12th July 2021

10 TO WATCH AT THE MÜLLER BRITISH GRAND PRIX IN GATESHEAD

  • Strong fields for the Wanda Diamond League in North East England on Tuesday 13th July
  • Katarina Johnson-Thompson, Holly Bradshaw and Andrew Pozzi are among the Tokyo-bound Brits in action
  • Femke Bol, Trayvon Bromell and Elaine Thompson-Herah are some of the international stars set to compete
  • The event is the final major track and field meeting before the Olympic Games begin

Women’s long jump

Katarina Johnson-Thompson (Bertrand Valcin, Liverpool Harriers) continues her build-up to the heptathlon at the Tokyo Olympics by testing her fitness in one of her individual events in Gateshead. But she faces a tough line-up that is led by world champion Malaika Mihambo of Germany.

There is also British champion Jazmin Sawyers (Lance Brauman, City of Stoke) and fellow Tokyo-bound Brit Abigail Irozuru (Aston Moore, Sale Harriers Manchester) plus Ukrainian Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk, the runner-up to Mihambo at the last World Championships.

Women’s pole vault

Holly Bradshaw (Scott Simpson, Blackburn Harriers) is in terrific form after her 4.90m UK record at the Müller British Athletics Championships last month. In Gateshead on Tuesday she faces the world leader in 2021, Katie Nageotte, together with fellow American and reigning world indoor champion Sandi Morris.

Men’s 100m

Trayvon Bromell holds the world-leading mark of 9.77 in 2021 and won at the US Olympic Team Trials in style. But he will be looking to bounce back from the Diamond League in Monaco last Friday where he finished fifth.

Bromell takes on Olympic medallist Andre De Grasse of Canada in Gateshead in addition to British sprinters CJ Ujah (Ryan Freckleton, Enfield & Haringey), Adam Gemili (Rana Reider, Blackheath & Bromley) and Zharnel Hughes (Glen Mills, Shaftesbury Barnet).

Men’s 3000m

In Monaco on Friday, Mohamed Katir ran a Spanish 1500m record of 3:28.76 and Stewart McSweyn of Australia clocked an Oceania best of 3:29.51 – and they return to the track on Tuesday in the North East of England over 3000m.

Katir has a good record at Gateshead as he won the 5000m at the Diamond League on 23rd May. But he will face a huge test this time against McSweyn, Jacob Krop of Kenya and Yeman Crippa of Italy. There are a number of British contenders too led by British 5000m champion Patrick Dever (Andy Bibby, Preston).

Emsley Carr Mile

This great race dates back to 1953 and on Tuesday night we will see Jake Wightman (Geoff Wightman, Edinburgh AC) and Elliot Giles (Jon Bigg, Birchfield) battling for their place in the history books.

Women’s 200m

Jamaica’s reigning Olympic 100m and 200m champion Elaine Thompson-Herah, who clocked 10.71 for the shorter distance earlier this month at the Contintental Tour Gold meeting in Szekesfehervar, will be looking to fine-tune the defence of her titles in Tokyo and will be facing a line-up which includes Nigerian Blessing Okagbare.

British champion Jodie Williams (Ryan Freckleton, Herts Phoenix) also features, alongside Manchester silver medallist Beth Dobbin (Leon Baptiste, Edinburgh AC).

Women’s 400m hurdles

Femke Bol of the Netherlands and Shamier Little of the United States went No.4 and No.5 on the world all-time rankings for 400m hurdles during an exciting race at the Diamond League in Stockholm this month. They clash again in Gateshead in a field that includes British hopes Meghan Beesley (Benke Blomkvist, Birchfield) and Jessie Knight (Marina Armstrong, Windsor, Slough, Eton & Hounslow).

Para women’s 100m

More than half of the British Olympic team will be action in Gateshead and it will be a great opportunity for the home crowd to give them a great send-off before they travel to Tokyo. But there are also a number of Paralympics-bound athletes at the meeting in a series of non-Diamond League para races.

The women’s 100m, for example, includes Paralympics gold medallist Sophie Hahn (Leon Baptiste, Charnwood) and recent European champion Maria Lyle (Jamie Bowie, Team East Lothian).

Men’s 110m hurdles

World indoor champion Andrew Pozzi (Santiago Antunez, Stratford-upon-Avon) has a big pre-Olympics test on home soil as he takes on Olympic champion Omar McLeod of Jamaica, while British champion Tade Ojora (Caryl Smith-Gilbert, Windsor, Slough, Eton & Hounslow) is also in action after racing this weekend in the European Athletics Under-23 Championships in Tallinn.

Men’s javelin

Johannes Vetter has Jan Zelezny’s long-standing world record of 98.48m in his sights. The German threw 97.76m at the end of last summer and has been in great form this year too with a throw of 96.29m in Poland recently. Records aside, at Gateshead he takes on world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada and 2012 Olympic champion Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad & Tobago.

 

The Müller British Grand Prix in Gateshead will be broadcast internationally from 7-9pm on Tuesday 13th July with BBC Two showing the action from 6.30pm.

Tickets for the Müller British Grand Prix are available at britishathletics.org.uk