Paris Diamond League 2023: Murali Sreeshankar eyes maiden podium finish

As the fourth event of the 2023 Diamond League shifts bases to the City of Lights, here’s everything you need to know. Paris and its illustrious Stade Charléty stadium are set to host the Diamond League from Friday, 9th June 2023, till the star-studded event heads to Oslo on 15th June.

Organized by Word Athletics, this is the fourteenth edition of the Diamond League with a total of 15 meets scheduled from 5th May 2023 to 17th September 2023.

Could Murali Sreeshankar get his maiden podium finish?

Indian longjumper Murali Sreeshankar is the sole athlete representing India at the 2023 Paris Diamond League 2023. Coming off a triumphant gold-medal-worthy performance at the International Jumping Meet 2023 held in Kallithea, Greece with a jump of 8.18m, some argue this could be the golden opportunity for Sreeshankar to make the next leap in his potential-laden career and truly cement his arrival at the global stage.

Sreeshankar stated, “Right now the main focus for me will be to get the rhythm right on the approach, that's what I'm lacking a bit. We figured it out in the first competition which we had in Kallithea. So now we are trying to figure out how I can improve my last phase of the approach and the overall rhythm so that I will be able to execute the take-off properly for the jumps.”

But a place at the podium at the Diamond League is no mere task as the Keralite is up against world-class competitors in the shape of Greece’s Miltiadis Tentoglou and Jamaica’s Tajay Gayle.

The Meeting de Paris will bear witness to a wide array of 16 highly intensive and competitive events. The men’s scheduled events are as follows:

• 100m

• 800m

• 110m Hurdles

• 400m Hurdles

• 3000m steeplechase

• Hammer Throw

• Long Jump (Murali Sreeshankar)

Whereas, the women’s scheduled events are as follows:

• 200m

• 400m

• 800m

• 5000m

• High Jump

• Pole Vault

• Discus Throw

• Shot Put

• Javelin

Paris Diamond League Schedule (Timings in IST)

09:27 PM: Women’s Shot Put

09:05 PM: Women’s High Jump

11:44 PM: Men’s 110m Hurdles Heat A

11:45 PM: Women’s Discus Throw

11:50 PM: Women’s Pole Vault

11:53 PM: Men’s 110m Hurdles Heat B

12:02 AM: Women’s 4x100m relay

12:09 AM: Men’s 4x100m relay

12:12 AM: Men’s 2-mile

12:34 AM: Men’s 400m hurdles

12:45 AM: Women’s 800m

12:49 AM: Men’s Long Jump (Murali Sreeshankar)

12:54 AM: Women’s 5000m

01:12 AM: Women’s Javelin

01:22 AM: Men’s 110m Hurdles Final

01:32 AM: Women’s 400m

01:42 AM: Men’s 100m

01:52 AM: Women’s 200m

02:02 AM: Men’s 3000m Steeplechase

02:22 AM: Men’s 800m

If you miss out on the live coverage, be sure to head to the official YouTube channel of the Diamond League to catch all the highlights.

Other Battles on The Tracks To Look Out For

Can Lyles sour Jacobs’ Grand Return?

Italian sprinter and 100m Olympic gold-medalist Marcell Jacobs had been infiltrated with back injuries for the previous legs of the Diamond League, which saw him miss out on encounters with 100m world champion and America’s own Fred Kerley. But this time around, Jacobs is reportedly fit and set to take on Kerley’s American and 200m world champion Noah Lyles.

Lyles additionally boasts of the 200m record at the Paris Diamond League, setting a record-breaking 19.75s time for his 200m sprint back in 2019. This will be Jacobs and Lyles’ first encounter and it undoubtedly is a highly anticipated one.

With the spotlight on the young guns from Italy and the USA, don’t discard Jamaican marquee Yohan Blake from stealing the show.

A Sign of Things To Come In 2024

The 2024 Paris Olympics is just around the corner. That means that the majority of the athletes participating in the fourth leg of the Diamond League will make a return to the Stade Charléty stadium next year.

1500m record-holder Faith Kipyegon is taking a bold move to run the 5000m race at Paris to ‘test the waters’, considering a switch to the longer format.

She stated, “I don’t know yet…my focus at the moment is to defend my title in Budapest and then the Olympics next year. After the Olympics, I’ll see what’s possible and if I can switch to the 5000m race and then eventually, the marathon…I will be running in the 5000m in Paris to see what I can do. I want to switch to the 5000m.”

The Kenyan has undoubtedly gained confidence after smashing the 1500m record last week in Florence. But will she be able to edge out Ethiopian sprinter and the 10,000m world champion Letesenbet Gidey, when they come face-to-face during the 5000m event?