The Middle Distances in Barcelona
At the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona this week, the middle distance running events look certain to please spectators.
While the absence of non-European runners significantly lowers the personal bests of the starting lineups, there will nonetheless be a handful of talented middle distance runners fighting for the gold medal in each event.
Several teams are fielding runners strong enough to challenge the best runners from outside Europea. In particular, the Russian team could make a sweep for medals in the middle distances.
800m - An Open Contest
In the women's 800m final on Friday, Russia will be the team to beat. Mariya Savinova, who recently set a personal best of 1:57.56, has been in great form this season and is tipped to take the gold medal.
Her teammates Tatyana Andriaonova and Svetlana Klyuka are also poised to aim for the podium. Klyuka, 31, finished second in the 2006 European championships.
With a season's best of 1:58.89, British sprinter Jennifer Meadows will be looking to challenge the Russian runners.
Having won the bronze medal in the 2009 World championships in Berlin, 29-year-old Meadows may challenge Savinova for the gold medal.
Klyuka and Meadows had the two best times in Tuesday's first round, separated only by 0.01 seconds.
The quickest man over 800m this season has been Polish runner Marcin Lewandowski, having clocked 1:44.30 in 2010.
Dutchman Bram Som, who recently ran in 1:44.58 at his national championships, will also contend for a place on the podium.
Briton Michael Rimmer's recent personal best of 1:44.49 renders him a strong contender.
Lewandowski beat Rimmer to first place in Lausanne in June. Jakub Holusa from the Czeh Republic will be another runner to watch in the final on Saturday.
Holusa clocked a personal best of 1:45.56 in Moscow in June this year.
1500m in the Shadow of Baala
With French two-time European champion Medhi Baala absent from the tournament, the men's 1500m final should see an enticing battle between British and Spanish runners.
Briton Andy Baddeley is the fastest European this year, having clocked 3:34.50 in Gateshead earlier this month. Just after him is teammate Tom Lancashire, who has run in 3:34.87 this season.
Spanish national champion Manuel Olmedo and Arturo Casado, who ran 3:34.09 in 2007, will also be runners to watch in Friday's evening final.
The women's 1500m will see a strong lineup, with three runners having clocked under 4 minutes at the Diamond League Meeting in Paris on July 16.
Out of that trio, it is Anna Alminova of Russia who is favourited to claim the gold in Barcelona.
Alminova ran in 3:57.65 in Paris, a personal best and the fastest time recorded this year. British contestant Lisa Dobriskey and French runner Hind Dehiba will pose the main threat to Alminova's title hopes.
Dehiba ran 3:59.76 in Paris, while Dobriskey finished in 3:59.79 at the British nationals.The women's 1500m final will be run on Sunday evening.
French Duel in the 3000m Steeplechase
The men's 3000m steeplechase promises a great duel between French runners Bouabdallah Tahri and Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad.
Tahri finished third in the 2009 world championships in Berlin by clocking 8:01.18, a European record, while Mekhissi-Benabbad won the silver medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Tahri recently beat Mekhissi-Benabbad at the French nationals by a narrow margin of 0.07 seconds. All signs point to his duel being something special to look for in Barcelona.
Spain's Marta Dominguez is a clear home favourite in the women's 3000m steeplechase, having won the 5000m event in Munich 2002 and Gothenburg 2006.
Switching events to the short steeplechase last year proved a wise decision, as Dominguez won the gold medal in the Berlin world championships that season.
Her main contender in Friday's final will be Russian athlete and runner-up from Berlin Yuliya Zarudneva. Zarudneva has a personal best of 9:08.39, just behind Dominguez' 9:07.32.
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