - holds the joint sixth fastest time over 100m ever run (9.76sec) and acknowledged that the United States would have a very strong 4x100m relay squad in Paris. “Hopefully I can start the year off on a good note,” said Coleman, who was world outdoor 100m champion in 2019 before his doping suspension. “Everyone’s goal is first to make the team but whoever makes that team is obviously well capable of getting on that relay pool and doing something special. “The world record is definitely within our reach.” Coleman admitted that competing in an Olympic year felt “a little different because you know the magnitude of it”. “I feel like it would be unrealistic not to acknowledge the fact that it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that not many people have the opportunity to even experience, being in your prime and actually having a realistic chance of making it to the Olympics.” Coleman added: “As far as the process is concerned, we do this every year, so it’s really no different. You just try not to pay too much attention to outside factors and outside pressures. “The main thing is focus on what’s right in front of you, one day at a time. That’s the same process every year, it’s just a bigger opportunity.” Today’s meeting in Xiamen, the first of back-to-back Diamond League meets in China, with a second in Shanghai on April 27, will also see women’s world 100m champion Sha’Carri Richardson in action in the 200m. Coleman dubbed Richardson, who also won 200m bronze at the Budapest worlds, “special”. “She’s somebody who’s at the forefront of women’s empowerment in sport, she’s taken it to a whole different level. “She’s a beast, a special talent, she’s somebody who’s going to continue to propel the sport forward and take it to new heights. “I’m a fan,” he said. “She’s someone I take inspiration from.” Also in action in Xiamen, the first of 15 meets on the elite one-day track and field circuit, are 12 Olympic gold medallists, notably Swedish pole vault star Mondo Duplantis and Qatar’s three-time world high jump champion Mutaz Essa Barshim.

Jordan’s Ahmed Abu al-Saud lived up to his reputation on the pommel horse after he won the gold at the 16th Artistic Gymnastics World Cup Doha at the Ladies Indoor Hall on Friday.The 28-year-old amassed 15.500 points on Friday to top the final, with world champion Rhys McClenaghan of Ireland finishing third (15.233).Al-Saud had won the Asian Championships gold in Doha two years ago. He also became the first gymnast from Jordan to win a medal (silver) at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool. He followed it up with bronze at the 2023 World Championships in Antwerp, Belgium.The 24-year-old McClenaghan is a double world champion on pommel horse after having won gold at the 2022 and 2023 editions, but al-Saud had the last laugh on Friday. Lee Chih Kai of Chinese Taipei (15.400) took the silver.In the men’s rings finals, Armenia’s Vahagn Davtyan finished on top ahead of Nikita Simonov (Azerbaijan) and Samir Ait Said (France).Karimi Milad of Kazakhstan won the Floor Exercise final after accumulating 14.766 points. Luke Whitehouse of Great Britain took silver (14.566), Dmitriy Patanin also of Kazakhstan came third (14.500).Panama’s Karla Navas won the women’s Vault gold in a field that also featured eight-time Olympian Oksana Chusovitina.Navas walked away with gold after an impressive effort of 13.850 points, though she was closely challenged by North Korea’s reigning Asian champion An Chang-ok (13.833). Bulgaria’s 17-year-old Valentina Georgieva (13.466), who has already secured her berth for the Paris Olympic Games, finished third.The women’s uneven bar was clinched by Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour. The 17-year-old registered 15.336 points with 7 in Difficulty and 8.366 in execution to pip her nearest rivals that also included Levi Ruivivar of the Philippines and Alena Tsitavets.Kaylia had become the first African gymnast to win a medal at the 2023 World Championships where she won a silver on the uneven bars.As many as 95 male and 55 female gymnasts representing 55 countries are taking part in the event, which will conclude on Saturday.

