Olympic champions Femke Bol, Julien Alfred, and Noah Lyles sat before a room filled with inquisitive journalists, ahead of the Wanda Diamond League meet tomorrow.
The London leg of the international circuit always shapes up to be a spectacular event and athletes over all the globe fly down to the British capital for the highly anticipated one-day competition. For some, it is about breaking records, and for others, it marks the beginning of their outdoor season. On the international panel, Noah Lyles expressed his hopes for his 100m race: “A fast time never hurts and I’d love to run a 9.8” said the 100m Olympic champion.
This 100m will be his first 100m race since he stormed to gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics, and he set a new personal best of 9.81 at the London stop of the league last year. He is excited to compete “at the highest level with the highest people” which will include stars such as head rival Letsile Tebogo, Oblique Seville, Akani Simbine, Ackeem Blake, and local heroes like Jeremiah Azu, Louie Hinchliffe, and Zharnel Hughes.
Julien Alfred, the Saint Lucian star, hopes to continue a strong outdoor season and is aiming for a “good execution tomorrow” in her 200m race. She has always represented Saint Lucia unapologetically but her fame, especially within the Caribbean island, skyrocketed when she sprinted her way to 100m Olympic gold, securing her country’s first Olympic medal. She has visited her homeland three times since her victory and said those who wish to follow in her footsteps “should take every opportunity”.
Femke Bol is striving to go faster than her 400mH season’s best and will focus on her own race. The Dutch icon, who recently got engaged, is going after “a good race, a good execution”, and said that she “always wants to overperform a bit” because of the electric atmosphere in the crowd.
Shortly afterwards, national treasures Josh Kerr, Zack Skinner, and Katarina Johson-Thompson arrived for the GB and NI Press Conference.
Heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson has such “fond memories” of the Queen Elizabeth Stadium, which is where she will be opening her outdoor season with the women’s longjump. The Liverpudlian is looking to compete and ‘put down a good mark’ on home soil, after she jumped her way to a shining silver medal at the 2024 Olympic Games.
Loughborough’s finest and Paralympian Zak Skinner will be competing at the Wand Diamond League. Skinner, who has ocular albinism which affects his vision, said he is “excited to put on a really good performance” in front of the passionate fans in Stratford. Earlier this week, it was announced that Loughborough University won their 44th consecutive BUCS title. I sat with Zak in a one-to-one interview, and asked how his time there prepared him for high-caliber events such as the Paralympic Games and the Wanda Diamond League:
“The Loughborough team atmosphere was very good at BUCS, and I think the pressure to, to keep the streak going means that you kind of get used to that sort of championship, and team performances which BUCS was very good for and Loughborough in particular.” Zak Skinner will be competing in the T13 Men’s Para 100m.
The two-time Olympian and World Champion Josh Kerr competes in the Men’s 1500m after taking a hiatus from the circuit due to schedule clashes. As the top seed going into a stacked 1500m race, the Scotsman has requested for the pacer to go through 800m at 1:51. More national athletes such as Nick Gourley, Elliot Giles, Jake Wightman, and George Mills will be competing alongside him.
Judging from the athlete’s responses, they adore the London crowd and they all look forward to competing before it tomorrow. In the Diamond League every single point counts. Watch it all unfold on the following BBC platforms: BBC iPlayer, BBC One, and the BBC app and website starting from 1:15pm BST July 19th.
