19th July 2018
OLYMPIC AND WORLD CHAMPIONS CONFIRMED FOR MÜLLER ANNIVERSARY GAMES
Double Olympic champion Elaine Thompson is one of seven reigning Olympic gold medallists who will compete at this weekend’s Müller Anniversary Games (21-22 July) along with nine world champions and 37 world medallists from last year’s IAAF World Championships.
The London IAAF Diamond League meeting has continued to attract the biggest names in the sport since its inception in 2013 and this year is no different with many of the world’s leading athletes joining a host of British stars at the London Stadium.
A world-class men’s 100m field is headlined by world 60m record holder Christian Coleman and double Olympic champion Yohan Blake, while Adam Gemili, Ojie Edoburun and Zharnel Hughes will ensure there is plenty for the British crowds to cheer for.
The start list for the women’s 200m is equally impressive including double Olympic champion Elaine Thompson and world champion Dafne Schippers. British record holder Dina Asher-Smith and global medallists Marie-Josee Ta Lou and Murielle Ahoure will also be in action.
All three medallists from last year’s men’s 400m Hurdles world final will be back in London, including world champion Karsten Warholm, as will Olympic champion Kerron Clement. The women’s equivalent features Olympic champion Dalilah Muhammad.
In the men’s 5000m, world champion Muktar Edris will return to the stadium 12 months after beating Mo Farah to gold in last year’s World Championships, while Olympic champion Matthew Centrowitz will compete in the men’s 1500m.
Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s Laura Muir will target Zola Budd’s 33-year-old British mile record in a field which includes 5000m world champion Hellen Obiri and world medallists Sifan Hassan and Jenny Simpson.
In the field, all three medallists from last year’s World Championships will take to the London runway in what is expected to be a hotly-contested men’s long jump competition.
Olympic champion Jeff Henderson and world and Commonwealth champion Luvo Manyonga will both be in action as Greg Rutherford competes in the London Stadium for the final time.
The women’s high jump will see world champion Mariya Lasitskene return to London alongside world indoor champion Vashti Cunningham and Commonwealth silver medallist Morgan Lake in what should be a brilliant battle.
Spectators will get to see both the reigning Olympic champion Thiago Braz da Silva and world champion Sam Kendricks in the men’s pole vault. Olympic and world champion Sandra Perkovic is another athlete who will return to the stadium with fond memories in the women’s discus.
Commonwealth champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson will compete in both the high jump and long jump as she fine-tunes her preparations for August’s European Championships in Berlin.
Other star names confirming their appearance in London include double Olympic and seven-time world champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in the women’s 100m, 2012 Olympic champion Aries Merritt in the men’s 110m Hurdles, and world outdoor silver medallist and world indoor champion Adam Kszczot in the men’s 800m.
Full entry lists can be seen by clicking here.