Kishane Thompson ready to lower the world lead in Silesia - Trackalerts.com, track and field news website

Jamaica’s top sprinter will face the starter in the men’s 100m in Silesia, Poland, on Sunday, 25 August, as the Diamond League continues its European journey.

Kishane Thompson, who narrowly missed the gold in Paris by five-thousandths of a second, will be eager to put that disappointment behind him. All eyes will be on the clock to see if Thompson will produce the time that was expected in Paris. He will have Olympic bronze medallist and 2022 World Champion Fred Kerley and Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs to push him all the way. Two other Jamaicans, Ackeem Blake and Rohan Watson will also be in the race.

At the Lausanne event, Dina Asher-Smith delivered an impressive performance with her swift 10.88 run in the women’s 100m race. After facing some challenges in the past few years, the 2019 Diamond League champion showcased her top form at the Athletissima meet by outpacing a competitive field that included British athlete Daryll Neita, Ivorian legend Marie-Josée Ta Lou-Smith, and the USA’s Tamari Davis. This victory marked her first Diamond League win in two years and her first win outside her home country since 2021. Asher-Smith will line up against a similar field on Sunday. She knows winning is a habit and will aim to continue her momentum with another victory.

I always knew I had the talent" - Masai Russell Claims Paris 2024 Olympic Gold in 100m Hurdles — Masai Russell

After winning a gold medal in Paris, American Masai Russell will enter as an Olympic champion for the first time. Russell is eager to achieve another career milestone. Despite participating in numerous Diamond League events, the 24-year-old has yet to secure a win. She can change that when she competes against Paris bronze medallist Cyréna Samba-Mayela, two-time world champion Danielle Williams of Jamaica, and red-hot Puerto Rican Jasmine Camacho-Quinn. A victory could boost Russell’s sixth-place Diamond League ranking, but she will need another stunning run. Camacho-Quinn, is showing signs of returning to her best form. Her impressive victory in 12.35 in Lausanne should boost her confidence. Her showdown with the Olympic champion will allow her to get revenge for that painful loss.

Commonwealth champion Rasheed Broadbell will again lock horns with Olympic champion Grant Holloway in the men’s 110m hurdles. Broadbell defeated Holloway in Lausanne, and the American claimed afterwards that it was tough to maintain his motivation after winning in Paris. Holloway does not lose often and will no doubt return to reverse the placings. Other worthy contenders in this event are Daniel Roberts, who edged Broadbell for silver in Paris and Orlando Bennett, who faded badly in the Paris final after promising so much in the semifinals.

In the men’s 200m, newly minted Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo should put on another masterclass if he is not tired. In a recent interview, legendary coach Glen Mills showered praise on Tebogo and earmarked him as the man most likely to challenge Usain Bolt’s record of 19.19 seconds. American duo Kenneth Bednarek and Erriyon Knighton should prove Tebogo’s biggest threat.

The women’s 400m should provide plenty of fireworks like New Year’s Eve. Reigning Olympic champion Marileidy Paulino, who climbed to fourth on the all-time list with her victory in 48.17, will seek to go even faster. She will have for company the woman who is ahead of her on the all-time list and runner-up in Paris in Salwa Eid Naser (48.14). Interestingly, this event features another five finalists from Paris, including Irish star Rhasidat Adeleke, bronze medallist Natalia Kaczmarek of Poland, USA’s Alexis Holmes and Barbadian record-holder Sada Williams.

Norwegian superstar Karsten Warholm should revert to winning ways in the men’s 400m hurdles. His main rivals, Rai Benjamin, the Olympic champion, and Alison dos Santos, the 2022 World champion, are missing in action. World U20 record-holder Roshawn Clarke, who failed to finish in Paris, will be hoping to make amends. His compatriot Jaheel Hyde will seek a season’s best in a quality field. Qatar star Abderrahman Samba is slowly returning to the level which once saw him as the man to beat before injury stalled his progress.

The women’s equivalent will see a Jamaican quartet led by Paris finalists Rushell Clayton and Shiann Salmon take on Femke Bol and the American trio Anna Cockrell, Shamier Little and former world record-holder Dalilah Muhammad. Bol should relish the opportunity of facing Cockrell, who ran past her in France to claim silver in a lifetime best of 51.87 seconds.

The men’s 800m race has been incredibly exciting this year. There have been thrilling photo finishes, intense duels, and impressive times as top athletes have pushed each other to new heights throughout the season. In 2024, four of the ten fastest times recorded in the event have been posted, and the trend shows no signs of slowing down.

Just last Thursday in Lausanne, Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi set a breathtaking world lead of 1:41.11, making him the second fastest man of all time and bringing him within a fifth of a second of David Rudisha’s world record. Wanyonyi, the reigning Olympic and Diamond League champion, will be competing against Paris silver medallist Marco Arop, Kenyan rival Wycliffe Kinyamal, and European champion Gabriel Tual as he seeks to qualify for the final and defend his Diamond Trophy next month.

The men’s pole vault will feature six men who have cleared 6m. However, it will take a courageous individual to bet against Armand Duplantis winning and setting another world record.

The men’s shot put should be interesting for varying reasons. Ryan Crouser has had to overcome a challenging season. After dealing with injury problems at the beginning of the year, the American suffered a surprising defeat to Leonardo Fabbri in his only Diamond League appearance. This raised doubt about his ability to defend his Olympic title in Paris.

However, like all the great champions, Crouser delivered when it mattered most. He returns to Diamond League action on Sunday as a double Olympic gold medallist, and he can now set his sights on a second Diamond Trophy, a prize that has often eluded him in past seasons. Crouser has only been crowned Diamond League champion once, in 2021. A win here in Silesia would send him to Brussels and give him a shot at title number two. Jamaica’s Shanieka Ricketts will contest the women’s triple jump, facing off with bronze medallist Jasmine Moore and Cuban star Leyanis Perez Hernandez.

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