USATF NYC Grand Prix Event by Event Preview

Olympic medallists Sydney McLaughlin, Grant Holloway, Noah Lyles, and Gabby Thomas are set to compete at the USATF New York City Grand Prix, a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting, at the Icahn Stadium on Randall’ s Island. 

Women’s 400 metres: 

Sydney McLaughlin clocked a sensational 51.61 in the 400m hurdles in Nashville on 5 June, missing her own world record of 51.46 set in the Olympic final in Tokyo. 

McLaughlin set a 400m PB of 50.07 in 2018. She will take on her 4x400 relay teammates from the Olympic Games in the 400 metres Lynna Irby, Kendall Ellis and Kaylin Whitney, and Kyra Jefferson. 

Irby won the NCAA title in the 400 metres in 49.80 in Eugene in 2018 and the first Diamond League race of her career in Monaco in 50.50 in 2020. Irby set her seasonal best of 51.03 in Jacksonville last May. 

Ellis won the Olympic bronze medal in the 4x400 mixed relay in Tokyo and a Diamond League race in the 400m in Gateshead in 2021. 

Whitney won the world under 20 title in the 200m in Eugene in 2014 and clocked a seasonal best of 51.89 in Montverde on 4 June. 

Jefferson won the NCAA title in the 200m in 22.02 in Eugene in 2017 and clocked a seasonal best of 51.55 in San Juan Capistrano last May. 

Watch USATF GP New York live stream

100 metres hurdles: 

McLaughlin is planning to run the 400 metres and the 100 metres hurdles in the same day. The two races are 10 minutes apart on the schedule.

McLaughlin clocked 12.75 in the 100m hurdles at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia in her only race of the 2022 season. The double Olympic champion married to former NFL star André Levrone in Madison last May.

McLaughlin will face Alaysha Johnson, who set the fifth fastest time in the world this year clocking 12.50 in Ponce last May, Tia Jones, who finished third in 12.59 at the USATF Golden Games in Walnut last April, 2018 world indoor silver medallist Christina Clemons, who finished sixth in Walnut in 12.68, Chanel Brissett, who clocked 12.73 in Ponce, and Olympic finalist Gabby Cunningham, who won the world indoor bronze medal in the 60m hurdles in Belgrade and finished sixth at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene in 12.75. 

Women’s 100 and 200 metres: 

Olympic 200m bronze medallist Gabby Thomas will double up 100m and 200m. The graduate in microbiology at Harvard University won the US Olympic Trials in the 200 metres in 21.61 and finished third in the Olympic final in 21.87 in Tokyo. 

Thomas clocked a wind-assisted 10.80 in Waco and equaled her lifetime best of 10.80 in Walnut last April. 

Thomas will face Sha’Carri Richardson, who finished second to Elaine Thompson Herah in 10.92 at the Prefontaine Classic last May and clocked a wind-assisted 10.73 (+4.3 m/s). The other top names are Cambrea Sturgis, who is ranked 10.87 in Greensboro in the world seasonal list and won two NCAA titles in the 100m in 10.74 and in the 200m in 22.12, and Aleia Hobbs, who clocked 10.95 in Walnut.  

In the 200 metres Thomas won in the USATF Golden Games in 22.02 and in the opening leg of the Diamond League in Doha in 21.98 during the spring season. 

Men’s 200 metres: 

World 200m champion Noah Lyles will race in the men’s 200 metres for the third time this year. Lyles clocked a legal 19.86 in Clermont and won in the opening leg of the Diamond League in Doha in a wind-assisted 19.72 (+2.1 m/s) and finished fourth in 10.05 in the 100m at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene. 

Lyles will face Kyree King, who finished second in Rome in 10.14 and clocked his seasonal best times of 9.98 in the 100m in Clermont and 20.18 in the 200m in Nairobi in 2022, and world indoor 400m champion Jereem Richards from Trinidad and Tobago, who clocked a seasonal best of 20.06 in Clermont and finished third in 20.15 in Doha.  

