The Athletics Bridge () is an annual track and field meeting which takes place at the Mestský štadión in Dubnica nad Váhom, Slovakia. As one of the European Athletics Outdoor Classic Meetings, it is typically among of the last competitions held in the European summer track and field circuit.
The meeting was first held in 2003 and started life in Banská Bystrica, another Slovak city. Taking inspiration from the IAAF Golden League, the organising committee (headed by Milan Hort) set about creating their own national version. Consisting of a two-day "double meet", it mirrored the jackpot format with 250,000 Slovak Crowns being divided up between athletes who won an event on both days.. European Athletics. Retrieved on 2011-09-17. The first edition mainly attracted Slovak, Hungarian and Ukrainian athletes, but the second gained European Athletics status and expanded to include other Europeans and African athletes. The following two years saw top level athletes compete, with eight World Championships medallists taking part in 2005, and ten medallists from the 2006 European Athletics Championships being in attendance the next year.History Athletics Bridge . Atletika Dubnica. Retrieved on 2011-09-17.
The Athletics Bridge meet was beset with financial difficulties in 2007 and as a result the Dubnica nad Váhom-based Atletický Klub Spartak Dubnica decided to take on the organisation of the meeting from then onwards. Changing to the more traditional one-day meeting format, it became allied with the Euro Meetings group and Hort remained as the meet director, with Alfons Juck serving as the competition manager.2007 Athletics Bridge. Euro Meetings. Retrieved on 2011-09-17. A wide variety of top-level athletes were present that year (including Roman Sebrle, Dayron Robles, Yargelis Savigne, Koji Murofushi and Ezekiel Kemboi) and the event attracted around 3700 people (the highest ever for an athletics event in Dubnica). In 2008, fourteen medalists from the 2008 Beijing Olympics entered the competition. Olympic gold medallist in the 110 metres hurdles, Dayron Robles, provided the meet highlight with a run of 12.95 seconds despite a strong headwind. Around 6000 people saw the meet in 2009 and the 2010 edition was host to a Slovak record through Lucia Klocová's run of 4:08.86 minutes in the 1500 metres. Cementing its position as Slovakia's foremost one-day athletics meet, some 17 world championship medallists were present in 2011.
Meet records
Men
+Men's meeting records of the Athletics Bridge Event Record Athlete Nationality Date 100 m10.01 Nesta Carter26 August 2012200 m20.59Steve Mullings6 September 2009Records of meetings , Athletics Bridge website, accessed 23 September 2011400 m45.75LaShawn Merritt15 September 2011600 m1:17.10Tamás Kazi21 August 2013800 m1:45.82Edwin Melly26 August 20121000 m2:17.08Abraham Rotich26 August 20125000 m14:52.60Miroslav Vanko16 September 2007110 m hurdles12.95Dayron Robles2008 3000 m steeplechase8:12.27Bernard Mbugua15 September 2011High jump2.33 mDerek Drouin21 August 2013Pole vault5.68 mJan Kudlička21 August 2013Shot put21.61 mChristian Cantwell2006 Hammer throw82.53 mIvan Tsikhan2005 Javelin throw81.20 mAinārs Kovals2005 3000 m walk11:00.68Antón Kučmín21 August 2013
Women
+Women's meeting records of the Athletics Bridge Event Record Athlete Nationality Date 100 m11.17 Schillonie Calvert15 September 2011200 m22.91LaVerne Jones-Ferrette6 September 2009400 m50.77Olesya Krasnomovets2005 800 m2:00.88Yuliya Rusanova15 September 20111000 m2:38.48Brenda Martinez26 August 20121500 m4:26.51Élodie Olivares16 September 2007100 m hurdles12.95 Queen Harrison21 August 2013400 m hurdles59.38Miriam Hrdlicková16 September 20072000 m steeplechase6:16.95Milcah Chemos21 August 20133000 m steeplechase9:30.82Lydia Chepkurui26 August 2012High jump1.97 mSvetlana Shkolina26 August 2012Pole vault4.50 mJiřina Ptáčníková15 September 2011Long jump6.64 mJana Velďáková16 September 2007Triple jump14.65 mYargelis Savigne16 September 2007Shot put20.83 mValerie Adams15 September 2011Hammer throw78.22 mAnita Włodarczyk21 August 2013
References
External links Official website Meeting records