Weltklasse Zürich Inspiration Games Preview: Lyles Runs His First 200 of 2020, Muhammad Chases a World Best, & More

By Jonathan Gault
July 7, 2020

Thursday’s Weltklasse Zürich Inspiration Video games has two issues essential to any observe meet happening throughout quarantine: star energy and a technique to watch it dwell. As enjoyable as it’s to observe Donavan Brazier crush folks two days after the very fact, nothing can change dwell competitors.

This being the period of COVID-19, this yr’s Inspiration Video games received’t have fairly the identical buzz because the meet it’s changing: Weltklasse Zürich, historically the world’s best one-day track meet. The stands received’t be packed, the fields can be capped at three athletes per occasion, and the 30 athletes entered can be competing in six nations throughout 10 time zones. However the Swiss, recognized for his or her timing precision, will endeavor to protect the texture of head-to-head competitors through the use of synchronized begins, cut up screens, and a two-minute delay to make sure all proceeds easily.

There’s lots to be enthusiastic about. 4 reigning world champs can be in motion — Dalilah Muhammad, Noah Lyles, Sam Kendricks, and Christian Taylor — plus megastars Allyson Felix, Shaunae Miller-Uibo, and Andre De Grasse. One cause Zurich was in a position to safe all these stars? The prize cash — $10,000 for first, $6,000 for second, and $4,000 for third — is consistent with a conventional Diamond League meet.

Yet one more bonus: followers will get to see the newly-renovated Hilmer Lodge Stadium at Mt. SAC, which was initially scheduled to host the 2020 US Olympic Trials earlier than USATF yanked the meet and awarded it to Eugene. Felix, Muhammad, pole vaulter Katerina Stefanidi, and triple jumper Omar Craddock will all run their occasions at Mt. SAC on Thursday.

Let’s run via every occasion shortly beneath (the meet can be team-scored, with every athlete representing both Europe, North America, or the Remainder of the World).

What: 2020 Weltklasse Zürich Inspiration Video games

The place: Letzigrund Stadium, Zurich, Switzerland, and varied distant websites

When: Thursday, July 9

Schedule/entries/results * TV/streaming information *2019 LRC coverage

Males’s Pole Vault (1:35 p.m. ET)

Kendricks and Lisek have been a part of an awesome males’s pole vault on the World Championships in Doha final yr with Kendricks repeating as champion and Lisek taking the bronze behind him. They haven’t competed towards one another since.

Kendricks must be favored. He was a distant third within the Final Backyard Conflict behind Renaud Lavillenie and Mondo Duplantis again on Might 3, however the conventional format in Zurich ought to favor the methodical Kendricks, who cleared 6.01m indoors again in February. In the meantime, Lisek may solely handle 5.35 in his most up-to-date competitors on Saturday in Gothenburg.

Ladies’s Pole Vault (1:35 p.m. ET)

Morris vs. Stefanidi has been the occasion’s greatest rivalry in recent times. And although Stefanidi, the reigning Olympic champ, as soon as held a commanding 17-9 head-to-head edge, the 2 have been pretty even for the reason that begin of 2018, with Morris posting 9 wins to Stefanidi’s seven.

Morris took their most up-to-date matchup ultimately yr’s Worlds, and was in good kind earlier than the pandemic hit, clearing 4.91m at Millrose in February. However since then, Morris has missed time with a knee damage, whereas Stefanidi prevailed within the girls’s Final Backyard Conflict on Might 16.

Males’s Triple Leap (2:05 p.m. ET)

Taylor, who has received the final 4 international titles, is the favourite every time he steps onto a triple soar runway. However he solely managed 16.75m on Saturday in Clermont — he’s often properly over 17 meters — which Taylor known as a “wake-up name” within the pre-meet press convention. Craddock was the US runner-up this yr indoors, whereas Pichardo, a frequent rival of Taylor’s and the fifth-longest jumper in historical past, was 4th at Worlds in 2019.

