Set for Paris Diamond League
Published Fri 26 Aug 2016
Hot on the heels of the Rio Olympic Games, five Australian athletes will return to the athletics spotlight when they line up to compete at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Paris early Sunday morning Australian time.
Fresh off their remarkable 3000m steeplechase Olympic final, distance stars Madeline Hills and Genevieve LaCaze will look to repeat their recent PB form in a 15-strong field that features recent gold medallist Ruth Jebet (BRN).
After missing the Olympic final by just 0.01 second, Ella Nelson will be looking for redemption as she lines up in the women’s 200m. As the 5th ranked fastest in the field she will line up against the very best, including 2015 world champion Dafne Schippers (NED).
After becoming the first Australian to make the men’s 1500m final at the Olympic Games since 1976, Ryan Gregson competes in the men’s 1500m, and will again be looking to feature with his trademark finishing kick.
Zoe Buckman will enter the women’s 1500m after she too produced a semi-final performance at her debut games.
Overnight, Australia’s Kathryn Mitchell finished fourth in the women’s javelin at the Lausanne Diamond League. The result moves her up to second place in the diamond race.
Other Olympic heroes to look out for in Paris include Jamaican sprint queen Elaine Thompson, 1500m gold medallist Faith Kipyegon (KEN), Olympic shotput record holder Ryan Crouser (USA) and French pole-vaulter Renaud Lavillenie.