Wanda Diamond League Call Room - London edition

The Wanda Diamond League Call Room lockdown series continues on Saturday (4) with its London edition, with Laura Muir, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Akani Simbine taking the stage on the Diamond League's ​Facebook page​ and ​YouTube​ channel at 8pm CEST.

Simbine: I want to be the fastest in the world

South African sprint star Simbine has said that he is determined to beat the African record and become one of the fastest men in the world.

“I always want to improve and be faster, I always want to be the fastest man on the track and the fastest man in the world,” Simbine said.

The 26-year-old currently holds the South African record in the 100m, a time of 9.89 which he posted in Hungary back in 2016.

Yet Simbine claims he has his sights set on much more in the coming years, including Olosuji Fasuba’s African record of 9.85.

“There's an African record which is so close to my national record, and that is something I look towards,” said the South African.

“I want to make sure that, by the time I leave the sport, I have conquered the African record, that I have been on the stage and put my name down as one of the fastest men in the world.”

Simbine also spoke about his victory in London last year, his disappointment at narrowly missing out on a medal at the World Championships, and how he hasn’t been on a track since March due to the coronavirus.

Fraser-Pryce: 'Lockdown was pretty bad'

Fraser-Pryce, the Jamaican sprint legend, has said she is desperate to get back into competition mode, admitting that the mental and physical strain of lockdown has been “demotivating”.

“Lockdown was pretty bad for the first two months,” Fraser-Pryce said.

With the athletics calendar put on hold in the spring due to the global coronavirus pandemic, Fraser-Pryce and other athletics stars were not only denied high-level competition, but also had to adapt their training programmes.

And the Jamaican claims that being forced to return to dirt track training has taken a mental as well as a physical toll.

“They shut down the national stadium, which is where we train. It started to give me a lot of problems with my knees and my toes because you can't sprint at the level you want to on a dirt track.”

“It was really hard and sometimes it was demotivating. We had to split into groups because no more than ten people could be at the track, and we had to be doing track and gym work back to back.”

Now, things have settled down and the multiple Olympic champion is able to train at the national stadium once again.

And Fraser-Pryce admits that there was also a positive side to lockdown.

“I have never had this amount of time with my family and friends, and it has definitely been welcome. It’s been awesome to put things in perspective, to have time with my family and to relax.”

Fraser-Pryce also discussed competing in front of Jamaican fans in London and balancing her track career with motherhood.

Muir: Injury taught me a lot about myself

Meanwhile, Muir, t British 1500m record holder, says that she learned a lot about herself in an injury-plagued 2019 season, which ended with a “bittersweet” performance at the World Championships in Doha.

Middle-distance star Muir was in fine form last summer before suffering a calf injury which dealt a hammer blow to her preparations for Doha.

“I was in such good shape when I ran in London that July, and then suddenly I was barely able to walk,” Muir said.

“It was a hard injury to deal with, but it showed me that I was mentally very strong. I learned a lot about myself in that period.”

Despite a “pretty horrendous” run-up to the championships, Muir still managed to run 3:55.76 in Doha, narrowly missing out on a first outdoor World Championship medal.

“It was bittersweet. I was so proud of myself that I ran 3:55, but at the same time, I thought: what more could I have done if I had been in good shape?”

Muir also said she is aiming to run at several Wanda Diamond League meetings this season, as she looks to return to the peak of her ability ahead of the Olympics in Tokyo next year.

The Scottish star also discussed beating Kelly Holmes’ British record at the London Diamond League in 2016, as well as her two Diamond League titles in 2016 and 2018.

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