ATHLETICS – BAHRAIN’S former world champion Salwa Eid Naser will be running tonight in the Meeting de Paris – part of this year’s Wanda Diamond League.
The superstar sprinter will be hitting the track at Stade Charlety in the women’s 400 metres. Naser will be making her second appearance in this year’s Diamond League, having also competed in the Doha stop held in May, where she won her race in 49.83 seconds.
Naser is currently ranked second in the world in the women’s 400m. Joining her in today’s run, scheduled for 9.51pm, Bahrain time, are world number one Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic, who is also the reigning world and Olympic champion, world number six Amber Anning of Britain, and world number seven Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands.
The field is completed by Martina Weil of Chile, Isabella Whittaker of the US, Amandine Brossier of France, and Lynna Irby-Jackson, also of the US – all of whom are ranked in the world’s top 30.
Naser’s season’s best in the distance is 48.67s, which she set in Kingston, Jamaica, last April. Her personal best is 48.14s, which is also a national and Asian record, which she clocked in 2019.
Also set to compete in France tonight is Bahrain’s Birhanu Balew. The kingdom’s distance-running specialist will be going for the win in the men’s 5,000m, scheduled for a 10.27pm start.
Balew is one of 18 participants entered in the race. He is an underdog heading into the event, as he is currently ranked 103rd in the world.
World number five Yomif Kejelcha of Ethiopia is among the favourites, as is world number nine Jacob Krop of Kenya.
Balew will be racing for the third time this season in the Diamond League. He previously also ran in Doha where he finished third, and then came 12th in the Oslo, Norway event.
The former Asian and Asian Games champion heads into his run with a season’s best of 12:56.45 from Oslo. His personal best is 12:56.26, which he set in 2019.
The Wanda Diamond League is the premier one-day meeting series held annually under World Athletics, track and field’s international governing body.
After a season of competing and earning points to qualify for the finals, the top athletes aim for the Diamond Trophy – the athletics campaign’s most prestigious yearly crown.
Both Naser and Balew are expected to be amongst the kingdom’s top athletes who will be competing at this year’s World Athletics Championships, set to take place in Tokyo from September 13 to 21.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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