Mohamed Khalifa al-Baker won the Medium Tour class during the 12th round of the Qatar Equestrian Tour - Longines Hathab on Friday. At the outdoor arena of the Qatar Equestrian Federation, al-Baker registered the fastest round of 34.16 seconds on Etna du Chateau. In second place was Hussein Saeed Haidan in a time of 34.95 seconds on Viahibi, while Mohamed Saeed Haidan was third astride Obama in 35.29 seconds. The Medium Tour team event was won by Alfardan Group, with NK Cafe team finishing second, ExxonMobil team came third. Faisal al-Kahla, Deputy Director of the tournament and Mohamed Saleh al-Marri, Vice-Chairman of the Facilities and Logistics Committee crowned the winners. In the amateur competition, Hadi Nasser al-Shahwani emerged triumphant in a time of 22.08 seconds astride Beyonce. Hadi Mansour al-Shahwani was second on Dusty, while Abdulaziz bin Jassim al-Thani came third on Clints. Abdullah al-Qashouti, Chairman of the Media and Live Broadcasting Committee, honoured winners.

World number two Aryna Sabalenka’s hopes of reaching a fourth consecutive Stuttgart Open final ended after a 3-6 6-3 7-5 quarter-final defeat by Marketa Vondrousova on Friday, while champion Iga Swiatek maintained her perfect record at the event.World number one Swiatek extended her run at the tournament to 10-0 and is now two wins away from claiming a third successive Stuttgart title following her 7-6(2) 6-3 win over Briton’s Emma Raducanu. She will face fourth seed Elena Rybakina for a place in tomorrow’s final.Sabalenka had won her last four matches with Vondrousova, and after winning the opening set, the Australian Open champion looked on course to progress. Wimbledon champion Vondrousova led 4-1 in the second set before Sabalenka pulled it back to 4-3 but the Czech sixth seed broke for a third time and held serve to force the decider. Sabalenka went 5-4 ahead in the final set before Vondrousova reeled off three games in a row to reach the semi-finals where she will meet either American third seed Coco Gauff or Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine.“It was a very tough match, and I think a great one, too,” Vondrousova said. “She’s a great player so I just tried to stay in the rallies. She hits very fast so it’s tough to do something. But I stayed calm in the crucial moments.”Sabalenka reached the quarter-finals after her good friend Paula Badosa was forced to retire through injury on Wednesday, with the match tied at one set each and 3-3 in the decider. Fourth seed Elena Rybakina also reached the semi-finals after overcoming the challenge of in-form Jasmine Paolini 6-3 5-7 6-3. Paolini won the Dubai Tennis Championships in February and rose to a career-high 14th in the world rankings and reached the last 16 at Indian Wells in March. After winning the opening set, Rybakina had let slip a 4-2 lead in the second and came back from an early break by the Italian in the final set.“I’m happy with my energy,” Rybakina said. “Of course, I had chances in the second set where I could have closed it out but overall, I think it’s just a matter of matches and feeling better and better on the court.”Tsitsipas saves two match points to reach Barcelona semisWorld number seven Stefanos Tsitsipas saved two match points to defeat Facundo Diaz Acosta and reach the semi-finals of the Barcelona clay-court tournament. The Greek came through 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (10/8) after his 53rd-ranked Argentine opponent missed a match point in the 12th game of the deciding set.Both men then saved more match points in the tie-breaker before Tsitsipas, a three-time runner-up at the Barcelona tournament, secured a ninth successive win following on from his Monte Carlo Masters title victory at the weekend. The 25-year-old Tsitsipas will face either 36th-ranked Arthur Fils of France or Dusan Lajovic, the world number 59 from Serbia, in the semi-finals on Saturday.Casper Ruud, the world number six from Norway who was runner-up to Tsitsipas in Monte Carlo, eased past Italian Matteo Arnaldi 6-4, 6-3. “It is not easy. You are playing for a spot in the semi-finals,” said Ruud. “I was able to come through in the end after a few crazy rallies.”Argentinian Tomas Etcheverry also booked his place in the semi-finals with a hard-fought straight sets win over Britain’s Cameron Norrie. Etcheverry, ranked 30 in the world, one place higher Norrie, edged a tight match 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/1) and will face Ruud for a place on the final.“I spoke to my coach last night and also my team, that I have to play aggressively to win this match,” the 24-year-old Etcheverry said.

