New Balance Indoor Grand Prix Event by Event Preview

Four exciting match-ups between global medallists will highlight the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in Boston: Grant Holloway and Trey Cunningham in the men's 60 meters hurdles, Noah Lyles and Trayvon Bromell in the men's 60 meters, Laura Muir and Clara Mageean in the women's 3000 meters, Ekaterini Stefanidi and Katie Moon (née Nageotte) in the women's pole vault. The Boston meeting is the second leg of the World Indoor Tour Gold.

The US meeting, which relocated temporarily to Staten Island due to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021 and 2022, will debut at the New Balance, a state-of-the-art indoor facility in Brighton, Massachusetts.

New Balance Indoor GP Live stream and TV Coverage

Men's 60 meters hurdles:

Grant Holloway will go head to head against Trey Cunningham in the men's 60 meters hurdles in what is shaping up as a clash between two of the fastest hurdlers in the world last year. Holloway won his first world indoor title in the 60 meters hurdles in Belgrade in 7.39 after equalling his world record in the semifinal with 7.29. During the summer season, Holloway won his second world outdoor gold medal in Eugene in 13.03, beating Cunningham by 0.05. He will run his first race on US soil since the world championships final in Eugene last July.

The 25-year-old US hurdler set the second fastest time in history outdoors with his lifetime best of 12.81 in the semifinal of the US Olympic Trials in Eugene and won the Olympic silver medal in Tokyo.

Holloway had remained unbeaten in an indoor 60 meters hurdles race since 2014, when he was 16 years old, and has extended his winning streak to more than 60 races, including heats and semifinals.

Cunningham finished second at the 2022 US outdoor Championships and won both the indoor and outdoor NCAA titles before claiming the world silver medal in Eugene. Cunningham started his 2023 season with 7.60 at the Razorback Invitational in Fayetteville last week.

Holloway and Cunningham finished first and second in 7.37 to 7.47 in the 60 meters hurdles at last year's edition of the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. Holloway leads 13-2 in his head-to-head clashes against Cunningham. Last summer Holloway broke the 13 seconds once in the Monaco Diamond League meeting in 12.99 in the 110m hurdles beating Cunningham by 0.04 and winning his first Diamond League title in Zurich. Cunningham beat Holloway in Lausanne by 0.01 in 13.10.

The line-up also features last year's NACAC champion Freddie Crittenden, who clocked 7.52 in Flagstaff and 7.53 in Iowa City this year. Robert Dunning, NCAA outdoor champion in 2021; Louis Rollins, who set an indoor PB of 7.59 last year. Joshua Zeller, from Great Britain, is a European Under 20 gold medallist in the 110 meters hurdles in Boras 2019, and Damion Thomas, from Jamaica, is a world under 20 champion in Tampere 2018.

Men's 60 meters:

USA's 2016 world 60 meters indoor champion Trayvon Bromell will line up against two-time 200 meters world champion Noah Lyles and 100m world silver medallist Marvin Bracy.

During the 2022 season, Bromell won his second world bronze medal in the 100 meters in 9.88, the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, and his first Diamond League title in Zurich in 9.94. He set his PB of 6.47 in Portland when he won the world indoor title. Bromell will chase his second win in the 60 meters in the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix after placing first in the 2021 edition in 6.50. He ended the 2022 season as the second fastest sprinter in the world in the 100m with his seasonal best of 9.81 set in the semifinal of the US Championships in Eugene. Bromell dipped under the 10 seconds barrier nine times.

Lyles improved Michael Johnson's US record by clocking 19.31 in the 200 meters final of the World Championships in Eugene and won the fourth Diamond League title of his career in the 200 meters in Zurich, smashing Usain Bolt's meeting record of 19.52. The US sprinter won last year's edition of the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in the 60 meters in 6.56. He will make his fifth appearance at the New Balance Indoor meeting. Lyles placed third in the 60 meters in his first race in 2023 at 6.61 in Gainesville.

