LONDON – The IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) has confirmed that the Confederation of African Athletics (CAA) will choose its team based on the finishes at the recent 21st African Athletics Championships (AAC) which concluded in Asaba, Nigeria
The IAAF Continental Cup takes place in Ostrava, Czech Republic, from September 8-9 and is a two-day competition. Several freshly-minted continental champions, including 100 and 200m winner Josee Marie Ta Lou of Ivory Coast, 400 and 800m winner Caster Semenya of South Africa and men's 800m champion Nijel Amos of Botswana, are expected to compete.
Each team will enter two athletes for each individual event and one team for each relay (maximum six athletes). Unlike the 2014 edition, there are no limits on the number of athletes entered from any one country. Additionally, at least three athletes from the host country shall form part of their continental team. Each team may also enter up to a maximum of three overall reserve athletes. The deadline for final entries is August 29.
Semenya cemented her position as Africa's track queen at the AAC, shattering the South African 400m record on her way to the golden double. She chopped 0.09 seconds off the record Heide Seyerling set in Sydney in 2000, and now boasts the South African 400m, 800m and 1 500m records. The feat also saw her become the first woman in history to dip below 50 seconds, two minutes and four minutes in the 400m, 800m, and 1 500m respectively.
This year marks the third edition of the IAAF Continental Cup, the successor to ten editions of the IAAF World Cup in Athletics whose inaugural edition took place in Dusseldorf in September 1977. The IAAF Continental Cup Ostrava 2018 will be the largest sporting event hosted by the Czech Republic this year.
— Caster Semenya (@caster800m) August 4, 2018