Qatar athletes won seven medals – three gold and four silver – on Friday at the inaugural edition of the Gulf Youth Games in Abu Dhabi. The athletics team won five medals, which included three gold and two silver, while the chess team won two silver medals. The gold medals were won by Hamza Hashim (long jump), Abdullah al-Abdullah (pole vault) and Hamad Dhawi al-Sultan (discus throw). The four silver medals were won by Rakan al-Rashidi (long jump), Younis al-Balushi (pole vault) and the under-18 women’s chess team consisting of Rawda al-Qasabi, Layan al-Qasabi and Fatima al-Kuwari, and the under-14 boys’ team consisting of Khaled al-Jamaat, Hamad al-Kuwari and Ibrahim al-Janahi. After the fourth day of competition, Qatar has won 14 medals, including 6 gold, 4 silver and 4 bronze.

Japan booked their place in the quarter-finals of the AFC U-23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024 on Friday as Go Oiwa’s side handed the United Arab Emirates a 2-0 defeat at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium to guarantee themselves a top two finish in Group B.Goals from Seiji Kimura and Sota Kawasaki kept the 2016 champions perfect after their opening two games and they will face off against Korea Republic on Monday to determine who takes top spot in the standings. The result also means the UAE, who face China in their next game, cannot progress to the knockout rounds.Oiwa’s side prevailed despite the coach making seven changes to the side that defeated the Chinese on Tuesday with one of those call-ups, Kimura, heading wide of the target eight minutes into the game.Hiroki Sekine’s left-footed drive in the 13th minute flew across the face of Khalid Tawhid’s goal while eight minutes later the Emirati goalkeeper was left flapping when Ayumu Ohata set up Ryotaro Araki to strike at goal, the ball thumping against the crossbar.The Japanese were edging closer and in the 26th minute Tawhid was called into action to tip Kein Sato’s diving header over the bar after the Werder Bremen midfielder had been found by Rihito Yamamoto’s arcing ball into the area.UAE’s resistance was to last less than a minute more as, from the resulting corner, Japan took the lead. Fuki Yamada overhit his set-piece but, after picking up the loose ball, Yamamoto lifted his centre towards Kimura and he headed home via the inside of the post. Japan pressed for a second, with Sekine heading wide and Tawhid moving sharply across his goal line to push Yamada’s curling top corner-bound free-kick to safety.Leo Kokubo was called into action in the Japan goal two minutes before the break when he dropped to his left to keep out Abdulla Abbas’ low shot on the run while, deep into injury time, the winger steered a close range header wide. Those were rare sights of goal for the UAE, however, with Sato and Araki both squandering opportunities while Ohata had a second for Japan ruled out for offside when referee Sadullo Gulmurodi consulted the pitch side monitor just after the hour mark.By the 65th minute, though, Oiwa’s side had doubled their lead when Kawasaki glanced his header into the far corner, steering the ball home after Ohata’s first-time cross from the left bye-line. Kuryu Matsuki should have added a third inside the final five minutes but could only find Tawhid’s hands after being put in on goal by fellow substitute Mao Hosoya. Kaito Suzuki then headed against the crossbar and Sato shot high over the target as time ticked down, although it mattered little as Japan claimed all three points.Meanwhile, South Korea booked their spot in the knockout stage after a 2-0 win against China at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium. Lee Young-jun, who netted the sole strike in their opening win against the UAE, came up with the goods again for South Korea by grabbing both goals in the Group B encounter.It was a lesson in ruthlessness from South Korea, who had only three shots on target and scored two, with their clash against Japan on Monday to decide the group winners.Later, Saudi Arabia produced a dominant performance to beat Thailand 5-0 in the Group C tie at Khalifa International Stadium as they edged closer to a place in the quarter-finals. Aiman Yahya, who grabbed a brace against Tajikistan in their opening game, scored once and assisted two with Abdullah Radif hitting a hat-trick as the 2022 champions made it two wins out of two with Iraq up next for them on Monday.Meanwhile, Iraq revived their knockout stage hopes with a 4-2 win over Tajikistan at the Al Janoub Stadium. The 2013 champions dominated from the start and now need a win over Group C leaders Saudi Arabia on Monday to stand a chance of advancing into the quarter-finals, having lost their opening match to Thailand.

