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BIRMINGHAM, UK – Olympic 400m hurdles champion Dalilah Muhammad will race in the women’s 400m open at the Müller Indoor Grand Prix in Birmingham on 18 February, according to meeting organizers.
The American will be making her first appearance at the Müller Indoor Grand Prix, while it will be her first time “competing indoors in Europe.”
She has already set her standards for the event, citing that her aim is to set a personal best in the 400m flat.
“It’s nice to be able to do a different event indoors, I enjoy running the flat 400m and I’m hopeful of running a personal best in Birmingham,” she said in a release on Tuesday.
“This will be my first time competing indoors in Europe so I’m really excited to come and run at what is one of the best indoor events in the world.”
Muhammad enjoyed a very productive 2016 season over the 400m hurdles and was rewarded with the Olympic title in Rio in the summer.
The 26-year-old also ran a world-leading and personal best time of 52.88 seconds to win the U.S. Trials crown in Eugene, Oregon, in July, while the 53.78 performance in Lausanne on 25 Aug, was her third-best time ever in the event.
She also clocked 53.13 seconds in Río de Janeiro en route to the Olympic gold medal.
Muhammad ran under 54 seconds five times last season, and they were all ranked in the Top 10 overall.
After her blistering campaign over the barriers last season, the American is aiming to shift that form over to the open 400m as she looks to build a base for the outdoor season.
“2016 was such a fantastic year for me and the Muller Indoor Grand Prix will be an important race to make sure I can keep my good form going into next year,” she added.
Muhammad will face Briton 2014 European 400m hurdles champion Eilidh Doyle, who also announced she will compete in the open 400m at the Barclaycard Arena.
The British hurdler holds a personal best of 51.45 seconds in the 400m indoors but set that time 2013.
Just like Muhammad, Doyle is hoping to use the indoor season to prepare for the outside races.
“I always love competing in Birmingham and it will be great to get back on the track and test myself in a 400m,” said Doyle, who helped Great Britain win a bronze medal in 4x400m relay at the Olympic Games in Rio.
“It will be a strong field so a great opportunity for me to see how my winter training has been going and hopefully get 2017 off to a good start.”
“There is a really big year ahead with the World Championships taking place in London, and the Muller Indoor Grand Prix will be an important part of my build up towards the summer.”
Meanwhile, Muhammad became the third current Olympic champion to announced their participation in Birmingham, joining Jamaica’s women’s 100m/200m sprint double champion Elaine Thompson and Great Britain’s 5,000m/10,000m double gold medallist Mo Farah.
2017 IAAF World Indoor Tour calendar
28 Jan – Boston, USA
1 Feb – Dusseldorf, GER
4 Feb – Karlsruhe, GER
10 Feb – Torun, POL
18 Feb – Birmingham, GBR
