After the closed meeting in Stockholm on Sunday, the Diamond League athletes will have a crowd on Wednesday, 2 September during Athletissima’s "City Event", in Lausanne. One thousand spectators, due to coronavirus restrictions, will be granted access around the two pole vault facilities. They will be treated to a short, but intense programme.
In this peculiar year, which has seen a third of the major meetings cancelling and another third reinventing themselves as "exhibitions", the Lausanne meeting has been kept afloat. The Meeting Director, Jacky Delapierre, and his team are constantly juggling the uncertainties with the evolution of the countries and areas on the mandatory quarantine list.
The women’s competition will be without the American, Sandi Morris, and the Greek, Ekaterini Stefanidi. But it is still looking good, with the presence of the Swede, Angelica Bengtsson, in full rise following the performances of her compatriot, Armand Duplantis.
Bengtsson, double junior world champion and national record holder with 4m81, took 2nd place Sunday in Stockholm with a jump of 4m62, behind the Briton, Holly Bradshaw (4m69).
That's good news as Bradshaw will also be present in Lausanne, with the opportunity of a revenge showdown between these two athletes.
The Canadian, Alysha Newman (record 4m82) will be lying in ambush, as will Zurich's Angelica Moser, who is regaining form after her jump of 4m60 made last week in Riehen.
The updated line-up of the men's discipline will be distributed this Thursday, 27 August. All the top competitors previously announced will be there.
Both women’s and men’s events will take place on 2 September alternately on two tracks setup in parallel in the Place de l'Europe.
Admission is free, but the public must collect an access ticket distributed on site as of 5 p.m., one hour before the start of the events. To comply with sanitary regulations, the organisers are arranging the spectators in several access zones not exceeding 250 people each, for a total of 1 thousand people.
The viewing promises to be excellent whatever the location, for a high-octane show labelled "exhibition" but still respecting the official World Athletics rules and regulations in order to allow official performances, just like in the stadium.
