Kipyegon, Wanyonyi on the hunt as Monaco Diamond League features thrilling showdowns
By Joel Masibo, July 8, 2026The world’s top track and field athletes are preparing for one of the most competitive meetings of the 2026 Wanda Diamond League season, with Monaco hosting the 10th stop on Friday, July 10, 2026.
Nearly every event at the Meeting International d’Athlétisme Herculis EBS will feature reigning Olympic, world or world indoor champions, creating a packed programme of elite competition.
Several headline battles promise to steal the spotlight. Olympic sprint stars Julien Alfred and Gabby Thomas will clash in the women’s 200 metres, while Olympic champion Masai Russell takes on world champion Ditaji Kambundji in the 100m hurdles.
The women’s pole vault will see Katie Moon and Nina Kennedy renew their rivalry, and Olympic champion Thea LaFond is set for another showdown with world champion Leyanis Pérez in the triple jump. The men’s 100m also boasts a stacked lineup featuring Oblique Seville, Letsile Tebogo and Jordan Anthony.
Monaco also welcomes back Kenya’s Faith Kipyegon and Australia’s Jessica Hull to the venue where each produced memorable world records in recent years. Pole vault superstar Armand “Mondo” Duplantis will likewise return in search of another victory at one of his favourite competitions.
Sprint contests
The women’s 200m features an exciting meeting between Olympic champion Gabby Thomas of the United States and Saint Lucia’s Olympic 100m gold medallist Julien Alfred. Thomas begins her Diamond League campaign after clocking 21.70 seconds in Texas last month, while Alfred arrives in Monaco after already collecting Diamond League victories over both 100m and 200m in Oslo and Rome.
They will also have to deal with rising sprint sensation Adaejah Hodge, who became the world leader after running 21.68 seconds and impressed on her Diamond League debut with third place in Eugene.
The men’s 100m promises equally fierce competition. World champion Oblique Seville faces Botswana’s Olympic 200m champion Letsile Tebogo, American indoor world champion Jordan Anthony and Italy’s Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs.
Seville enters the race with the season’s quickest time of 9.82 seconds but will be seeking a stronger performance after finishing second in Eugene. Tebogo also aims to bounce back following his runner-up finish in the 200m, while Jacobs hopes to build on the impressive wind-assisted 9.67 seconds he produced earlier this month.
Kipyegon and Hull renew rivalry
Faith Kipyegon and Jessica Hull return to Monaco carrying special memories after setting world records at the Louis II Stadium in previous seasons. This time they meet over 3000 metres.
Kipyegon continues rebuilding her season after recovering from a hamstring injury. Following her victory over 5000m in Shanghai, she competed in the mile in Eugene, where she placed third, finishing ahead of Hull.
The race includes a quality field featuring world indoor champion Nadia Battocletti, Freweyni Hailu, world cross-country champion Agnes Ngetich in her first track appearance of the year, and French Olympic triathlon champion Cassandre Beaugrand.
The men’s 5000m welcomes another Olympic triathlon champion, Britain’s Alex Yee, who will test himself against France’s Jimmy Gressier and world silver medallist Isaac Kimeli.
Meanwhile, the men’s 1000m gathers several major championship medallists. Olympic and world 800m champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi returns after his record-breaking Monaco victory last year and will race former meeting record-holder Djamel Sedjati. They are joined by world leader Mohamed Attaoui, world 1500m champion Jake Wightman, Ben Pattison, Bryce Hoppel and Gabriel Tual.
The men’s 3000m steeplechase also features an impressive lineup led by world champion Geordie Beamish, world bronze medallist Edmund Serem, Olympic bronze medallist Abraham Kibiwot and Simon Koech.