Mikel Arteta has urged Arsenal to prove they have the mental strength to bounce back from a painful spell that wrecked their Champions League challenge and dented their Premier League title bid. Arteta’s side lost 1-0 to Bayern Munich on Wednesday as the German side earned a 3-2 aggregate quarter-final victory.The end of Arsenal’s attempt to win the Champions League for the first time followed a damaging 2-0 home defeat against Aston Villa in the Premier League. Critics said the Gunners’ stumble over the last week reflected a lack of character and toughness in Arteta’s squad.But Arsenal can return to the top of the table by winning at Wolves today while leaders Manchester City are in FA Cup semi-final action against Chelsea. “It’s been an experience, not the best one,” Arteta said. “We’re fully focused on the times we have ahead of us with six games to go. The context is clear, if we win we go top of the league, you don’t need anything else to be motivated.”Arsenal are without a win in their last three games, having drawn their quarter-final first leg against Bayern. Arteta claimed the first game against Bayern and the Villa clash could have produced different results if Arsenal had avoided key mistakes.“It is what it is and we have to accept it. The Bayern one at home at the beginning, it could have been different,” Arteta said.“Against Villa we were the better team, but in the second half we paid the price for the chances we gave them and we have to move on from there. Now it is about showing against Wolves what we are made of and turning the situation around.”Chasing Arsenal’s first Premier League crown in 20 years after blowing an eight-point lead in the title race last season, Arteta knows the verdict will not be kind if his team finish empty-handed again. But the Spaniard refused to blame his players for their wobble as he told them to make a final push for the title.Klopp tells Liverpool to push for titleJurgen Klopp has told spluttering Liverpool they can still clinch the Premier League title if they recover from a dismal spell by winning the last six matches of his reign. Klopp’s side crashed out of the Europa League quarter-finals on Thursday after a 1-0 win against Atalanta that failed to overturn the three-goal first leg deficit.It was the latest blow for Klopp in the closing weeks of his nine-year stay at Anfield. Liverpool also bowed out of the FA Cup at the quarter-final stage after losing to a last-gasp goal at bitter rivals Manchester United.United rubbed salt into Liverpool’s wounds by holding them to a draw in the Premier League on April 7, before Crystal Palace plundered a shock win at Anfield last weekend. Klopp’s men have gone from leading the table to sitting two points behind leaders Manchester City in third place.But the German, whose team travel to Fulham tomorrow, has not given up hope on giving Liverpool a record-equalling 20th English title as a parting gift. “It’s not obviously in our hands, it is not about that. I think if we would win all our games there is a good chance we will be champion. If not there is a good chance someone else will be champion,” Klopp said.“Maybe we only have to win five, but nobody knows. Who would have thought that Arsenal lose against Aston Villa? We all sit here and think ‘OK, yeah. City will win all their games’ and that’s happened quite frequently, but they have a lot of games to play and difficult opponents as well. We don’t think about that. We don’t think about them. It is just how can we make sure we start wining games again.”Liverpool have had two seasons where the title race with City has seen them miss out by just one point after both clubs finished strongly.Fixtures:Saturday (1400 GMT unless stated): Luton v Brentford, Sheffield United v Burnley, Wolves v Arsenal (1830)Sunday: Everton v Nottingham Forest (1230), Aston Villa v Bournemouth (1400), Crystal Palace v West Ham (1400), Fulham v Liverpool (1530)

