European Athletics launches IAAF Diamond League

European Athletics has said the coming months will see major changes in the structure of elite athletics meetings, both in Europe and worldwide, thanks to the launch of the IAAF Diamond League.

Ten of the 14 Diamond League meetings will be held on the continent.

The 2010 calendar consists of 11 European Athletics Outdoor Premium Meetings and 16 European Athletics Outdoor Classic Meetings.

José Luis de Carlos, European Athletics first vice-president, said: "I'm pleased to see that the IAAF Diamond League has the same orientation that we have decided upon for the European Athletics meetings, the way that 50 per cent of the main championship programme should be at each meeting so that there is no overlap between events and meetings.

"This is a philosophy that we had developed at the European Athletics Convention in Amsterdam two years ago. Now we have to work hard to develop and integrate what I call the 'pyramid', that is with the Diamond League at the top, then the IAAF World Challenge meetings, then the European Athletics Premium and Classic Meetings.

"We are trying to have the same rules as the IAAF events, although obviously we can't be the same as them in terms of prize money, but having the same kind of rationale with the spread of the events will provide opportunities for many European athletes that they didn't have before.

"In the past, if you were a 100m or 1500m runner, you had quite a lot of opportunities to compete. It wasn't the same if you competed in, let's say, the women's 3000m steeplechase or the men's Discus. Now, with the new system that has been adopted by the IAAF and European Athletics meetings, we are offering more possibilities to Europe's leading athletes in every discipline.

De Carlos also outlined European Athletics' broad strategy for one-day meetings in the immediate future.

"Our main goal was to create a coherent system and structure and to have the top athletes competing at these meetings on a regular basis.

"Our target now has to be to build up the quality of the individual meetings themselves. There are many things that we have to try to do simultaneously but there are three key points that European Athletics is looking at for the future.

"We have to try to provide financial support for the meetings, so we are looking for sponsors. I have to be honest and say that we have been unlucky that the European-wide economic crisis has happened at a time when we believe that we are getting the right structure for the European Athletics one-day meetings.

"It has been difficult to get sponsorship for the Premium and Classic Meetings and this is the next challenge. This is an important way in which we can enhance the image and brand of European Athletics and support the meetings.

"Secondly, we also have to improve event presentation and get meeting organisers thinking hard about this issue, which is why we have planned the first European Athletics seminar for event presentation (this was scheduled for 24-25 April in Brussels and is now rescheduled for later this year because of the European airspace closures following the volcanic eruption in Iceland). We will have experts in this field there and bring together many of the Premium and Classic Meeting organisers.

"This is very important as we can show how the meetings can be more attractive to TV viewers and local spectators, and how we can increase the overall quality of the presentation.

"The themes will include how you can integrate the meeting programme with the TV broadcast and we also insist that meetings are no longer than two hours. It's no longer useful to have meetings that are three or four hours long because European Athletics meetings are fighting with other sports and other spectacles for the attention of the TV viewer, who has many options that were not there a decade ago.

"Thirdly, we want to have many more European athletes competing in European Athletics meetings.

"The rules are now very clear about this. In each event, no more than three athletes from any individual countries can compete. This ensures that, for instance, there are not 10 runners from Kenya in a 5000m race. Combined with this rule is another one which states the minimum number of countries from Europe which have to be present.

"In the past there has been a perception that athletes from outside Europe were steadily increasing at European Athletics meetings and this, in turn, restricted opportunities for European athletes. We want to reverse this trend,” explained de Carlos.

De Carlos is quietly confident that in three to five years European Athletics will have a one-day meeting structure in place that athletes, officials and fans alike will be able to say has gone from being good to great.