Bracy won the world indoor bronze medal in the 60 meters in Belgrade in 6.44, two world 100m outdoor silver medals in 9.88, and in the 4x100 relay in 37.55 in Eugene. Bracy ran three of his five 60 meters races under 6.50 and dipped under the 10 seconds six times in the 100 meters.

The other top names are Ackeem Blake from Jamaica, who won the NACAC Championships title in Freeport in 9.98 and placed third at the Jamaican Championships in Kingston in 9.93, and Terrance Laird, who won the 100m title in 10.05 and finished second in 19.94 at the NCAA outdoor championships in 2021. Laird also finished second in the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2021 in 20.20 and set a lifetime best of 19.81 two years ago.

The line-up is rounded out by Josephus Lyles, who placed fifth in the 200m in 19.93 at the US Championships in Eugene 2022 and started his 2023 season with a second place in the 60 meters in 6.60 in Gainesville ahead of his brother Noah Lyles, 2014 World Under 20 Championships in the 100 meters Kendal Williams, Demek Kemp, US Indoor champion in the 60 meters in 2019 in 6.55, and Benjamin Azamati from Ghana, who set the national 100m record clocking 9.90 at the Texas Relays in 2022 and took fourth at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham last August.

Women's 60 meters:

Reigning world champions Sydney McLaughlin Levrone and Shericka Jackson will headline the women's 60 meters sprint race, which also features US sprinters Mikiah Brisco and Aleia Hobbs.

McLaughlin will run the first 60 meters race of her career. The 23-year-old US super-star has remained unbeaten in the past two years in the women's 400 meters hurdles and won the gold medals at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021 in 51.46 and the World Championships in Eugene in 50.68, setting world records in both finals. She is the only woman in history to break the 51 seconds barrier.

McLaughlin Levrone owns six of the seven fastest times in his history in the 400 meters hurdles. She also won gold medals with the US 4x400 relay at the World Championships in Doha in 2019 and Eugene in 2022 and at the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2021. She was named World Athlete of the Year in 2022.

Shericka Jackson will also drop down in the distance to test her shape in the 60 meters. The Jamaican sprint star will make her first appearance at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. She is not a specialist of the indoor 60 meters races and set her PB of 7.04 to finish sixth in the final of the World Indoor Championships in Boston last year. Jackson won the world gold medal in her favorite 200 meters distance with 21.45 in Eugene, setting the second-fastest time in history outdoors. Jackson also won two world silver medals in the 100 meters in 10.73 and in the 4x100 relay in 41.18. During the 2022 season, Jackson became the first sprinter in history to break 21.70 three times in the same season, with 21.45 in the World Championships final in Eugene, 21.55 at the Jamaican Trials, and 21.67 in the World Championships semifinal and won the Diamond League final in Zurich in 21.80.

Mikiah Brisco dipped under the 7 seconds barrier to win her first senior individual world indoor silver medal in the 60 meters with 6.99 in Belgrade. Brisco won the 60 meters at last year's edition of the New Balance Indoor meeting in Boston in 7.07 and the US indoor title in Spokane.

Hobbs won the 60 meters at the Millrose Games in New York in 7.11 in the 2022 World Indoor Tour. The US sprinter placed second in a wind-assisted 10.72 in the 100 meters in the US outdoor Championships and sixth at World Championships in Eugene in 10.92. Last August, she won the 100 meters in the Lausanne Diamond League meeting in 10.87. Last weekend Hobbs improved her PB first to 7.05 and then to 6.98 in Fayetteville to become the 13th woman in history to break the 7 seconds barrier.

The line-up also features Kendra Harrison, world indoor champion in the 60 meters hurdles in Birmingham 2018 in 7.70 and Olympic silver medalist in the 100 meters hurdles in Tokyo 2021, Melissa Jefferson, winner in the 100m at the US Championships in a wind-assisted 10.69 in 2022, Candace Hill, a world under 18 champion in the 100 and 200 meters in Cali 2015, Cambrea Sturgis, NCAA outdoor champion in the 100m in 10.74 and 200m in 22.12 in 2021, and Antonique Strachan from the Bahamas, a world under 20 champion in the 100m and 200m in Barcelona 2012.

