Olympic 200m champion Andre de Grasse headlines the list of stars down to compete in the men’s 100m at the Muller Birmingham Diamond League. The meeting will be held at the Alexander Stadium on Saturday 21 May, and it is the second meeting of the 2022 Wanda Diamond League series.
De Grasse, the 2021 Tokyo Games gold medalist in the 200m, has two Olympic 100m bronze medals from 2016 and 2021, and the Canadian carries a personal best of 9.89 seconds into the race in Birmingham, where he is set to face off with USA’s Trayvon Bromell and Yohan Blake of Jamaica.
“It will be great to race against such a world-class field in the UK at the Müller Birmingham Diamond League next month,” De Grasse was quoted as saying on the British Athletics website. Read more: Olympic Games-Andre De Grasse fulfills his potential with Olympic men’s 200m gold
De Grasse had a very fruitful 2021 season and the 27-year-old is looking forward to another big year, which includes the World Athletics Championships 2022 in Oregon in July and the Commonwealth Games which will be held in Birmingham.
“2021 was a really strong year for me winning three medals at the Olympic Games, so I am looking forward to starting my season strongly against the world’s best at the Alexander Stadium.”
Jamaica’s Yohan Blake, the 2011 world champion and multiple global championships medalist has been hampered by injuries in the past few years, but the global star remains the second fastest man ever over 100m with his lifetime best sitting at 9.69 seconds, and set in August 2012.
In his last visit to Birmingham, Blake posted a modest 10.07 secs to take the victory in 2019.
“Birmingham holds some great memories for me including my victory there at the Diamond League a few years ago.
“The UK crowds are always incredible, so I’m really pleased to be racing in front of them once again, and also get a chance to compete on the new track against a really strong field.”
Read more: Watch Trayvon Bromell runs 9.76 at the Kip Keino Classic
Meanwhile, American Trayvon Bromell, the 2015 world bronze medallist and 2016 world indoor 60m champion, will aim to make up for failing to make the Olympic 100m final in Tokyo, last summer after entering the Games as one of the gold medal favorites.
The 26-year-old American won the 100m at the Diamond League in Gateshead last July and was the fastest man over 100m in 2021.
He ended the campaign last year strongly after posting a personal best of 9.76 in Nairobi, Kenya, to close out his season in September.
“The last time I competed in the UK I took the victory over 100m, so I will be looking to produce another strong performance for the British crowd at the end of May,” Bromell said.
“With the World Athletics Championships taking place in Oregon in the summer, racing against such a competitive field is really important so I’m looking forward to lining up against them.”
