Hibbert, Smith awed by chance to compete at Monaco DL
World leaders and national champions Jaydon Hibbert and Ackelia Smith will make their Wanda Diamond League debuts today when they go up against some of the best in the world at the Herculis international meet in Monaco.
Hibbert, who has been unbeaten in the triple jump from last year, and Smith who won the women’s long jump, are expected to face their toughest challenges so far this season.
World champion Shericka Jackson will face a tough field in the women’s 200m, while a trio of Jamaican men will line up in the 100m.
Both Hibbert and Smith, who are student athletes, admitted they are awed by the opportunity to be competing at the Diamond League, and that nerves are high.
“I am 18 and I am at the Diamond League; I am just happy,” Hibbert said at the pre-meet press conference on Thursday.
“I have seen this [the Diamond League] on TV and YouTube…here I am, it’s just smiles and having fun.”
Smith said she did not know she would be part of the press conference until she was on the flight on Wednesday and said she thought the person who told her was talking to another athlete.
“It’s definitely an honour to be here; my hands are shaking. It’s been a great experience and it has been wonderful,” the University of Texas jumper said.
Hibbert, who leads the men’s triple jump ranking charts with a personal best 17.87m set in mid-May and retained his national championships with 17.68m just over two weeks ago, will face world number two Hugues Fabrice Zango of Burkino Faso whose season’s best 17.81m is just a shade off his lifetime best 17.82m.
Cuba’s world number four-ranked Lazaro Martinez and the veteran Americans Will Clay and Christian Taylor will ensure an exciting competition.
Smith faces a quality field that will see world number two-ranked Tara Davis-Woodhall of the USA, Quanesha Burks also of the USA, Larissa Iapichino of Italy, and Hilary Kpatcha of France.
Triple jump world record holder Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela who has a long jump personal best of 6.88m set in 2021 is also expected to compete.
Jackson is coming off a relatively easy 200m win on Tuesday in Hungary but will have a much tougher field that includes world number one ranked Gabrielle Thomas of the USA, Julien Alfred of St Lucia as well as Americans Kayla White and Tamara Clarke.
Kishane Thompson, who has not run since he stunned the national stadium with a 9.91 seconds run in the first round of the JAAA national championships is listed along with Akeem Blake and Yohan Blake in the men’s 100m.
Yohan Blake has run faster in each of his last two races with a 10.01 seconds to win in Poland earlier this week and will hope to get under 10.00 seconds for the first time this year.
Three fast Africans — Ferdinand Omanyala of Kenya, Akani Simbine of South Africa, and Letsile Tebogo of Botswana — are also down for the men’s 100m.