Miller-Uibo after working a world greatest for the straight 150m on the 2018 adidas Enhance Boston Video games

Ladies’s 150m (2:10 p.m. ET)

Miller-Uibo, who regarded robust on Saturday with a 22.61/50.52 double win on the Showdown in OTown, is clearly favored right here, with the principle query how briskly can she run. She owns the world greatest over 150m straight (16.23 in Boston in 2018), however the general world better of 16.10 appears past attain, contemplating it was set by Florence Griffith Joyner en path to her 21.34 200 WR on the 1988 Olympics.

Residence favourite Mujinga Kambundji can be her greatest challenger, and will even pull the upset — keep in mind, she was the bronze medalist at Worlds within the 200 final yr, and her 10.95 100 pb is considerably higher than Miller-Uibo’s 11.19. Will probably be key for Miller-Uibo to rise up to prime pace shortly as a result of Kambundji is the a lot stronger starter; Miller-Uibo can’t spot her an excessive amount of floor early.

Felix, realistically, received’t be a lot of an element right here. Although she did run 16.36 for a straight 150 again in 2013 — a world greatest on the time — she’s now 34 years previous and targeted on the 400. This occasion is simply too quick — and Kambundji and Miller-Uibo too good — to anticipate Felix to contend.

Males’s 100 yards (2:27 p.m. ET)

The one factor anybody cares about in a gimmicky occasion like 100 yards is the world greatest, which stands at 9.0 (hand-timed) by Ivory Crockett and Houston McTear from the Nineteen Seventies and 9.07 (FAT) by Asafa Powell en path to a 9.83 100m in 2010. Different males have lined 100 yards quicker (an even-paced 9.58 for 100m would produce a cut up of 8.76 at 100 yards), however these are the marks De Grasse, Vicaut, and McLeod can be taking pictures for.

This race will profit from true head-to-head competitors — all three guys can be on the identical observe — however don’t anticipate any data to fall. De Grasse solely managed 10.15 and 10.17 in a few 100m runs in Clermont on Saturday, and not one of the three have ever run 9.83, the en-route time that may recommend the health to problem the world greatest.

Ladies’s 300m hurdles (2:41 p.m. ET)

We’ve already seen one 300m hurdles world greatest go down during this pandemic. Now 400 hurdles world champ/world report holder Dalilah Muhammad will try and do the identical on the ladies’s facet. The goal is 38.16 by the Czech Republic’s Zuzana Hejnova (who can also be on this race) in 2013, and it received’t be straightforward. Hejnova ran that point when she was at peak health — simply two weeks earlier than her 52.83 pb, which she ran to win the 2013 world title. Muhammad, along with her 52.16 pb, has clearly run quicker for 400 hurdles, however there’s no assure she’ll be capable of come straight out in sub-53 form in her first meet in 9 months.

Males’s 200 (3:06 p.m. ET)

Undoubtedly, that is the occasion of the evening — certainly one of observe’s greatest stars racing his greatest distance. No conversions or qualifiers crucial right here; when somebody runs a 200, we all know immediately if it’s quick or not.

I’ve typically felt that Noah Lyles is so thrilling that I’d be prepared to observe him compete in a 200 towards himself. That’s principally what is going on on Thursday, as he’ll be the one man on the observe in Florida when he takes on Christophe Lemaitre and Churandy Martina nearly.

Lyles is match proper now. Again in June, he clocked 14.46 for 150 and 31.51 for 300 in time trials. 14.46 is exceptionally fast; the world greatest for 150 on a curve is 14.44, set by Usain Bolt throughout his 19.19 200 WR in 2009. And 31.51 isn’t that far off Wayde van Niekerk‘s 30.81 300 world greatest. Most lately, Lyles ran 9.93 (with an enormous 4.0 tailwind) on Saturday to beat Justin Gatlin over 100m in Florida. So Lyles appears prepared to tear one thing beneath 20 seconds on Thursday — maybe properly beneath, ought to situations cooperate in Florida.

Ladies’s 3×100 relay (3:20 p.m. ET) 

Weltklasse all the time ends with a 4×100, and the Inspiration Video games are conserving the custom alive (kind of) with a 3×100 to conclude proceedings.