12th June 2019

PRESCOD LEADS BRITISH CHARGE IN OSLO

European silver medallist and two-time British champion Reece Prescod (club: Enfield & Haringey; coach: Jonas Dodoo) is set for his second Diamond League appearance of the season in Oslo as he seeks an American scalp in the Norwegian capital.

Prescod will bid to topple American world silver medallist Christian Coleman for the first time over 100m at the Bislett Games with a flurry of fellow Brits also set for action including CJ Ujah (Enfield & Haringey; Dodoo).

In particular, Andy Butchart (Central) could challenge his own Scottish record as he moves down to the 3000m in Oslo while Rosie Clarke’s (Epsom & Ewell; David Harmer) personal best might be under threat in the steeplechase.

Prescod and Coleman are the only two in the men’s 100m to have ducked under ten seconds this year, that coming at the Shanghai Diamond League in May where the Brit went 9.97 for fourth and the American 9.86 for second by thousandths to Noah Lyles.

Prescod’s 9.97 season best – his fourth legal sub ten – ranks him as the European No.1 jointly with fellow Brit Zharnel Hughes and himself missed out on beating Coleman by a thousandth at the Müller Grand Prix Birmingham last year.

Ujah meanwhile was second in this race in 2017 on the way to the overall Diamond League title and posted a 10.13 opener in Hengelo at the weekend while 9.85 man Michael Rodgers, Coleman’s fellow American, provides additional competition. Briton Tommy Ramdhan (Bexley; Michael Afilaka) will also race.

Butchart meanwhile ran his fastest 5,000m since the Rio 2016 Olympic final at the Rome Diamond League last week, coming within 0.72 of his personal best in clocking 13:09.33, suggesting a good effort is on the cards in the 3000m in Oslo.

His Scottish record stands at 7:37.56 from the Müller Anniversary Games in 2017 while Clarke is in similarly good form herself having hit the qualifying standard for the steeplechase for this year’s IAAF World Championships at the start of the month in the USA.

Clarke set her personal best 9:32.08 at last year’s Rome Diamond League with only three Brits having gone quicker in history and only two going under 9:30.

European indoor champion Shelayna Oskan-Clarke (Windsor Slough Eton & Hounslow; Jon Bigg) makes her first Diamond League appearance of the year in the 800m and will be joined in the field by Lynsey Sharp (Edinburgh; Harmer) who will make her third.

Morgan Lake (Windsor Slough Eton & Hounslow; Fuzz Caan), who equalled her high jump personal best of 1.97m during the indoor season, will compete outdoors for the first time this season.