In addition to the previously announced Jenn Suhr, Sally Pearson and Yohan Blake, three of the world’s most dominant athletes in the sport are the latest to have join the line-up for the adidas Grand Prix, which this year marks its 10th anniversary.
David Rudisha, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, and Valerie Adams—who among them own five Olympic gold medals and 14 World Championships titles—will all be returning to the New York City’s Icahn Stadium event on June 14.
The adidas Grand Prix has hosted two world records and 15 national records in its first nine years, and its fans have had the privilege of witnessing almost a dozen performances that were the fastest ever recorded on U.S. soil—including Rudisha’s awe-inspiring run there in 2012.
Looking at our first track stars announced for this year’s adidas Grand Prix:
David Rudisha of Kenya is the 2012 Olympic gold medalist, 2011 IAAF World Champion, and world record-holder at 1min, 40.91secs over 800m. In his U.S. debut at Icahn in 2012, Rudisha stopped the clock at 1:41.74, the fastest time ever run in the US.
Jamaica’s Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce has won the past two Olympic gold medals in 100m, and is a six-time World Champion. She was named 2013 IAAF Female World Athlete of the Year.
Valerie Adams of New Zealand is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and four-time World Champion in the shot put. She has not lost a competition in more than three years, dating back to August 22, 2010.
Down to compete also is Christine Ohuruogu of Great Britain. She is the 2008 Olympic gold medalist and reigning World Champion over 400m.
Erik Kynard of the USA and Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar in the high jump were also added to the line-up. Kynard, the 2012 Olympic silver medalist is ranked #4 in the world and Barshim, the 2014 World Indoor Champion and 2013 World Championships silver medalist is ranked #2. Both will go up against previously announced top-ranking Bohdan Bondarenko of Ukraine, the 2013 World Champion. This event promises to be among the best high-jump competitions ever seen in the U.S.
Completing the line-up of recent additions are Michael Tinsley of the USA and Javier Culson of Puerto Rico, who will battle each other in the 400m hurdles. Tinsley and Culson, the 2012 Olympic silver and bronze medalists, respectively, also have three World Championships silver medals between them: two (2009, 2011) for Culson and one (2013) for Tinsley.
The adidas Grand Prix is the sixth stop on the international IAAF Diamond League circuit.