Women's 500 meters:

Three-time European champion Femke Bol will debut in the 500 meters race at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. Bol won three gold medals in the 400 meters in 49.44, the 400 meters hurdles in 52.67, and the 4x400 relay in 3:20.87 at the European Championships in Munich. The Dutch star also won the Olympic bronze medal in the 400 meters hurdles in Tokyo in a European record and the third fastest time in the history of 52.03, the world silver medal over this distance in Eugene in 52.27, the world silver medal in the 4x400 mixed medal and two Diamond League Trophies in 2021 and 2022. She won two European gold medals indoors in the 400 meters and the 4x400 and two silver medals in the 400m and the 4x400 relay at World Indoor Championships. The 22-year-old Dutch athlete set the national indoor of 50.30 in the 400 meters in Apeldoorn in 2005. The world indoor all-time best in the 500 meters has been held by Olesya Krasnomovets with 1:06.76 since 2006.

Bol will face her compatriot Lisanne De Witte, who won the European gold medal in the 4x400 relay in Munich, Janieve Russell from Jamaica, Commonwealth Games champion in the 400 meters hurdles in 54.14, and USA 400 meters specialist Kendall Ellis, NCAA 400 meters indoor champion in 2018, national indoor record holder with 50.34 and double 4x400 relay world champion in London 2017 and Doha 2019.

Women's 3000 meters: Great Britain's Laura Muir will clash against Ireland's Clara Mageean in the women's 3000 meters. During the 2022 outdoor season, Olympic silver medallist Muir won the world bronze medal in the 1500 meters and two gold medals over this distance at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and at the European Championships in Munich. Muir won the Olympic silver medal in the 1500 meters setting a national record of 3:54.50. The Scottish star also won the bronze medal in the 800 meters. She also set the European Indoor record with 8:26.41 in Karlsruhe in 2017 and won two Diamond League titles in the 1500 meters in 2016 and 2018. 

Mageean won two silver medals behind Muir in the 1500 meters at the Commonwealth Games and the European Championships. The Irish middle-distance runner won her first Diamond League race in the 1500 meters in Brussels, breaking Sonia O'Sullivan's 27-year-old national record with 3:56.53.

The line-up is rounded out by Marta Perez from Spain, fourth in the 1500m at the European Indoor Championships in Torun 2022, Lea Meyer from Germany, European silver medallist in the 3000m steeplechase in Munich 2022, and Adelle Tracey from Jamaica, second in the 1500 meters at the NACAC Championships in Freeport.

Men's 800 meters:

Spain's Mariano Garcia will renew his rivalry against USA's Bryce Hoppel in the men's 800 meters. Garcia took the win at last year's edition of the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix ahead of Hoppel with a Spanish record and a world indoor leading time of 1:45.12 and went on to win the world indoor title in Belgrade and the European, outdoor title in a lifetime best of 1:44.85.

Hoppel finished fourth at the 2019 World Championships in Doha and won the world indoor bronze medal in Belgrade last March at 1:46.51. The US middle distance runner won US outdoor and indoor titles previous year.

The line-up also features Mark English from Ireland, double European bronze medallist in Zurich 2014 and Munich 2022, British middle distance runners Kyle Langford and Daniel Rowden, who set an outdoor PB of 1:44.09 in Zagreb in 2020 and will run indoors for the first time.

Women's pole vault

Katerina Stefanidi and Katie Moon, the two most recent Olympic champions, will go head-to-head in a star-studded women's pole vault.

Moon won the Olympic gold medal in Tokyo 2021 with 4.90m and the world outdoor title in Eugene with 4.85m. The US pole vaulter set her lifetime best of 4.95m at the US Olympic Trials in 2021 in Eugene. She will compete for the first time since the world title in Eugene.

