At last Friday’s Samsung Diamond League opener in Doha, the spotlight fell on local star Mutaz Essa Barshim, the 19-year-old high jumping wunderkind who exceeded all expectations by equaling his own national record of 2.31m in first major competition of the season. But the victory went to Jesse Williams, who'll have his turn in the spotlight when the event takes centre stage at Eugene’s Prefontaine Classic on 4 June, in the town he currently calls home.
“I’m really excited about the next competition,” said Williams, whose clutch third attempt clearance at 2.33m propelled him to his first-ever Samsung Diamond League series victory. “The stadium’s just three kilometres from my house. Maybe I’ll ride my bike there.”
Williams’ winning leap was just a centimetre shy of his season’s and personal best outdoors – he’s cleared 2.36m indoors – and more importantly, the 27-year-old was able to beat back the challenge by Kyriakos Ioannou, the 2009 World silver medallist, who also topped out at 2.33m.
“I think if he wouldn’t have made that height I wouldn’t have either. He pushed me over the height and helped me get the win,” Williams said of the Cypriot, whose big meet credentials also include bronze at the 2007 World Championships and 2008 World Indoor Championships.
“This was very important for me because after 11 months I’m back,” said Ioannou, who competed for the first time since last year’s Lausanne Samsung Diamond League fixture. He too will figure prominently in the Eugene field.
“I’m very happy for this success, jumping 2.33 in my first competition back, while starting a new season. Of course I was very close to winning, but everyone who knows Jesse knows that he is a very good high jumper.”
The Eugene line-up also includes Russian stars Ivan Ukhov, last year’s Samsung Diamond Race Trophy winner, and reigning Olympic champion Andrey Silnov. How high will he need to jump to top the favoured Russian 1-2 punch?
“Maybe a world record, I don’t know,” Williams quipped. “Honestly, with those guys you never know how high they can jump. You just have to worry about yourself. I know that the crowd is going to be behind me. And I’m going to be ready to jump as high as I’m capable to jump. Who knows? It’s impossible to say. But it will be high.”
Both Williams and Ioannou heaped praise on Barshim, the current World junior champion whose rise in ranks has been nothing short of astonishing. A 2.14m jumper in 2009, he improved to 2.31m last year, a height he’s already equalled.
“I was very impressed with his jumping,” Williams said. “He’s very young. And the way that he deals with the competition, it was very impressive. He has a bright future. I think in a couple of years I’m going to have to retire because he’s going to be beating me pretty bad.”
Barshim won’t be making the trip to Eugene, but besides the Russian duo, Williams and Ioannou will also face German Raul Spank, the 2009 World bronze medallist; 2007 World champion Donald Thomas of The Bahamas; Swede Linus Thornblad and American Dustay Jonas, the 2010 World indoor bronze medallist.
But the focus will fall squarely on Williams in the stadium where he won the US Olympic Trials in 2008.
In Doha, local reporters and televisions crews descended upon Barshim. Williams will be hoping for a similar scenario in Eugene.
Stellar men's Long Jump field
Organisers also announced the field in the men's Long Jump, led by three-time World champion Dwight Phillips of the USA and Olympic and 2007 World champion Irving Saladino of Panama. They'll take on among others Olympic bronze medallist Godfrey Mokoena of South Africa, Italy's Andrew Howe, and decathlete Ashton Eaton, who'll also be competing before a hometown crowd.
Bob Ramsak for the IAAF
