Moroccan 3000m steeplechase star Soufiane El Bakkali will race at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Doha next month as he sets his sights on a new world record.
El Bakkali will headline the men’s 3000m steeplechase at the Mazzraty Doha Meeting on June 19, where he hopes to profit from one of the most electric atmospheres in global track and field.
“Doha feels like my second home and it means a lot to me to compete at this meeting where I’m privileged to have such great supporters,” said the 2022 Wanda Diamond League champion.
“I faced some challenges last year, and although I came away from the World Championships with a silver medal I was disappointed. The support and encouragement I have had since then gives me great motivation and strength to move forward.”
The Moroccan star suffered several setbacks in 2025, as rivals Geordie Beamish and Frederik Ruppert took the world and Diamond League titles respectively.
Yet he still notched up two Diamond League wins in Rabat and Monaco, and will be looking to return to his usual world-beating form this season.
El Bakkali is also set to run in at Diamond League meetings in Keqiao, Rabat and Stockholm this year and he says he is ultimately setting his sights on a new world record.
“I continue to set big goals and I am very disciplined in my approach. In the future, my ambition is to win the Olympic gold in LA, but the one that I dream of for now is to set a new world record in the 3000m steeplechase. Doha might come too soon, but to have the opportunity to race in this event with the backing of so many Moroccans will be special,” he said.
Doha is the seventh leg of the 2026 Wanda Diamond League, which begins in Shanghai/Keqiao on May 16 and ends at the two-day series final in Brussels on September 4-5.
The series unites the biggest names in track and field in some of the world’s most iconic arenas, crossing four continents and 15 cities over the course of the season.
