LJ van Zyl continued his fine early season momentum with a convincing 48.11 victory in Doha (© Jiro Mochizuki)
Reigning World Champions Phillips Idowu and Brittney Reese; Renaud Lavillenie, the world’s new top pole vaulter; and emerging hurdles star LJ van Zyl are among the athletes named to the star-studded lineup for the Samsung Diamond League adidas Grand Prix on 11 June.
Idowu will face Christian Olsson in what promises to be a fascinating match-up between Triple Jump champions, while van Zyl tops off a deep 400m Hurdles field that already includes the top three hurdlers in the world last year: Bershawn “Batman” Jackson, Kerron Clement and Javier Culson.
In its seventh year as one of the premier track-and-field events in the world, the adidas Grand Prix, at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island, is the sixth stop on the international Samsung Diamond League circuit. More than two dozen Olympic and World Champions – including Blanka Vlašic, Tyson Gay, Jeremy Wariner, Jessica Ennis, Allyson Felix, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Bernard Lagat – are among the superstars expected.
Idowu, one of Great Britain’s brightest stars heading toward the London Olympics, is the reigning World Champion and Olympic silver medallist. His jump of 17.59m in winning the Compeed Rome Golden Gala last week is the farthest he has ever jumped this early in the season and moves him into a tie for the Diamond Race lead. Olsson, the 2004 Olympic gold medallist and three-time World Champion, finished right behind him.
Van Zyl, from South Africa, holds the five fastest times in the world this year in the 400m Hurdles, and has already defeated all of the top three hurdlers from 2010. Fifth in the 2008 Olympics, van Zyl leads in the Diamond Race and is an early podium favourite for this summer’s World Championships.
Reese is the 2009 World Champion and 2010 World indoor title holder. The American’s winning jump in Rome (6.94m) is the longest so far this season. She will face, among others, Americans Funmi Jimoh, a 2008 Olympian and current Diamond Race leader thanks to a win in Doha, and Tianna Madison, the 2005 World champion.
Lavillenie, the French pole vaulter who will return to defend his adidas Grand Prix title, also posted a world leader (5.82m) in winning Rome. Lavillenie is the 2009 World Championships bronze medallist and 2010 European champion. Malte Mohr of Germany, the #2 jumper in the world so far this year, and American Brad Walker, the 2007 World champion, are among those who will challenge for the win.
Also added to the adidas Grand Prix field are Kaliese Spencer of Jamaica, ranked #2 in the world last year in the 400m Hurdles; Stephanie Brown-Trafton, the 2008 Olympic gold medallist in the discus; and 3000m Steeplechasers Gulnara Samitova-Galkina of Russia, the 2008 Olympic gold medallist and World Record holder, and Milcah Chemos Cheiywa of Kenya, the 2009 World Championships bronze medallist whose Diamond League wins in Rome and Doha put her in the Diamond Race lead.
Samsung Diamond League
