The world’s best athletes continue their journey to the Wanda Diamond League Final at Herculis EBS Monaco this weekend. Here are five things to look out for at the Stade Louis II.
Lyles takes on Tebogo
It’s a battle of the Olympic champions in the men’s 200m, as Letsile Tebogo takes on Noah Lyles since he beat him in the 200m final at Paris 2024. 100m gold medallist Lyles will be out for revenge at his first Diamond League appearance of the season, while Tebogo will be looking to maintain his perfect 200m record in the Diamond League this year following victories in Doha and Eugene. He will have his work cut out against five-time series champion Lyles, however: the American has only lost a 200m Diamond League race once, and that was back in 2019.
Hull returns to site of world record
Australia’s Jessica Hull stole the headlines at the Stade Louis II last season when she stormed to a world record of 5:19.70 in the women’s 2000m. The 29-year-old will only cover half that distance when she returns to Monaco this weekend to face the likes of Nelly Chepchirchir, Mary Moraa, Halimah Nakaayi and Jemma Reekie in the women’s 1000m. Hull is in good form, having finished third behind world record breaker Faith Kipyegon and Ethiopia’s Diribe Welteji in the fastest 1500m race ever in Eugene last weekend.
History beckons in the 800m
Asked when he thought the men’s 800m world record might fall ahead of the Diamond League meeting in Paris last month, Gabriel Tual stuck his neck out: “Within the next month,” he said. That prompted a few raised eyebrows, yet nobody can deny that David Rudisha’s once unbeatable 1:40.91 is now looking increasingly fragile, as a golden generation of 800m runners continue to push each other to even further limits. Most of the potential world record breakers are on the startlist in Monaco, with Tual lining up alongside Marco Arop, Emmanuel Wanyonyi, Djamel Sedjati, Josh Hoey, Bryce Hoppel and Tshepiso Masalela among others. If Tual’s prediction is to come true, then one of them will have to deliver either in Monaco or in London on July 19.
Fireworks in the shot put
The last Diamond League meeting in Eugene delivered one of the greatest women’s shot put competitions of all time, with no fewer than five women going past the 20-metre mark and two-time Diamond League champion Chase Jackson winning with a meeting record of 20.94m. Monaco boasts an almost identical field, as Jackson once again takes on reigning champion Sarah Mitton, compatriot Jaida Ross and Olympic champion Yemisi Ogunleye. Expect fireworks in what is increasingly becoming one of the most competitive disciplines on the Diamond League circuit.
Can Alfred bounce back?
One of the surprise results of last weekend’s meeting in Eugene came in the women’s 100m, where Olympic champion Julien Alfred came in 0.02 seconds behind her fellow Paris 2024 medallist Melissa Jefferson-Wooden to suffer her first defeat of the season. It was a rare setback for the reigning Diamond League champion from St. Lucia, who had cruised to victories in Oslo and Stockholm in June. Alfred will be hoping to bounce back in style in Monaco, where she takes on Jamaican sisters Tia and Tina Clayton and the USA’s Aleia Hobbs.
