Diamond League Action Returns Sunday in Birmingham

By Adam Kopet

The Diamond League returns to action Sunday in Birmingham after a four-week break and the race of the meet might come from the 100-meter hurdles.

ENTRIES

The top four women in the world this year are all set to take part in this year's Birmingham Grand Prix. That includes the Jamaican duo of Danielle Williams and Janeek Brown, who have run the two fastest times in the world this year.

Williams won the London Diamond League 100-meter hurdles in a Jamaican national record 12.32 seconds. That supplanted Brown as the national record holder after she won the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Championships in 12.40.

Also in the race is world record holder Keni Harrison. She ran 12.20 in London in 2016 after failing to make the U.S. Olympic team. This year, she has run a best of 12.43, good for third on the world list. Harrison is coming off a victory at the USATF Outdoor Championships.

Tobi Amusan of Nigeria also enters the competition on a hot streak. She ran 12.49 at a meet in France last month, as she is closing in on the African record.

The 100-meter hurdles will be run with two heats of prelims before a final is run near the end of the meet. A total of seven Americans are set to compete, including Harrison. She will be joined by Nia Ali, Queen Claye, Christina Clemons, Brianna McNeal, Tiffani McReynolds and Payton Chadwick.

As was previously reported, Christian Coleman is slated to race the 100 meters against Canada's Andre De Grasse. Mike Rodgers, fresh off his victory at the Pan American Games, is also in the field.

The women's 200 meters features Shaunae Miller-Uibo of The Bahamas. She will face Great Britain's Dina Asher-Smith, Jamaica's Shelly-Ann Fraser-Price and Dafne Schippers of The Netherlands.

The women's 800 meters features a strong American contingent led by Ajee' Wilson. She is the second-fastest woman in the world this year (1:57.72) and an early favorite to win both the Diamond League title and the IAAF World Outdoor Championships, with the absence of South Africa's Caster Semenya. Joining Wilson in Birmingham will be Raevyn Rogers and Kate Grace.

Also lining up in the women's 800 will be Canada's Melissa Bishop and Jamaica's Natoya Goule. Bishop is returning this year after giving birth last year. This will be her first race outside of North America this season. Goule is fourth on the world list this year, having run 1:57.90 and capturing the Pan American gold medal.

The men's javelin could once again prove interesting. The field includes five men who have bettered 90 meters (295-3) in their careers. At the top of the list is Estonia's Magnus Kirt who joined the 90-meter club for the first time this year with a world-leading 297-3 (90.61m).

Also in the field are Germany's Andreas Hofmann and Thomas Rohler, Chao-Tsun Cheng of Taiwan and Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago, all of whom have surpassed 90 meters. Rohler is the reigning Olympic champion. Johannes Vetter, also of Germany, is the reigning world champion, but is not slated to compete in Birmingham. He has competed twice this year, with a best of 279-9 (85.27m).