Katie Moon competes in Doha (© Matthew Quine)
Three reigning world pole vault champions will clash at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Doha, with Katie Moon, Nina Kennedy and Molly Caudery all announced for the event on 10 May.
USA’s Moon and Australia’s Kennedy shared the title at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest last August after they both cleared 4.90m and then couldn’t be separated.
The moment was among those shortlisted for the International Fair Play Award at the World Athletics Awards 2023.
Great Britain's Caudery finished fifth in Budapest and went on to win the world indoor title in Glasgow earlier this month, clearing 4.80m. She went into the competition as the world leader thanks to the PB of 4.86m she set in Rouen in February.
Moon, who is the defending Diamond League champion, finished third in Glasgow, clearing 4.75m.
“I had a frustrating build-up to the World Indoors due to an achilles injury, but I was so happy to walk away with some hardware for the US,” said the Olympic and two-time world champion. “Now I’m looking forward to building back up for the outdoors and returning to Doha, where I opened my season with a victory last year.”
The trio will be joined in Doha by Finland’s world bronze medallist Wilma Murto, USA’s two-time world indoor champion Sandi Morris, Slovenia’s 2022 world indoor bronze medallist Tina Sutej and USA’s Pan American Games champion Bridget Williams.
The announcement of the pole vault field for Doha follows confirmation that Sweden’s world pole vault record-holder Mondo Duplantis will kick off his Diamond League campaign in China, competing in Xiamen on 20 April and then Suzhou on 27 April.
Also in Doha, Morocco’s Olympic and two-time world 3000m steeplechase champion Soufiane El Bakkali will return to the scene of the 3000m PB he set last year, to this time race his specialist event.
After finishing fourth in that 3000m, El Bakkali went on to have an unbeaten season of finals in the steeplechase, which included him gaining his second world title in Budapest.
