Preview: Noah Lyles, Raj Benjamin and Haruka Kitaguchi headline Tokyo Golden Grand Prix 2026

Posted by: Watch Athletics

Saturday, 16 May 2026

Olympic and world champions will take centre stage at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix in Tokyo on Sunday 17 May, as the Continental Tour Gold meeting brings together a world-class cast at the National Stadium. Sprint superstar Noah Lyles, Olympic 400m hurdles champion Rai Benjamin and Japanese javelin queen Haruka Kitaguchi lead an international field packed with Olympic medallists, world champions and rising stars. The meeting also serves as an important early-season test ahead of another busy global athletics campaign, with Tokyo once again welcoming many of the sport’s biggest names back to the stadium that staged the Olympic Games and the 2025 World Championships.

Men’s 100 metres

Noah Lyles will return to the venue where he won the Olympic bronze medal in the 200 metres in 2021 and his fourth world gold medal in the 200 metres in 2025. Lyles will make his seasonal debut in the 100 metres a few weeks after opening his outdoor season with two wins in the 200 metres in 19.91 and in the 4x100 relay in 37.78 in Gainesville, Florida. Lyles won his first Olympic gold medal in the 100 metres in Paris 2024 in 9.79.

Lyles will face reigning Olympic 4x100 relay champion Jerome Blake, who started his 2026 season with a win in the 100 metres in a PB of 9.93 at the Continental Tour Silver meeting in Gaborone. Blake returns to the track after pulling up with cramps at the World Athletics Relays in Gaborone two weeks ago.

The Japanese challenge will be led by Ryota Yamagata, national record holder with 9.95 and Olympic silver medallist in the 4x100 relay in Rio de Janeiro 2016, and 17-year-old Sorato Shimizu, who set a world under-18 record of 10.00 last season.

Men’s 200 metres

Courtney Lindsey will run his first 200 metres race of the season after clocking 10.02 in the 100 metres in Gainesville last month. Lindsey won the world gold medal in the 4x100 relay in Tokyo 2025. The US sprinter set a PB of 19.71 in the 200 metres at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi. He won the world gold medal in the 4x100 relay in Tokyo 2025 in 37.29, the World Relays title in Nassau 2024 in 37.40 and the NCAA title in the 100m in 9.89 in 2023. Lindsey represented the US team in the 100m, 200m and the 4x100 relay at the World Championships in Tokyo 2025.

Lindsey will go head-to-head against compatriot Jordan Anthony, who won the world indoor gold medal in the 60 metres in a PB of 6.41 in Torun last March. Anthony set a 100m PB of 9.91 at the Tom Jones Memorial in Gainesville and a seasonal best of 20.07 in the 200 metres at the Pure Athletics Invitational this season.

Men’s 400 metres

Rai Benjamin will make his seasonal debut in the men’s 400 metres. Benjamin won gold medals in the 400 metres hurdles in 46.46 and in the 4x400 relay in 2:54.43 at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024 and at the World Championships in 46.52 in Tokyo 2025. Benjamin, who holds a PB of 44.21 in the 400 metres, has not competed since last September’s World Championships.

Benjamin will take on Muzala Samukonga, Olympic bronze medallist in Paris 2024 in a PB of 43.74. The African athlete set a seasonal best of 44.55 to finish second behind Zakhiti Nene at the Continental Tour Gold meeting in Nairobi last April. Samukonga ran four times under 44 seconds in the 400 metres and set the sixth fastest time in history in the 300 metres with 31.38 in Pretoria.

Japanese fans will cheer on Yuki Joseph Nakajima, who finished sixth at last year’s World Championships in Tokyo in 44.62 in the 400 metres after setting the national record of 44.41 in the heats.

Reece Holder will return to action two weeks after helping the Australian 4x400 team break the Oceanian record of 2:55.20 with a 43.12 split in Gaborone. Holder ran 44.63 in the 400m semifinal of the World Championships in Tokyo.

Vernon Norwood, gold medallist in the 4x400 relay at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021 and Paris 2024 and at the World Championships in Eugene 2022 and Budapest 2023, will run his second 400 metres race this season after finishing second at the Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut in 44.58.

