Can Perez put Perkovic in a pickle again?
Since the end of 2014, Sandra Perkovic has appeared in 25 Diamond League meetings and been beaten only three times. Her conqueror on each of those three occasions? Yaime Perez, the Cuban veteran who ended Perkovic’s six-year hegemony of the Diamond Trophy in Brussels last September.
Prior to her victory in last year’s final, Perez had also beaten Perkovic in Lausanne in 2015, and Stockholm in 2017. The two women return to the Swedish capital on Thursday to kickstart the 2019 Road to the Final in the women’s discus, with Perez hoping to take another victory over Perkovic and get her title defence off to a winning start.
She will, no doubt, be prepared for the full fury of Perkovic, who could win a record-equalling seventh Diamond Trophy if she triumphs this year. The Croatian has not competed since last year, but she will be raring to go on Thursday, and sparks – and of course discuses – are set to fly in Stockholm.
Will Echevarria make the most of the extra long pit?
Another Cuban, Juan Miguel Echevarria, stole the headlines in Stockholm last year when he leapt a wind-assisted 8.83m in the men’s long jump.
On that day, he very nearly cleared the pit entirely, and the good folk in Stockholm have reacted accordingly. This year, the pit at the Olympic Stadium has been extended in preparation for Ecehvarria’s return.
It is just as well, because the young talent has since jumped a (likewise wind-assisted) 8.92m in March, and is set to be pushed to his limits by a star-studded field which includes Ruswahl Samaai, Diamond Trophy holder Luvo Manyonga and reigning Olympic Champion Jeff Henderson.
Can Norman attack the world record?
Just as Echevarria announced himself explosively on the Diamond League stage in Stockholm last year, so too did Michael Norman, who won the 200m in 19.84 on his Diamond League debut in Paris later that summer.
This time around, it is all about the 400m for the young American, who has stunned the world with his form over one lap this year. He opened his season with an astonishing PB of 43.45 in California last month, and there are now whispers that Wayde Van Niekerk’s three-year-old world record (43.03) may be under threat.
At the very least, Norman will be hoping to take on Van Niekerk’s Diamond League record of 43.62, set in Lausanne two years ago. The 400m kicks off the main programme in Stockholm, so be sure not to tune in too late on Thursday.
Will Cheruiyot hit back in the 1500m?
Timothy Cheruiyot was the dominant force in the 1500m Road to the Final last season, picking up five victories and securing the Diamond Trophy without too much difficulty.
It has been a more rocky start to the season in 2019, as Cheruiyot lost a nail-bitingly close battle with his compatriot Elijah Manangoi in the 1500m in Doha.
Now back in action against Manangoi in Stockholm, Cheruiyot hopes to hit back and perhaps even take top spot in the 1500m standings with a first Diamond League win of the season.
Is Lasitskene’s crown vulnerable?
Maria Lasitskene has been the unassailable queen of the high jump in recent years, claiming the Diamond Trophy two seasons in a row and coming tantalisingly close to the world record in Lausanne two years ago.
Her only Diamond League defeat since 2016 came in Rabat midway through last season, when she was beaten by Bulgaria’s Mirela Demireva and Ukraine’s Yuliya Levchenko.
Both Demireva and Levchenko will be back to challenge Lasitskene as she launches her title defence in Stockholm, as will 17-year-old Ukrainian talent Yaroslava Mahuchikh, who took victory in the opening meet of the season in Doha earlier this month.
So will Lasitskene, who will compete for the first time since March, be vulnerable on Thursday? Or will it take more than a few insurgents to topple the queen of the high jump?