Qatar has urged the international community to immediately act to defuse the tension and spare the Middle East region the peril of being dragged into a new vortex of conflicts.It urged all parties to de-escalate the situation and exercise maximum restraint, stressing that the worrying developments that have been unfolding in the region underscore Qatar's repeated warnings of the peril of the spillover of the conflict unless bloodshed in the Gaza Strip ceases.The comments came in a Qatar statement delivered by HE the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations, Sheikha Alya Ahmad bin Saif al-Thani, before the meeting of the quarterly open debate on "The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question at the United Nations headquarters in New York.The situation in the Gaza Strip amounts to an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe and Qatar reiterates its condemnation of all forms of targeting the civilians and civic facilities, including the collective punishment, deprivation of food and essential services, using starvation as a weapon and attempts of forced displacement of residents conducted by the de facto occupation power, she pointed out.She said Qatar has highlighted the humanitarian and security consequences of these practices and rejects any military operation launched by the occupation forces in Rafah city, adding the status quo precipitates the full respect of the international law, the international humanitarian law, and the international human rights law, in addition to taking all essential steps to end the humanitarian catastrophe and stave off famine.HE Sheikha Alya pointed out that such matter requires unhindered delivery of large-scale humanitarian aid immediately and safely.HE Sheikha Alya reiterated Qatar's welcoming of the adoption of resolution No. 2728 by the UN Security Council which called for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip culminating in a durable ceasefire.She asserted the resolution remains binding under the charter, and it behooves the international community and the UN Security Council to ensure the enforcement of the international law without double standards.HE Sheikha Alya stressed it is imperative to implement the ruling rendered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Israel taking ample steps to prevent genocide in Gaza and ensuring the flow of assistance and essential services. She pointed out that the UN Security Council in its resolution No. 2728 recognised the constant diplomatic efforts being pursued by Qatar, Egypt and the US.She stressed Qatar still gives foremost priority to these efforts at the highest levels, confirming that the efforts have had concrete results in alleviating the humanitarian plight facing residents in Gaza and the detainees from both sides.She emphasised that Qatar will never hesitate to keep pursuing its efforts in expediting the negotiation in pursuit of releasing the detainees, ensuring the flow of adequate humanitarian aid and reaching a durable ceasefire, underscoring the significance of the unceasing de-escalation in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem and compelling the occupation authority to halt its crimes, abusing the rights of Palestinians, confiscating their lands and expanding the illegitimate settlement.She underscored the need for maintaining the historical and legal status quo of Jerusalem and the Islamic and Christian sacred places, reiterating the State of Qatar's condemnation of the Israeli systematic campaign of targeting UNRWA agency. HE Sheikha Alya stressed that its essential to provide sufficient funds for UNRWA, pointing out that Qatar has elevated its fund allocated to UNRWA to USD25 million to be further added to the previous contributions.Qatar has sent thousands of tons of urgent aid to the Palestinians in Gaza on 93 aircraft through El Arish Airport, in addition to evacuating the 22nd batch of wounded Palestinians to be treated in Doha, as there is a Qatari medical crew currently operating in El Arish to treat the wounded, she highlighted.In conclusion, HE Sheikha Alya pointed out that the only guarantee for achieving a sustainable peace lies in an enduring agreement for ceasefire that leads to serious talks, alongside a political process that generates a comprehensive, just and enduring settlement for the Palestinian question in accordance with the international legitimacy resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative based on the two-state principle that ensures the establishment of the independent Palestinian statehood on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, that would see the Palestinian brothers regain their full unalienable rights and enable the State of Palestine to have the designation of the member state in the United Nations.

