Elaine Thompson-Herah got her indoor season underway this week, storming to victory in Birmingham before suffering a surprise defeat to home favourite Ewa Swoboda in Torun.
The Jamaican will return to the 100m and 200m when the outdoor season begins, and she will be firm favourite for both sprint titles in the Wanda Diamond League this summer.
Thompson-Herah claimed her third career Diamond Trophy last season, as she stormed to the 100m title with meeting records in Paris and Zurich and a stunning Diamond League record in Eugene.
In the summer in which she defended both her Olympic titles in Tokyo, the Wanda Diamond League crown was the final confirmation that she remains the absolute athlete to beat in the women’s sprints.
Watch: All women’s 100m Diamond League champions since 2010
The 29-year-old had won the Diamond Trophy in the 100m twice before, in 2016 and 2017, but she has never won the 200m. Could 2022 be the year in which she attacks a Diamond League double?
As well as rising stars like Swoboda, Thompson-Herah will also face familiar rivals such as Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Dina Asher-Smith as she looks to chalk up as many Diamond League points as possible either side of the World Athletics Championships in Oregon.
Christine Mboma, who broke an African record on her way to the 200m title in Zurich last year, will also be out to defend her title this season.
In the men’s sprints, title holders Fred Kerley (100m) and Kenny Bednarek (200m) will be among the favourites in 2022, with compatriot Noah Lyles also hoping to regain one or both of the Diamond Trophies he won in 2019. Trayvon Bromell, meanwhile, will be out to build his maiden Diamond League win in Gateshead last season.
The two shorter sprint disciplines have been dominated by US stars in recent years, with all the 100m and 200m titles going to Americans since 2017. Canada’s 200m Olympic champion Andre De Grasse will be the favourite to break that run in 2022.