MOSCOW, Russia — After months of anticipation and preparation, the 14th IAAF World Championships are set to get under way at the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow, Saturday morning local time, late Friday night Jamaica time.

Moscow is nine hours ahead of Jamaica.

After months of preparation following the fireworks at the London Olympic Games about 12 months ago, expectations will be high for the Jamaicans with global sprinting superstar Usain Bolt leading the charge from the first day when he runs in the first round of the men’s 100m.

Michael Clarke, head coach of the 44-member Jamaican delegation, told Jamaican reporters yesterday after training that the team was “ready” to start the medal hunt.

Despite two days of rain that affected the training sessions, the sun was out yesterday and was welcomed by the coaches and the athletes who went through a full session.

Clarke said the Jamaicans knew what to expect from the competition but were all set to try and better the nine medals — four golds, four silver and a bronze — won in Daegu, South Korea, two years ago.

“The vibes are good, the camaraderie is good and we are expecting a good championships,” Clarke said.

Eight Jamaicans will be in action on the first day. They are Bolt, Kemar Bailey-Cole, Nickel Ashmeade and Nesta Carter who came in for the injured defending champion Yohan Blake in the men’s 100m; Stephenie-Ann McPherson, Novlene Williams Mills and Patricia Hall in the first round of the women’s 400m, and also long jumper Francine Simpson who will compete in the preliminaries.

Unlike last year, however, when the Jamaicans went into the English capital riding a wave, there will be some dark clouds surrounding the camp after six athletes, including three premier sprinters, retuned positive tests for banned substances earlier this year.

Veronica Campbell Brown will give up her 200m title without a fight after she was suspended after testing positive for a stimulant at the Jamaica International Invitational in May, while former World Record holder Asafa Powell and Sherone Simpson, the latter who was second in the 100m and 200m at the JAAA National Trials in June, will also be absent after also testing positive for a stimulant.

The rash of tests have seen several pundits raise doubts about the credibility of the drug testing in Jamaica, but Bolt and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce who will both be chasing sprint double titles, have been quoted as saying they hoped their performances here will help to redeem the good name of Jamaica’s track and field product.

Meanwhile, anticipation which has been building is soon to reach fever pitch as the time draws close to the start of the event, with the host nation hoping for a bounty of medals infront of what is expected to be sold out sessions from the start.

The male sprinters will not start their campaign until in the second session of the first day after the preliminary rounds of the men’s 100m at 1:10 am Saturday Jamaica time. Ten qualifiers from the four heats will advance to the first round proper that starts at 11:15 am Jamaica time, 8:15 pm Moscow time.

While Bolt is the red-hot favourite to retain the title he won in Berlin in 2009, but failed to defend two years ago in Daegu, South Korea, after being disqualified for a false start, the other medals could be up

for grabs.

American Justin Gatlin has put himself at the head of the line for the silver medal, but will have to answer to the other Jamaicans which will be led by Carter and Bailey-Cole.

Carter has shown his pedigree with a 9.87 second-run to win the event at a meeting in Spain, but Bailey-Cole has done little since his superb 9.96 seconds to finish second behind Bolt at the JAAA National Senior Trials in June. Under the guidance of coach Glen Mills, he could be biding his time to shine.

At a media day session yesterday, Bailey-Cole said his performance at the London Olympics last year where he won a gold medal as part of the men’s 4x100m relay team has helped to get him ready for his first time running an individual event for Jamaica at this level.

“I am not nervous at all, the objective is just to go from round to round and on to the final and hopefully a medal, any medal will do,” he said.

Little has been seen of Ashmeade since Trials, but the 200m finalist in Daegu is a proven competitor and

is expected to show his class on the big stage.

Also biding her time is young 400m phenom McPherson who has opened lots of eyes this season with a series of outstanding runs leading up to her fourth personal best of the year running 49.92 seconds in Monaco.

She will open her first ever national team campaign at 6:21 pm Moscow time, (9:21 am Jamaica time running in the third heat and in lane four where she has the fastest seed time and should qualify for the second round easily. American Francine McCorory is the only other athlete in the heat who has run under 50.00 seconds.

The top four from each of the five heats plus the next four fastest times will advance to the second round set for Sunday.

Novlene Williams Mills, a former bronze medal winner is in the next heat, running out of lane two and faces the dangerous Russian Ksenia Ryzhova.

William Mills, who has battled breast cancer, said she would be enjoying her fourth World Championships a little more.

After being diagnosed with breast cancer just over a year ago and undergoing a double mastectomy that affected her preparations, Williams Mills told reporters yesterday, “this one is a little bit more special as I am competing for breast cancer survivors everywhere”.

Despite her medical struggles, Williams-Mills who was laughing a lot during the interview and having fun, said as per usual the expectations are to go out and have a

good championships. “The circumstances may change but the goals do not change,” she said.

Hall competes in the final heat of the event, running from lane six, right next to defending champion and favourite Amantle Montsho

of Bostwana.

Simpson, who won the Central American and Caribbean Senior Games gold medal in Mexico recently, may need to beat her personal best 6.67m set earlier this year if she is to get the 6.75m automatic qualifying mark and get past the first round of the long jump.