Wanyonyi, Lemngole and Krop to shine bright tonight in Lausanne
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Wanyonyi stars tonight
Emmanuel Wanyonyi has every reason and confidence to produce a great performance tonight in Lausanne. This is where he registered his personal best time of 1:41.11 last year, which stands as the meeting record and a time that made him the third fastest runner in history.
The 21-year-old Kenyan has already shown he is in great form after his world-leading 1:41.44 in Monaco last month. He knows the track well, and a slight improvement from what he ran last year could result in another historic time.
However, the Olympic champion will be under pressure from the world champion Marco Arop of Canada, and from the 2024 world indoor champion Bryce Hoppel of USA.
There is no Kenyan in the women’s 800m race, but it will be interesting for Kenyans to watch given that they’ll be sending a team of four runners in this event to Tokyo.
After a world-leading time of 1:54.74, which she ran in a non-Diamond League race in Silesia, Great Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson will be back to confirm her superior status in the event and get some points that could get her into the Diamond League final in Zurich. Botswanan Oratile Nowe who just ran a national record in Silesia and South Africa’s Prudence Sekgodiso are among runners who will make it a competitive race for Hodgkinson.
In the absence of the two main protagonists in the women’s 3000m steeplechase event this year, the field appears open for a new star to emerge in Lausanne. Kenya’s Doris Lemngole who finished second to Faith Cherotich at the Kenyan Trials will be the runner to watch. Her seasonal best time of 8:58.15 is the fastest on the start list.
There will be four Kenyans in the men’s 5000m race that is expected to be a fast one with Ethiopia’s Hagos Gebrhiwet, Bahrain’s Birhanu Balew, USA’s Grant Fisher and Kenya’s Jacob Krop as some of the experienced runners in the field. The other three Kenyans are Edwin Kurgat, Ishmael Kipkurui, who is part of the Kenyan men’s 10000m team for Tokyo World Championships, and Denis Kipkoech.
Other interesting events without Kenyan runners
Arguably, the most interesting event of the evening besides Wanyonyi’s will be the men’s 100m in which USA’s reigning Olympic Champion, Noah Lyles, will be returning to race after a defeat by Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson in Silesia. While the latter won’t be on the start list, two other Jamaicans with faster seasonal best times than his 9.90 will be there to meet him. Oblique Seville has a season’s best time of 9.83 while Ackeem Blake has 9.88. USA’s Courtney Lindsey with the fastest season’s best time of 9.82 will be the other sprinter to watch here.
Although the women’s 100mH race too is highly anticipated. USA’s Masai Russell who won the race in Silesia is seen as the main contender. The Olympic champion won the 100m hurdles there in 12.19, equalling the third-fastest time in history. Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan , who is the reigning world record holder, and former world record holder Kendra Harrison of the USA will all be in the race, together with Jamaica’s Ackera Nugent and Dutch Nadine Visser.
After Lausanne, there will be one more Diamond League meeting in Brussels before the finals. One of Wanyonyi’s training partners, Phanuel Koech, will be watching this race keenly, as it will give him reassurance that their training has worked well. 18-year-old Koech is the new star in the men’s 1500m who surprised everyone with a 3:27.72 performance at the Paris Diamond League event exactly two months ago, finishing second to Azeddine Habz of France.
