Men's 5000m:

Where to Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jc2NKaKZZm4 

Big names in the race:

• Khairi Bejiga (Ethiopia) - SB: 13:06.45

• Birhanu Balew (Bahrain) - SB: 12:47.73

• Graham Blanks (USA) - SB: 12:49.99

• Jimmy Gressier (France) - SB: 12:57.79

• Jacob Krop (Kenya) - SB: 12:55.22

• Edwin Kurgat (Kenya) - SB: 13:01.47

• Dominic Lokinyomo Lobalu (Switzerland) - SB: 13:08.78

• Biniam Mehary (Ethiopia) - SB: 12:54.35

• Abdihamid Nur (USA) - SB: 13:07.46

• Ky Robinson (Australia) - SB: 12:50.82

What's happening: Dominic Lobalu outleans Graham Blanks in an explosive sprint finish with a time of 12:52.54, setting a season's best. 

Callout: There are really 2 stages of this race: the setup and then the "real" race. There are pacers and wavelights, which set athletes up to cooperate and try to collectively run as fast as possible. It's more like an invitational distance event than say a championship for this reason. 

When watching distance events like this, it's more of a long-form contest with very subtle changes. Like many Diamond League 5000m races, you'll notice in the beginning that people file in single file behind the pacers and hug the rail. There aren't a whole lot of position changes at first. The pacers are a load-bearing wall in the sense that their presence has a big effect on pace. The heat and humidity play a larger role in slowing the athletes down otherwise. Lobalu's attempt to move right behind the second pacer after the first one dropped out (after 2k) was likely critical in forcing the field to stay on pace through 3k. Notice how they bunch up after that, though.  

If you're unfamiliar with what a "kick" looks like in a track race, this is a great example with Lobalu and Blanks switching from running ~63-second laps to a ~54 second last-lap sprint. 

Definitions:

• "Kick" refers to a finishing sprint.

Women's 200m:

Where to Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQ8G3w12EQU&t=100s 

Big names in the race: 

• Julien Alfred (Saint Lucia) - SB: 21.86

• Adaejah Hodge (British Virgin Islands) - SB: 21.68

• Gabrielle Thomas (USA) - SB: 21.70

What's happening: Julien Alfred wins with a time of 21.54, defeating Olympic champion Gabby Thomas and NCAA record holder Adaejah Hodge. Alfred sets a national record, a meeting record, and is now #3 all-time behind Florence Griffith-Joyner and Shericka Jackson. 

Callout: The main takeaway is that Julien Alfred has established an incredible range. The pieces are coming together, and she's looking pretty unbeatable at this point. Alfred has a 60m world title, a 100m Olympic title, and is now in the top 3 of 200m times. She's also now racked up victories against Melissa Jefferson-Wooden and now Gabby Thomas. 

To watch the start of a 200m, mind the stagger. Keep your eye on gaps that might close early. We see Alfred gains a little bit of ground on Thomas early, suggesting an aggressive start. A good start is expected from Alfred, who is a 60m world champion, but it is impressive nonetheless. This is against a 200m Olympic champion who is notorious for her smooth-running style! Let's also notice how Alfred breaks away in the last 50m. This is where speed endurance comes into play. Remember, everyone is lowkey slowing down. 

With her start and her ability to pull away late, that's a good toolbox for Alfred! 

Definitions:

• "Stagger" refers to a staggered start line. Since the outside lanes cover more distance due a larger radius, they shift the starting lines for each lane accordingly. 

• "Speed endurance" refers to how well you can hold close to max speed. 

• "SB" is an abbreviation for "season's best." For simplicity and readability at this stage in the season, I'll primarily list the athletes based on their season's best mark.

Men's 1000m:

Where to Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ol63g_iS9Sk 

Big names in the race: 

• Mohamed Attaoui (Spain) - 1000m SB: 2:14.52

• Bryce Hoppel (USA) - 1000m SB: 2:15.80

• Ben Pattison (Great Britain) - 1000m SB: 2:14.11

• Djamel Sedjati (Algeria) - 800m PB: 1:41.46

• Emmanuel Wanyonyi (Kenya) - 800m SB: 1:42.09

• Jake Wightman (Great Britain) - 800m SB: 1:44.39

What's happening: Using two pacers and a wavelight, Emmanuel Wanyonyi sets a new world record with a time of 2:11.83. The previous one stood for 27 years. 

Callout: The 1000m isn't contested much. I listed 800m SB's for many of these athletes as the 800m is the closer distance and many of them haven't run a 1000m yet this season. 

So, while these are rare opportunities, they often can be fun "meet in the middle" matchups. Having a year without an Olympics or World Championships is a prime opportunity to go for this world record. It's worth pointing out how long this world record stood, 27 years! 

Part of what's fun about the "meet in the middle" matchups is seeing the "strength" of the 1500m specialists vs. the "speed" of the 800m specialists. If you're not sure what that means, "strength" often means an athlete's ability to hold a consistent pace as an advantage vs. someone whose advantage is an explosive kick finish. Before this meet, it's worth pointing out that several of the top 1000m times are held by 1500m specialists, which speaks to how hard that last 200m is. Noah Ngeny, who previously held the record, also holds the second-fastest mile ever run. This makes it all the more noteworthy that Wanyonyi is an 800m specialist! 

Definitions:

• "Wavelight" refers to a pacing system where there is a series of lights set up on the curb of the track and usually move at prescribed speed. The idea is that it's mentally easier for athletes to just follow a light.

• "Pacer" is an athlete paid to take the field out fast with the goal being the field can draft and run faster than they would otherwise. You'll sometimes see them invitational meets like this and usually it's helpful for athletes who are looking for qualifying times. They don't usually finish the race, they will drop out halfway or so and are found in the middle-distance and distance events. 

• "SB" is an abbreviation for "season's best." For simplicity and readability at this stage in the season, I'll primarily list the athletes based on their season's best mark

• "Kick" refers to a finishing sprint.

Women's 100m hurdles:

Where to Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNqHb3icrbc 

Big names in the race: 

• Sacha Alessandrini (France) - SB: 12.53

• Alaysha Johnson (USA) - SB: 12.42

• Ditaji Kambundji (Switzerland) - SB: 12.62

• Demisha Roswell (Jamaica) - SB: 12.40

• Masai Russell (USA) - SB: 12.14

• Pia Skrzyszowska (Poland) - SB: 12.44

• Nadine Visser (Netherlands) - SB: 12.41

What's happening: Masai Russell extends her undefeated streak with another dominant victory with a meeting record time of 12.20. 

Callout: The historic unpredictability of this event appears to be over as Masai Russell has established consistent dominance. She is having a banner year with an American record, a world lead, and multiple meeting records. Let's add this performance to the streak. Let's also note how she also establishes a lead in her acceleration phase. This dimension of her racing can be overlooked when she's not racing next to Devynne Charlton, who is known for her exceptionally strong start. 

Definitions: 

• "Meeting Record" is just the formal version of "meet record." It's the best performance in a specific event for a certain meet's history. 

• "World Leading" refers to the fastest time in the world so far in this season.

• "SB" is an abbreviation for "season's best." For simplicity and readability at this stage in the season, I'll primarily list the athletes based on their season's best mark.

• "Acceleration phase" is the first part of a sprint, where the goal is getting out of the blocks and generating the power and upright position to get to max velocity.

What's Next

If you want to catch the next meet, it will be in London on July 18th, where there will be an attempted world record in the men's mile. You can stream it on FloTrack. If you want to follow along with more track and field observations or bad puns between now and then, you can follow me at @predamame on Twitter. See you then!

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