Women’s 400 metres

Two-time world 4x400 relay champion Britton Wilson will lead the women’s 400 metres. Wilson set her outdoor PB of 49.13 in Baton Rouge in 2023 and her indoor seasonal best of 50.66 in Fayetteville last February. Wilson will face compatriot Bailey Lear, who helped the US team win the mixed 4x400 relay in Gaborone. Lear set a seasonal best of 51.03 in Gainesville.

Yemi Mary John, bronze medallist in the 4x400 relay at the World Championships in Budapest 2023 and at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, will make her outdoor debut this season after finishing third in the mixed relay at the World Athletics Relays in Gaborone with a very fast split of 49.08.

Women’s javelin throw

Haruka Kitaguchi will make her first appearance since last September’s World Championships in Tokyo. Kitaguchi won gold medals at the World Championships in Budapest 2023 with 66.73m and at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024 with 65.80m, and claimed Diamond League titles in both 2023 and 2024.

Kitaguchi will take on Ecuador’s Juleisy Angulo, who returns for her first competition since her surprise world title in Tokyo 2025 with a national record of 65.12m, and Colombia’s Flor Denis Ruiz Hurtado, who won world silver in Budapest 2023 with 65.47m and improved her South American record to 66.70m in 2024. Hurtado started her season with 61.76m last April.

The top European thrower in the field is Elina Tzengko, who started her season with 58.21m at the European Throwing Cup in Nicosia. Tzengko won the European gold medal in Munich 2022 and the Diamond League title in Zurich 2025.

Men’s javelin throw

Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage leads the line-up in the men’s javelin throw. Pathirage set the world seasonal lead of 89.37m in Diyagama last March and won at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi with 89.28m last April, extending his winning streak to four consecutive competitions. He returns to Tokyo where he finished seventh at the 2025 World Championships.

Four-time global medallist Jakub Vadlejch will compete for the first time since the World Championships in Tokyo 2025, where he finished eleventh after a season plagued by injuries. Vadlejch won the Olympic silver medal in Tokyo 2021 and three world medals: silver in London 2017 and bronze in Eugene 2022 and Budapest 2023.

Luiz Mauricio da Silva set the South American record with 91.00m last year and holds a seasonal best of 82.62m.

Men’s high jump

Woo Sang-hyeok, two-time world silver medallist in Belgrade 2022 and Nanjing 2025, will take on USA’s Shelby McEwen, Olympic silver medallist in Paris 2024 with 2.36m. Woo set a seasonal best of 2.30m in Banska Bystrica and won the world indoor bronze medal with 2.26m in Torun 2026.

Men’s 110 metres hurdles

Rachid Muratake carries the hopes of local fans for a home win. Muratake set a Japanese record in the 110 metres hurdles with 12.92 and finished fifth at both the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris and the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo. He set the second fastest time of his career this year with a world-leading 13.05 in Osaka.

Muratake will take on compatriot Shunsuke Izumiya and USA’s Freddie Crittenden, who finished fourth at the World Championships in Budapest 2023, sixth at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024 and set a PB of 12.93 at the Olympic Trials in Eugene in 2024.

Women’s 100 metres hurdles

Aila Armstrong carries the favourite role in the women’s 100 metres hurdles. Armstrong finished fourth at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene and holds a PB of 12.32. The US hurdler will face NACAC champion Amoi Brown and Japanese record holder Maku Fukube, who owns a best of 12.69.

Men’s 400 metres hurdles

USA’s Chris Robinson will clash against Japan’s Ken Toyoda. Robinson won the NCAA title in the 400 metres hurdles in 48.12 and won the world indoor gold medal in the 4x400 relay at the World Indoor Championships in Torun 2026.

Men’s 1500 metres

Jude Thomas returns to Tokyo to run the men’s 1500 metres one year after setting the meeting record over 3000 metres with 7:39.69.

Women’s 1500 metres

Nozomi Tanaka will face USA’s Shelby Houlihan. Tanaka became the first Japanese middle-distance runner in history to reach the Olympic final in the 1500 metres, finishing eighth in a national record of 3:59.19. Houlihan won the world indoor silver medal in the 3000 metres in Nanjing 2025 and holds the US record in the 1500m with 3:54.99.