This is the penultimate set of predictions for these Games and, arguably, we’ve left the best for (almost) last. Athletics, or track and field as it is often called in some countries, is often said to be THE definitive Olympic sport and has, over the years, made household names of the likes of Jesse Owen, Usain Bolt and many others.
For the sake of not bombarding you all with a massive wall of text, I’ll look at the Men’s and Women’s events separately below.
Men’s Events
The 100m for Men is one of the events of any Summer Games. For the first time since the Athens Games of 2004, however, we will not have Usain Bolt lining up on the track. The USA, which last won this race in those Games of 2004, will fancy their chances here, with Trayvon Bromell and Ronnie Baker both being amongst the favourites. Indeed, the USA will be looking to win numerous events in the sprints, with Noah Lyles and Erriyon Knighton (both 200m), Grant Holloway (110m hurdles) and Michael Norman (400m) harbouring realistic ambitions of being on the top step of the podium.
Like the 100m, the 800m will have a new champion in the absence of David Rudisha. This event is wide open, with an argument to be made for about 10 men being on the podium. Unlike the 800m, the 1500m looks somewhat more clear-cut, with Timothy Cheruiyot (Kenya) the overwhelming favourite for gold, ahead of Jakob Ingenbrigsten (Norway). In the 5000m, look for the fast improving Mo Katir (Spain) to potentially spring a surprise.
Over in the field, JuVaughn Harrison (USA) is going for a double Gold in both Long Jump and High Jump. Other field events includes the Hammer, where Pawel Fajdek (Poland) is a strong favourite, Javelin – where Johannes Vetter (Germany) is an even stronger favourite, and Pole Vault, which had the makings of a great battle between Armand Duplantis (Sweden), Sam Kendricks (USA) and the veteran Renaud Lavillenie (France), although Kendricks has become a last minute withdrawal following a positive test for COVID.
The Decathlon has a strong favourite in Damien Warner, who is around 300 points better than his nearest rival this year. However, the gruelling nature of the event often brings unexpected results, as athletes can succumb to injuries.
Women’s Events
Despite the late banning of one of the favourites for the 100m, Sha’Carri Richardson, for failing a drugs test, the sprint events at the games will still be loaded with talent. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Price (Jamaica) is the fastest women alive and probably favourite for the 100m crown. But she will face tough competition from her compatriot Elaine Thompson-Herath and Britain’s Dina Asher Smith, amongst others. The three will also be amongst the favourites for the 200m crown.
The USA will expect to medal well in the hurdles events, where Sydney McLaughlin recently set a new world record. In the 800m, they field 19 year old Athing Mu, who will possibly be one of the breakout stars of the Games on the track.
The long-distance events are, unsurprisingly, likely to feature numerous medallists from East Africa, with Faith Kipyegon and Hellen Obiri (both Kenya) hoping to medal. One athlete to note is Sifan Hassan (Netherlands). She is currently entered into 3 events – the 1500m, 5000m and 10000m, though the schedule means that she is likely to drop one at the last minute. Whichever events she does contest, however, she will enter as one of the medal favourites.
In the field events, Yulimar Rojas (Venezuela) in the Triple Jump is perhaps one of the strongest favourites across all athletics. Expect a titanic battle in the Pole Vault where six or seven athletes could easily win gold if they get their performance right on the day.
Finally, the relay events are likely to be a battle between the USA and Jamaica, as they often are.
We do have one event making its Olympic debut on the track – the mixed 4x400m relay. Expect the USA to win this race by the proverbial country mile!
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