Men’s 100 metres: 

World 100m champion Christian Coleman will run his fourth race of the season in the 100m. Coleman, who won the world 60m indoor silver in Belgrade in 6.41 last March, holds the fastest time in the field with his seasonal best of 10.04 set at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene. Coleman will take on Kendal Williams, who clocked 10.05 in Nashville, Ackem Blake from Jamaica, who improved his PB to 10.08 last April in Nashville, and world indoor bronze medallist Marvin Bracy, who clocked a wind-assisted 9.80 in Montverde and a legal PB of 9.85 last year. Mike Rodgers, world 4x100 relay champion in Doha 2019, and Isiah Young, eighth in the World Championships final in the 200m in London 2017, will compete for the second time in just four days after racing in the 100m in Rome on Thursday. 

Men’s 110 metres hurdles: 

Grant Holloway narrowly missed the world record by 0.01 clocking 12.81 in the US Olympic Trials semifinal and won the Olympic silver medal to Hansle Parchment in Tokyo. Last winter Holloway equaled his own world indoor record in the 60m hurdles with 7.29 in the semifinal before winning the gold medal with 7.39 in the final. 

Holloway clocked 13.34 in his only 110m hurdles race this year in Baton Rouge last April. 

Holloway will take on Devon Allen, who finished fourth in the Olympic Games final and won the Diamond League final in Zurich last year, Jamel Britt, who won in the Bydgoszcz Continental Tour Gold meeting in 13.35, and Daniel Roberts, who won the US National Championships in Des Moines 2019 with 13,23 beating Holloway and clocked a seasonal best of 13.36 in Jacksonville. 

Men’s 400 metres: 

Olympic 4x400 gold medallist Michael Cherry will line up in the 400 metres for the second time after finishing third in Rome in 45.24. Cherry, who won the Diamond League Final in Zurich last year, clocked a seasonal best of 44.28 in Walnut last April. 

Men’s 400 metres hurdles: 

The stand-out name in the field is Quincy Hall, who is ranked third in the world seasonal list with his PB of 48.10 at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene. 

 Women’s 400 metres hurdles: 

Athletes from six different countries will line up in the women’s 400 metres hurdles. Shiann Salmon from Jamaica leads the line-up with her PB of 54.43 set in Ponce. Salmon will face Gianna Woodruff from Panama, who finished seventh in the Olympic final in Tokyo and set a seasonal best of 54.60 in Walnut last April, Melissa Gonzales from Colombia, who clocked 54.80 in Bydgoszcz, Cassandra Tate, who clocked 54.81 in Nashville and won the world bronze medal in Beijing 2015, and Adana Belle from Barbados. 

Men’s 800 metres: 

Clayton Murphy will take on 2019 NCAA champions Bryce Hoppel and Isaiah Jewett. Murphy, who won the Olympic bronze medal in Rio de Janeiro 2016 in 1:42.93, clocked a seasonal best of 1:45.54 in Ponce last May. Hoppel finished fourth at the World Championships in Doha and took the third spot in the Birmingham Diamond League meeting in 1:46.33. Jewett won the 2021 NCAA title in 1:44.68 and finished second at the US Olympic Trials in his PB of 1:43.85 in Eugene last year. 

Women’s 800 metres: 

Ajée Wilson is the stand-out name in the women’s 800 metres. The US middle-distance star won her first world indoor gold medal in Belgrade last March and finished second at the Prefontaine Classic in 1:58.06, setting the third-fastest time in the world this year. Wilson will face her namesake Allie Wilson, who set her PB of 1:58.18 in San Juan Capistrano. 

Men’s triple jump: 

Will Claye will start his 11th professional season in the men’s triple jump on the day before his 31st birthday. Claye won two Olympic silver medals in London 2012 and Rio 2016 and finished fourth in Tokyo 2021. The US jumper won the world indoor gold medal in Birmingham 2018 and finished fourth at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade with 17.19m. Claye will face Jah Nhai Perinchief from Bermuda, who holds a seasonal best of 16.95m and finished fifth at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade, and Marcos Ruiz from Spain, who jumped 16.94m this season at the Ibero American Championships in La Nucia. 

Women’s shot put: 

Olympic silver medallist Raven Saunders (sixth in the Doha Diamond League meeting with a seasonal best of 18.71m) will face Chase Ealey, who set the world seasonal best of 19.98m in Hengelo last Monday, Jessica Ramsey, who threw a seasonal best of 19.38m in Tucson, and 2019 world silver medallist Daniel Thomas Dodd from Jamaica, who set the fifth-best performance in the world this year with 19.53m in Tucson last May.