PARIS – The 2003 World Outdoor Track & Field Championships get under way Saturday in the Stade de France as three finals – including a final in one of Team USA’s strongest events, the men’s shot put – are among the contested events. Below is a preview of the Saturday’s competition.

FINALS

Men’s shot put 
Qualifying 8:30 a.m.
U.S. entrants: Kevin Toth (Hudson, Ohio), John Godina (Northridge, Calif.), Reese Hoffa (Athens, Ga.), Adam Nelson (Winterville, Ga.)
THE SCOOP: Three-time world champion (’97, ’97, ’01) John Godina, 2000 Olympic and 2001 World Championships silver medalist Adam Nelson, 2003 U.S. champion and world leader Kevin Toth, and 2003 Pan Am Games gold medalist Reese Hoffa are vying for a sweep in an event that is among the strongest in history for Team USA. American athletes have won four gold medals, two silver and three bronze in the shot in World Championships competition. Adding to the intrigue is that the order of finish within the U.S. team could vary on any given day. Toth (22.67m/74-4.5 world leader) and Hoffa (20.95/68-8.75) both have thrown personal bests this year; Toth’s throw is 2 feet, 5.5 inches further than the next-best thrower in the world this year, Carl Myerscough of Great Britain. Nelson (back) and Godina (finger) have battled injury this year, but both are fit, ready to throw, and ready to compete for a gold medal.

Men’s 20,000m race walk
8:30 a.m.
U.S. entrant: Kevin Eastler (Fort Collins, Colo.)
THE SCOOP: Eastler will try to improve on Team USA’s best-ever finish in the 20 km race walk, an 18th-place finish by Allen James in 1993. The 2003 U.S. champion in the event, Eastler was the top finisher for the U.S. at the 2003 Pan Am Race Walk Cup, placing fifth, and is in the top form of his career. He is listed as having the third-best time in the world in the event so far this year.

Women’s 10,000m run
8:15 p.m.
U.S. entrants: Deena Drossin (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.), Elva Dryer (Albuquerque, N.M.)
THE SCOOP: Deena Drossin has established herself as among the world elite in women’s distance running. Her more recent feat is breaking the American record in the marathon with her time of 2:21:16 at the 2003 Flora London Marathon. She is a two-time silver medalist (2002, 2003) at the World Cross Country Championships, and she owns the American record in the 10,000 meters. Drossin typically runs aggressively to avoid getting into a kicker’s battle, and she will look to improve on her 11th-place finish at the World Outdoor Championships. Dryer is the U.S. runner-up and 2000 Olympian at 5,000 meters, and she has the fastest time by an American so far this year (31:26.88).

QUALIFYING ROUNDS

Women’s heptathlon Day 1 (100m hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200m)
8:45 a.m.
U.S. entrants: Kim Schiemenz (Greeley, Colo.)
THE SCOOP: The two-time NCAA Division II heptathlon champion while at Northern Colorado, Schiemenz was the U.S. runner-up and set her personal best of 6,209 points this year in her hometown of Greeley, Colorado.

Women’s 100m
1st round 10:30 a.m., 2nd round 7:40 p.m.
U.S. entrants: Kelli White (Union City, Calif.), Torri Edwards (Los Angeles, Calif.), Gail Devers (Lawrenceville, Ga.)
THE SCOOP: A strong event for the U.S. has its first rounds of competition, pointed toward Sunday’s semifinal and final rounds. The 2003 U.S. 100 and 200m champion White must be considered a co-favorite with Chandra Sturrup of the Bahamas, whom she defeated in their last meeting, in Berlin. White was a finalist in this event at the 2001 Worlds (7th). Edwards ran the 100, 200 and 4x100m relay at the 2000 Olympics, but 2003 has been the best season of her career. The 2003 U.S. runner-up to White in both the 100 and 200, running PRs of 11.05 and 22.28. Devers is a wildcard, competing in the 100 meters at the World Championships exactly 10 years after she won the event in 1993. The 100 hurdles will be Devers’ bread-and-butter, but she is as fit as ever and could be an “X-factor” in the sprint.