World Athletics president Sebastian Coe’s decision to award prize money to Olympic gold medallists was welcomed by athletes but has sparked a backlash from bosses of other sports. Coe put the cat among the pigeons when he announced last week that track and field gold medallists at the Paris Games this year will receive $50,000 (47,000 euros).It is the first time a sports federation will pay prize money at an Olympics. The total prize fund of $2.4mn will come from the International Olympic Committee’s revenue share allocation that World Athletics receives every four years. In the strongest criticism, the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) said the move “undermines the values of Olympism and the uniqueness of the Games”.“One cannot and should not put a price on an Olympic gold medal,” it added. The head of one leading Olympic sport, International Cycling Union (UCI) president David Lappartient, made clear his displeasure. “If we concentrate money on top athletes, a lot of opportunities will disappear for athletes all over the world,” the Frenchman said.“We really believe that this is not the Olympic spirit. The proposal was not discussed.”It was not just the decision to pay prize money that annoyed Coe’s fellow federation chiefs. “ASOIF was neither informed nor consulted in advance of the announcement,” it said, adding “it is important and fair to discuss the matter at stake with the other federations in advance”.“What surprised everybody is that Coe took the decision unilaterally with one hour’s warning to the IOC and zero hours warning to other federations,” Michael Payne, a former IOC marketing director who retains close links to the body, said. “The view of the federations, not unreasonably, is that they have been thrown under a bus. What are you going to do only three months before Paris?” Payne said.Coe, a double Olympic 1500m champion in the 1980s, said his sport had long since ceased to be amateur “so it is very important that the sport recognises that change in landscape”.In a statement to AFP responding to the federations’ criticism, World Athletics said paying prize money was “about underscoring our unwavering commitment to empowering the athletes and recognising the critical role they play in the success of any Olympic Games”.The statement said it was impossible to put a “marketable value” on winning an Olympic medal. “But we think it is important to make sure some of the revenues generated by our athletes at the Olympic Games are directly returned to those who make the Games the global spectacle that it is,” World Athletics added.Athletics is traditionally the headline sport at any Olympics and athletes have welcomed the move. Karsten Warholm, the Olympic men’s 400m hurdles champion, said last week: “To be honest, anything offered in terms of a prize is good for the athletes, it’s motivation.”Coe’s British compatriots have been critical of the decision. “Now other sports are clearly going to get some scrutiny or even pressure from athletes saying: ‘Well what about our sport, how can this sport do it and not us?’” the British Olympic Association’s chief executive Andy Anson said. “It’s a debate we can have, but we need to have it at the right time, and the right place, and together.”It is not the first time Coe has followed a different path to other federations. He took the lead in adopting a hardline stance against Russia over the invasion of Ukraine, earning widespread praise for banning all athletes from Russia and Belarus from his sport.Payne though is scratching his head over Coe’s reasoning behind the prize money move. “He has always been independent,” the Irishman said. “He is also a very skilled and experienced political operator. He ran a brilliant campaign for London to win (the hosting of the 2012 Olympics). (But) this one I cannot make out.”This has fuelled suggestions Coe might be eyeing the IOC presidency when Thomas Bach vacates the seat next year. Payne believes that “if it was a presidential ploy, it was a gold medal of an own goal”. “Because who is electing the president? It’s the IOC members. Many of them are international federation presidents, who are apoplectic with rage.”

Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele said Kelvin Kiptum will always have a special place at the London Marathon after the Kenyan’s tragic death.Bekele, a three-time Olympic track champion, is gearing up for tomorrow’s latest edition of the race in the English capital. But the event will be overshadowed by the absence of long-distance runner Kiptum, who won last year’s London Marathon for the third time before dying in a car accident in February.Kiptum set a new London Marathon record time of two hours, one minute and 25 seconds last year and he was also the first man to run the marathon under two hours and one minute in Chicago. The 24-year-old’s death sent shockwaves through the sport and he will be remembered before Sunday’s race with 30 seconds of applause.Bekele, who won Olympic gold in both the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres at the 2008 Games in Beijing, has run the London Marathon five times, finishing as runner-up in 2017. The 41-year-old, who also has five World Championship titles on the track, is in no doubt of the lasting impact made by Kiptum.“Kelvin of course, all of us miss him. Even within his short time, he has been setting an amazing history,” Bekele said. “The course record is also under his name and we are all remembering him. We put him in a special place in our heart because in a really short time he has done a lot for our sport.”Bekele believes a lot of factors will come into play if Kiptum’s course record is to be challenged this weekend. “Most of the time in London, maybe the first half is a very fast start because of pacing, but with me it can depend,” he said. “I can read my body, listening to my feelings and of course the circumstances - like with the weather.”Ethiopia’s Tamirat Tola comes into London as the reigning New York Marathon champion, which followed on from his victory at the 2022 World Championship in Eugene. Tola, who claimed 10,000m bronze at the 2016 Rio Olympics, feels in good shape heading into Sunday’s showpiece race.“I have been working hard to prepare my body for the marathon in London,” he said. “My training is OK and my body is okay, so we will see (what happens) on Sunday.”Selection for this year’s Olympics in Paris could also be secured this weekend, but Tola said he will not let that distract his focus.