The Bahamas' top athletes will be back in action this weekend as the International Association of Athletic Federations' (IAAF) Diamond League (DL) comes to this side of the world, moving to the United States of America (USA). The year's fourth DL meet, the Prefontaine Classic, will be held this Friday and Saturday, in what is known as Track City, USA - Eugene, Oregon.
Three Bahamians are set to take part. One of the marquee events certainly has to be the women's 400 meters (m). In fact, it is the penultimate event of the two-day meet on the track, just ahead of the Bowerman Mile which always closes out the yearly meet.
What a field assembled for the women's quarter-mile!
For the first time ever, Bahamian sprint sensation Shaunae Miller will run against Americans Allyson Felix, Sanya Richards-Ross and Francena McCorory in the women's 400m. They are the three fastest American women last year, and three of the six fastest in history. In fact, the five fastest female quarter-milers from 2015 will line up in the women's 400m in Eugene. Jamaicans Shericka Jackson and Stephenie Ann McPherson will contest the event, and Americans Natasha Hastings, Quanera Hayes and Ashley Spencer will round out the field.
The event is comparable to any Olympic or world championships final. In Felix, Miller and Jackson, the event will feature the three medalists from last year's Beijing World Championships.
As for 22-year-old Miller, she'll be looking to improve her world-leading time, currently listed as 49.67 seconds which was done at the 2nd Chris Brown Bahamas Invitational (CBBI) in April. All of the women with the exception of Spencer have run under 50 seconds in their careers.
The men's version of that race will feature Bahamian up-and-coming youngster Steven Gardiner, who had an exceptional year in 2015, but has not quite met expectations so far in 2016.
Five of the eight men in the field ran under 44 seconds last year alone. In fact, Gardiner's 44.27 national record is tied as the second slowest personal best time in the field.
Beijing world medalists Kirani James, of Grenada, and American LaShawn Merritt will headline the eight-man field. They will be joined by Gardiner, Isaac Makwala, of Botswana, Jamaican national record holder Rusheen McDonald, Youssef Masrahi, of Saudi Arabia, teenage sensation Abdalleleh Haroun, of Qatar, and Machel Cedenio from Trinidad & Tobago.
Gardiner, 20, will certainly have his hands full. Five of the eight men ran in last year's world championships final.
The men's 400m hurdles is loaded as well with five of the eight men from last world championships final. Bahamian Jeffery Gibson, 25, will run against Beijing World Champion Nicholas Bett, of Kenya, for the second time since that stunning world championships final last year. Bett won the gold medal in Beijing in a world-leading and national record time of 47.79 seconds, and Gibson was third in a national record time of 48.17 seconds.
The Americans have dominated this event at past Olympics and world championships, and three of them will challenge Bett and Gibson in Eugene. They are former world champions Kerron Clement and Bershawn "Bat Man" Jackson, and DL leader Michael Tinsley - the reigning Olympic silver medalist.
Also running in the men's 400m hurdles on Saturday will be reigning Olympic bronze medalist and two-time world medalist Javier Culson of Puerto Rico, Yasmani Copello, of Turkey, and Kariem Hussein, of Switzerland.
Five of the eight men have run under 48 seconds in the careers - a benchmark between good and great long hurdlers.
Noticeably missing is world leader Johnny Dutch, of the United States, who ran that world-leading time at the CBBI right here in The Bahamas.
Sheldon Longley, Guardian Sports Editor
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