The man most likely to steal the show at the series’ first meeting in Germiston on Friday night will have cost them virtually nothing.
Unlike most of the international athletes competing in the series, Marcus la Grange has yet to learn what it’s like to be a member of the professional elite. But he goes into the 400m at the Herman Immelman stadium knowing that a run anything like the one that swept him to the national title in Durban a fortnight ago will assure him of not only the South African record but also a performance that would probably make him the athlete of the series.
The 24 year-old from Bellville blasted out of the blocks at the South African Championships leaving, among others, Hendrik Mokganyetsi trailing in his wake. In years gone by La Grange might have buckled in the home straight. But two weeks ago he just kept on going and clocked 44,76sec to win his first national 400m title. It wasn’t, however, his first national title. In fact, it serves as an illustration of La Grange’s class and versatility that he can now claim to have been a national senior champion at five different disciplines. The other four are the 100m, 200m, 110m hurdles and the long jump.
At Durban the wind blew and it was without the benefit of Germiston’s high altitude. And it is that, coupled with a hard surface, which makes the Herman Immelman stadium one of the fastest sprinting surfaces in the world. The record stands at 44,59sec — held jointly by Arnaud Malherbe and Mokganyetsi — and a run on par with his Durban performance will surely establish a new mark.
An added dimension to the 400m on Friday is the inclusion of Olympic silver medallist Alvin Harrison. The American has been here before and comes in fine form. Remarkably, Harrison’s name is the only one above La Grange in the 2002 world rankings. He spent several weeks earlier this season in Australia and clocked 44,75sec in Newcastle in February.
Whatever happens on the track, the biggest talking point over the next two weeks is likely to be the future of the Engen Series. Outside of individual meetings in Australia, where appearance and prize money have been bolstered by their sanction as International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) grand prix events, the three Engen meetings have come to be regarded as the most competitive series in the southern hemisphere. But the failing currency is having its effect and though the cracks have yet to appear, the man charged with putting together the international contingent admits his task has been ”very difficult” this year.
Twenty-five years ago, meeting promoter Andy Norman was the man who got the brand of two- or three-hour track and field spectaculars off the ground. So he knows how to put on a show. He also knows how to make relatively little spread far and wide. But his skills are being tested more than ever before with an appearance budget worth about 40% less in dollar terms than 12 months ago. The Engen contract with Athletics South Africa has just one more season to run and it’s already being speculated that 2003 may be the last of the Engen Series.
Norman’s recipe for success has always been matching up South Africa’s best with top international opposition. That’s why the three fastest men indoors over 60m this year have been signed up to test our own new sprinting hope. Americans Tim Montgomery, Marcus Brunson and Shaun Crawford will line up against Morne Nagel in Pretoria next Friday for what will be the finest 100m race yet seen in South Africa. In Germiston, the feature sprint is over 200m when Brunson, Crawford and Nagel compete. Montgomery doesn’t arrive until next week.
The manner of Llewellyn Herbert’s victory in the 400m hurdles at the national championships suggested he’s in the sort of form to break 48 seconds in either Germiston or Pretoria and he’s been matched up with compatriot Alwyn Myburgh as well as the American James Carter. It’s anyone’s guess what sort of shape Carter will be in — he hasn’t yet competed this year — but at 48,44sec in 2001 and one place behind the Olympic bronze medallist in Sydney he deserves to be respected.
The pick of the field events in Germiston is the men’s discus where the world’s top three meet. You won’t find a more classy line-up than Frantz Kruger against the reigning Olympic champion Virgilijus Alekna and world champion Lars Riedel.
Despite the woes of the local currency this promises to be as good as any Engen Series we’ve ever seen. The only sad development has been the withdrawal of Jan Zelezny. The world’s greatest javelin thrower has hurt his back.