Men’s triple jump
10:45 a.m.
U.S. entrants: Kenta Bell (Chula Vista, Calif.), Walter Davis (Baton Rouge, La.), Tim Rusan (Raleigh, N.C.)
THE SCOOP: Bell is the 2003 U.S. champion and the 2001 World University Games gold medalist; Davis is the 2003 World Indoor Championships bronze medalist and was a two-time NCAA champion; Rusan is a two-time U.S. indoor champion and is the oldest of this youthful threesome, at age 25. Look for all three to advance to the final.

Women’s discus 
4:10 p.m., 5:55 p.m.
U.S. entrants: Aretha Hill (Opelika, Ala.), Suzy Powell (Modesto, Calif.), Kris Kuehl (Minneapolis, Minn.)
THE SCOOP: A 1996 Olympian, Hill won her first U.S. title in 2003 (she was four times a runner-up). Powell is a five-time U.S. runner-up, and Kuehl is the 2002 U.S. champion and was the top-ranked U.S. thrower of 2002. All three women were ranked in the top 10 in the world in 2002, making this a renaissance event for Team USA.

Men’s 400 meters first round
4:35 p.m.
U.S. entrants: Tyree Washington (San Diego, Calif.), Calvin Harrison (Salinas, Calif.), Jerome Young (Fort Worth, Texas)
THE SCOOP: 2003 World Indoor champion and 1997 World Outdoor bronze medalist Tyree Washington leads a strong U.S. contingent in the 400. Harrison won Olympic gold in the 4x400m relay in 2000, while Young is a two-time (’98, ’99) U.S. champion and a seasoned international competitor.

Women’s pole vault qualifying
4:40 p.m.
U.S. entrants: Stacy Dragila (Tucson, Ariz.), Jillian Schwartz (Jonesboro, Ark.), Mary Sauer (San Dimas, Calif.), Becky Holliday (Eugene, Ore.)
THE SCOOP: Always an unpredictable event, anything can happen in the pole vault. Stacy Dragila is the two-time defending champion and Olympic gold medalist, and 2002 U.S. indoor champion Mary Sauer competed at the 2001 Worlds, where she placed 12th. They are joined by two young vaulters, 2003 U.S. runner-up and 2001 NCAA runner-up Jillian Schwartz, and 2003 NCAA champion Becky Holliday.

Women’s 800m qualifying
5:25 p.m.
U.S. entrants: Jearl Miles-Clark (Knoxville, Tenn.), Jen Toomey (Salem, Mass.)
THE SCOOP: Veteran Jearl Miles-Clark looks to add an 800m medal to her 1993 World Championships gold. 2002 U.S. runner-up Jen Toomey makes her World Outdoor Championships debut.

Men’s high jump qualifying
5:40 p.m.
U.S. entrants: Jamie Nieto (Chula Vista, Calif.), Matt Hemingway (Denver, Colo.), Tora Harris (College Park, Ga.)
THE SCOOP: Jamie Nieto is the surprise of the season, winning his first U.S. title and jumping well in Europe. 2002 U.S. indoor champion Matt Hemingway and 2002 NCAA indoor and outdoor champ Tora Harris, like Nieto, also compete at the World Championships for the first time.

Men’s 1,500m 1st round
6 p.m.
U.S. entrant: Jason Lunn (Redwood City, Calif.)
THE SCOOP: A two-time U.S. indoor champion, Lunn won his first outdoor title in 2003 and competes on the World Outdoor stage for the first time.

Men’s 3,000m steeplechase 1st round
7 p.m.
U.S. entrants: Steve Slattery (Boulder, Colo.), Daniel Lincoln (Fayetteville, Ark.), Robert Gary (Columbus, Ohio)
THE SCOOP: A talented trio compete in one of the most competitive events in the world, dominated by African runners. Slattery is the U.S. champion and the 2002 U.S. and NCAA runner-up; Lincoln is a three-time NCAA champion (2001-2003) and the 2003 NCAA 10 km champion; Gary was a 1996 Olympian and was the 2003 U.S. 4 km cross country champion.