INDIANAPOLIS - Current world leader in the men's 100m Tyson Gay will lead a talented collection of U.S. stars at the second of two IAAF Samsung Diamond League Finals, the Belgacom Memorial Van Damme Meeting, Friday in Brussels, Belgium.
Diamond League trophies, accompanied by a prize of $40,000, will be awarded to the winners of 16 disciplines at the 14th and final meet of the inaugural series.
Gay enters the Van Damme meet as the world leader in the men's 100m from his triumph August 13 in London when he crossed the finish line in 9.78 seconds. Also this summer in Diamond League competition at the DN Galan meet in Stockholm, Gay defeated the reigning Olympic and World Outdoor champion Usain Bolt in a meet record 9.84. It was Bolt's first loss since the DN Galan in 2008.
Gay recently spoke to the IAAF about his plans for his 100m race in Brussels. "I am not entirely satisfied with what I've performed so far. It's true, I am the fastest man in the world this year but mentally and physically I feel capable to improve my personal best (9.69) if conditions are fine. That is what I'm aiming for next Friday. Don't forget that Stockholm was only my second 100m of this season."
The men's 400m in Brussels will feature 2008 Olympic Games bronze medalist David Neville and Jamaal Torrance, who finished third at the 2010 USA Outdoor Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. The lone American in the men's 800 meters will be Duane Solomon, who was the runner-up at this year's Outdoor Nationals, and 2008 Olympian and four-time USA Outdoor Champs runner-up Leo Manzano will battle 18 other competitors in the men's 1,500 meters.
The U.S. will be well represented in the men's 400m hurdles as two-time Olympic gold medalist Angelo Taylor and 2010 USA Outdoor champion and Visa Championship Series winner Bershawn Jackson, who won the bronze medal at the 2008 Olympic Games, take on many of the world's best.
Reigning World Outdoor champion Christian Cantwell has been the dominant force in men's shot putting all season long and he'll look for that trend to continue in Brussels. Cantwell, who owns the two best throws in the world this outdoor season, will be joined by 2007 World Outdoor champion Reese Hoffa, two-time Olympic Games silver medalist and 2005 World Outdoor champion Adam Nelson, 2009 USA Indoor champion Dan Taylor and Cory Martin, who finished fourth at the 2010 USA Outdoor Championships.
In women's action, two-time World Indoor champion and reigning USA Outdoor champion Lolo Jones will have a do-or-die showdown with Canadian standout Priscilla Lopes-Schliep to determine the women's Diamond League winner in the 100m hurdles.
Jones won the first five events on the Diamond League circuit before Lopes-Schliep answered by winning the three of their last four races. They enter Friday's contest in Brussels tied with 14 points each, with the Diamond League crown, and the $40,000 that goes with it, hanging in the balance. Other Americans to keep an eye on in this race will be 2010 USA Outdoor Championships finalist and 2004 Olympic Trials fourth-place finisher Danielle Carruthers, and 2009 Atlantic Coast Conference champion Queen Harrison.
Two-time Olympic silver medalist and three-time World Outdoor champion Allyson Felix will lead a strong U.S. contingent in the women's 200m, which includes Shalonda Solomon, Consuella Moore, Porsha Lucas and Bianca Knight. Also look for 2010 USA Outdoor champion Alysia Johnson, who will be joined by 2008 Olympian Anna Pierce, in the women's 800 meters.
In field event action, reigning national champion Becky Breisch will team up with two-time Olympian and 2009 World Championships finalist Aretha Thurmond in the women's discus throw.
For more information on the Memorial Van Damme meet in Brussels and the IAAF Samsung Diamond League, visit: www.iaaf.org.
About USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States.
For more information on USATF, visit www.usatf.org
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