Stefanidi won the Olympic gold medal in Rio de Janeiro 2016, the world title in London 2017, two European, outdoor gold medals in Amsterdam 2016 and Berlin 2018, the European silver medal in Munich 2022, two world indoor bronze medals in 2016 and 2018, the European Indoor gold medal in Belgrade 2017 and three consecutive Diamond League titles in 2017, 2018 and 2019. Stefanidi leads 13-4 in her head-to-head clashes against Moon.

Men's 3000 meters:

Fresh US Indoor record holder Woody Kincaid will make his first appearance at the New Balance indoor meeting. Kincaid clocked a 12:51.61 in the 5000 meters at the John Thomas Ternier Classic at Boston University to break Grant Fisher's previous US record set in 2022. With this performance, Kincaid has climbed to fourth place in the world's all-time list.

Kincaid will take on world under 20 champion Addisu Yihune from Ethiopia, who won the world under 20 gold medal in the 5000 meters in Cali 2022 and finished fourth in the 3000m indoor race in 7:36.13 at the John Terrier Classic last week, Max Thorwirth, eighth in the 3000m at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade 2022, NCAA indoor mile champion Morgan Beadlescomb from the USA and Charles Philibert Thiboutot from Canada.

 Men's 400 meters:

Jereem Richards from Trinidad and Tobago will face multiple 4x400 relay medallists Vernon Norwood and Alex Haydock Wilson from Great Briain. Richards won the world bronze medal in the 200 meters in London in 2017, the world indoor title in Belgrade in 2022 with a PB of 45.00, and the Commonwealth Games gold medal in Birmingham in the 200 meters in a lifetime best of 19.80. He returns to this meeting, where he won the 400m in 45.89.

Norwood finished second to Richards in Boston last year in 46.06.

Haydock Wilson won the European bronze medal in the 400 meters in Munich last August.

Women's 300 meters:

Double Olympic medallist Gabby Thomas will return to the home track. The native of Northampton, Massachusetts, won the NCAA indoor title in the 200 meters in 22.38 for Harvard University, where she graduated in neurobiology.

Thomas will aim for her fifth consecutive win in the 300 meters at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. She improved her PB to 35.73 in Boston 2021, becoming the fifth-fastest sprinter over this distance in history.

The US sprinter won the 200 meters at the US Trials in 21.61, setting the fifth fastest time in history. She went on to win the bronze medal in the 200 meters in 21.87 and the silver medal in the 4x100 relay in 41.45 at the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2021.

Thomas started the 2022 season with the fastest-ever season opener by 200 meters in history with a wind-assisted 21.69 at the Texas Relays in Austin. This time is the quickest windy performance in history. Thomas won the 200 meters at the Diamond League meeting in Doha in 21.98, but an injury slowed her preparation, and she finished eighth in the 200 meters at the US Championships in Eugene. Thomas placed second to Shericka Jackson in the 200m at the Diamond League final in Zurich last September.

Thomas will face Jenna Prandini and Anna Kielbasinska from Poland. Prandini won the world gold medal in the 4x100 relay in Eugene 2022 in 41.14 and the Olympic silver medal in the 4x100 relay in Tokyo 2021 in 41.45. Prandini claimed two US titles in the 200 meters in 2015 and 2018 and two NCAA titles in the 100m in 2015 and in the long jump in 2014.

Kielbasinska won the bronze medal in the 400 meters, the silver medal in the 4x400 relay at the European Championships in Munich in 2022, and the Olympic silver medal in the 4x400 relay in Tokyo in 2021. The Polish athlete started her 2023 season with 7.24 in the 60 meters and 23.02 in the 200 meters.

Women's 60 meters hurdles:

World 100m hurdles champion Danielle Williams from Jamaica will lead the women's 60 meters hurdles line-up, which also features Devynne Charlton from the Bahamas and Cindy Sember from Great Britain.

