Heptathlon - The championships get off to a good start with
Sweden's Carolina Kluft bidding to extend her dominance in the heptathlon and
defend the title she won in Paris. Britain's Kelly Sotherton will be doing
everything she can to stop her, and add to the Olympic bronze she won in
Athens. Frenchwoman Eunice Barber, 1999 world champion and 2003 silver
medallist, however, leads the current world rankings.
Women's 10,000m - Paula Radcliffe, a silver medallist back in 1999, goes for Britain. Can she finally win global gold on the track and put her Olympic misery behind her?
August 7:
Men's 100m - The 100metres final promises to be typically explosive
with new world record holder Asafa Powell taking on Olympic champion Justin
Gatlin. Defending champion Kim Collins will be determined to prove his triumph
in Paris was not a one-off.
Heptathlon - The women's multi-event competition reaches a conclusion. Will Kelly Sotherton add to her medal tally? And can anyone stop Carolina Kluft?
August 8:
Men's 10,000m - The highlight of day three is undoubtedly the men's
10,000m final with Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele a red-hot favourite for his second
world title. Only injury or a fall looks like preventing the world record holder
from claiming victory.
August 9:
Men's 3,000m steeplechase - The event may not be packed with household names, but this race always seems to produce one of the memorable moments of these or any other championships.
August 10:
Women's pole vault - A massive crowd stayed until past midnight to
watch last year's thrilling Olympic final and the same can be expected again as
Yelena Isinbayeva - who cleared the magical five-metre mark in London recently - aims to displace compatriot Svetlana Feofanova as world
champion. The competition could push Isinbayeva to yet another world record.
Poland's Anna Rogowska will provide stiff competition.
Decathlon - The best male multi-eventers reach their finale and we'll discover who is the best all-round athlete in the world.
August 11:
Men's triple jump - Nathan Douglas' progression this season means Britain no longer has to har back to the memories of Jonathan Edwards. If Douglas continues his recent form, he could snatch a medal here.
August 12:
Men's 400m - The Americans will be out to reproduce their 1-2-3
from Athens, when Jeremy Wariner led home his team-mates to Olympic glory. But
Canada's Tyler Christopher will be keen to cause an upset on behalf of the USA's
closest neighbour, while Briton Tim Benjamin will be hopeful of shaking things up after beating Wariner in London recently.
Men's 110m hurdles - Veteran Allen Johnson is going for his fifth
world title, at the age of 34, but faces a tough task against joint world record
holder Liu Xiang of China and France's Ladji Doucoure, a recent winner in
Paris.
August 13:
Men's 4x100m relay - Britain's sprint quartet will be under
pressure to repeat their stunning Olympic triumph, especially with the Americans
desperate to gain revenge for their surprise reversal in Athens. Expect
fireworks and a few nervous baton changes.
August 14:
Women's marathon - Potentially the perfect start to the final day's
programme with Paula Radcliffe hoping to extinguish memories of her Athens
nightmare with victory around the streets of Helsinki. The pressure will be
immense, but Radcliffe proved she could bounce back by winning in New York
shortly after the Olympics, and will be a big favourite again.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Part of 365 Media Group
