Usain Bolt to headline Adidas Grand Prix in NY this Saturday
Global sprint star Usain Bolt is among 18 Jamaicans listed to compete at the Adidas Grand Prix in New York City on Saturday.
Global sprint star Usain Bolt is among 18 Jamaicans listed to compete at the Adidas Grand Prix in New York City on Saturday.
The meet might see not only a number of meeting records, but also its biggest ever crowd at the IAAF Diamond League meeting.
Event tickets are sold out and the meeting organisers even had to add a standing-room-only section at Icahn Stadium.
All eyes will be on the world’s fastest man Bolt, who set his first ever 100-metre world record at this stadium in 2008, but he hasn’t been back since.
The return of the Jamaican superstar has drawn a fair share of attention and set high expectations for the meeting.
Bolt will compete in the men’s 200 metres along with his Jamaican teammates Rasheed Dwyer and Julian Forte
Bolt hasn’t run faster than 20 seconds for the 200-metre this year, with his fastest time being 20.13 achieved on a cold and wet night in Ostrava.
But on Saturday, competing on a lucky track and in warm weather, he is poised to run a big season’s best.
Bolt’s main challengers are expected to be Anguilla’s teenage talent Zharnel Hughes, who trains with the Racers Track Club alongside Bolt, and last year’s race winner Alonso Edward from Panama.
The women’s 200 metres will feature Jamaican Sherone Simpson.
However, Simpson will find it hard against Nigeria’s world bronze medallist Blessing Okagbare and home favourite Tori Bowie.
Meanwhile, the men’s 100 metres will also have strong Jamaican presence. The Jamaican trio of Nesta Carter, Kemar Bailey-Cole and Nickel Ashmeade will take on 2007 world champion Tyson Gay, the fastest man in the field this year.
The women’s 400 metres features five Jamaicans. They are Stephenie Ann McPherson, Christine Day, Anastasia Le-Roy, Novlene Williams-Mills and Sophie Smellie, who is down to compete in the B-race.
Other Jamaicans down to compete are Roxroy Cato and Annsert White in the men’s 400-metre hurdles; O’Dayne Richards in the men’s shot put, Danielle Williams and Shermaine Williams in the women’s 100-metre hurdles and Kimarra McDonald in the women’s 800 metres.
Loop News Service