Williams won two world outdoor medals in the 100 meters hurdles (gold in Beijing in 2015 and bronze in Doha in 2019). She set PBs of 7.75 in the 60 meters hurdles in Clemson in 2022 and 12.32 in the 100m hurdles in London in 2019. The Jamaican hurdler started the 2023 season with 8.07 in Clemson last week.

Charlton won the world indoor silver medal in the 60 meters hurdles in Belgrade last year in 7.81 and placed sixth in the Olympic final in the 100 meters hurdles final in 12.74.

Sember won the European Indoor silver medal in the 60 meters hurdles in 7.89 behind her sister Tiffany Porter and placed fourth in the Olympic final in the 100 meters hurdles in Rio de Janeiro 2016 in 12.63 and fifth in the World Championships final in Eugene in a wind-assisted 12.38 before winning the Commonwealth Games bronze medal in Birmingham in 12.59.

The line-up is completed by Sherika Nelvis, who finished fourth in the 60 meters hurdles at the World Indoor Championships in Birmingham 2018.

Men's high jump:

Ju'Vaughn Harrison will headline the men's high jump. Harrison made his breakthrough during the 2021 indoor season when he won the double NCAA indoor titles in the high jump with 2.30m and in the long jump with 8.45m in Fayetteville. Harrison won the long and high jump at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene a few months later. He became the first US athlete since Jim Thorpe in 1912 to compete in both the long jump and the high jump in the same Olympic Games edition. He placed fifth in the long jump and seventh in the high jump in Tokyo. During the 2022 season, Harrison won his first Diamond League competition in Rome with 2.27m. He finished second to Gianmarco Tamberi on countback at 2.34m in the Diamond League final in Zurich.

The line-up also features 2007 world champion Donald Thomas from the Bahamas and Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Tejaswin Shankar from India.

Women's 800 meters:

Ajée Wilson will be looking to continue her indoor winning streak in the women's 800 meters that dates back to March 2018, when she finished second at the World Indoor Championships in Birmingham. Last year Wilson claimed her first world indoor gold medal in Belgrade in 2022. The US athlete also won two world outdoor bronze medals in London in 2017 and Doha in 2019 and set her outdoor PB of 1:55.61 in the Monaco Diamond League meeting in 2017.

Wilson started her season with a win in the 1000 meters in 2:35.97 in New York. She will face her compatriot Olivia Baker and British middle-distance runners Lynsey Sharp, Isabelle Boffey, and Ellie Baker. Former Olympic finalist Sharp continues her come-back following the birth of her son.

Women's mile:

Canadian 24-year-old middle distance runner Lucia Stafford clocked 2:33.75 in the 1000 meters in Boston last week, setting the North American record. She moved up to ninth on the world indoor list over this distance. She beat US Allie Wilson, who clocked 2:36.31. Stafford will take on Wilson again in the women's mile race, which also features 2017 world 3000m steeplechase champion Emma Coburn, NACAC 1500m champion Heather MacLean, Jemma Reekie from Great Britain, who finished fourth in the 800 meters in the Olympic final in Tokyo, and Esther Guerrero, who won the 1500 meters at last year's edition of the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. 

Men's mile:

Andrew Coscoran from Ireland will aim to win the mile race at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix for the second consecutive year. The Irish athlete started the 2023 season with a win in the 1000m in 2:39.25 at the Boston University John Thomas Terrier Classic. He will face Neil Gourley and Charlie Grice from Great Britain, USA's Johnny Gregorek, and 19-year-old US rising star Hobbs Kessler, who set North American under 20 records in the 1000m and 1500m in the past two years.

Junior International mile:

Two sub-four minutes of milers will go head-to-head in a high school-only indoor mile race for the first time in US high school history at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix.

Connor Burns and Simon Birnbaum will clash in the Boys International Junior Mile. Burns set a lifetime best of 3:58.83 last year to break Jim Ryun's high school record. Birnbaum clocked 3:59.91 in the same race behind Burns.

The Girls' International Junior Mile field will feature Annie Mann and Iris Downes from Great Britain, who won the gold and bronze medal in the 1500 meters in Jerusalem 2021.