Simpson heads strong 1500m field in Eugene – IAAF Diamond League

Jenny Simpson will lead a strong women's 1500m field at the Prefontaine Classic, the third stop of the 2018 IAAF Diamond League, in Eugene on 26 May.

Simpson, the 2011 world champion, reigning Olympic bronze medallist and runner-up at last year's World Championships, will be race's key attraction for the Hayward field crowd. But the 31-year-old will face a solid field.

Laura Muir, who will turn 25 on 9 May, is the fastest in the field with a British record 3:55.22. She made two finals last year in London, taking fourth in a wild 1500m finish (just .07 seconds short of a medal) before finishing sixth in the 5000m. More recently, Muir raced to 1500m silver and 3000m bronze at the IAAF World Indoor Championships Birmingham 2018.

Winny Chebet is one of the most exciting athletes in the field. The 27-year-old Kenyan only took up 1500m racing at the international level in 2016, when the former 800m specialist lowered her best from a 4:14.4 at altitude to 4:02.66. The 2006 world junior 800m silver medallist was fifth in the Birmingham 1500m in March.

Dawit Seyaum of Ethiopia is no stranger to Oregon fans. The 21-year-old won gold at the 2014 World U20 Championships held at Hayward Field and in 2016 won silver at the World Indoor Championships in Portland. She has a lifetime best of 3:58.09.

Meanwhile, Poland’s Angelika Cichocka arrives as the European 1500m champion. The 30-year-old raced to world indoor 800m silver in 2014 and last year reached both the 800m and 1500m finals at the World Championships.

Other US runners in the field include Brenda Martinez, the 2013 world 800m silver medallist, 2016 Olympic 800m finalist Kate Grace, and Shelby Houlihan, who finished fifth at 3000m and fourth at 1500m at the World Indoor Championships last month.

Others include Rababe Arafi of Morocco, an 800m/1500m finalist at the 2015 World Championships with a 4:01.75 best; Laura Weightman, another Briton, was sixth at the World Championships last year and has a 4:00.17 career best; and Australian Linden Hall, who was fourth at the Commonwealth Games.

Organisers for the IAAF

2018 IAAF Diamond League calendar
4 May – Doha, QAT
12 May – Shanghai, CHN
26 May – Eugene, USA
31 May – Rome, ITA
7 Jun – Oslo, NOR
10 Jun – Stockholm, SWE
30 Jun – Paris, FRA
5 Jul – Lausanne, SUI
13 Jul – Rabat, MAR
20 Jul – Monaco, MON
21-22 Jul – London, GBR
18 Aug – Birmingham, GBR
30 Aug – Zurich, SUI
31 Aug – Brussels, BEL