When Talent and Depth Collide, the Sport Wins

By Scott Bush, DyeStat Editor

Next month the IAAF Diamond League gets underway, as the Doha Diamond League meeting May 5 kicks off the 2017 season, with the Shanghai Diamond League taking place May 13. 

As expected, the fields for both events are expected to be exceptional and early entries show fans will have plenty to follow and cheer. 

On Tuesday, the Shanghai meet organizers announced their men's pole vault field, which includes the last four major championship gold medalists. Reigning Olympic champion Thiago Braz da Silva, who stunned the world with his gold medal performance in his home country over the summer, looks to jump start his season, but he'll find plenty of competition from 2012 Olympic gold medalist and world record holder Renaud Lavillenie of France. Lavillenie, who earned silver in Rio, will seek some revenge and is showing fine form early in the season. 

2015 world champion Shawn Barber of Canada is also entered, looking to rebound from an up-and-down 2016 campaign, while Germany's Raphael Holzdeppe, who won gold at the 2013 IAAF World Championships, hopes to regain form after an injury knocked him out of competition prior to the Olympic Games.

It's not often you have four Olympic and world champions in an event at the same time, meaning there should be plenty of fireworks in Shanghai next month. 

Not to be overlooked, the Doha organizers announced their women's 100-meter hurdles field earlier this week, with four of the top five finishers in Rio committed to compete, along with world record holder Keni Harrison. 

The U.S. depth in the 100 hurdles was on display last year. Harrison missed qualifying for the team, only to go out and break the world record in the event, with Brianna Rollins, Nia Ali and Kristi Castlin going 1-2-3 in the final, the only solo country sweep of medals on the track or in the field in Rio. It can be argued no event team is harder to make in the world than the U.S. women's 100 hurdle squad. 

Harrison continues to shine this season, having run the world leader for the 60-meter hurdles indoors. Being joined by Rollins and Ali in Doha, the race is sure to be fast and by all accounts should create the ideal setting for one of the three to run a world-leading time.

Joining the mix, Great Britain's Cindy Ofili and Germany's Cindy Roleder, who finished 4-5 in Rio, are also entered

Head-to-head matchups have been a point of conversation for years, with fans craving marquee names squaring off against one another, no matter the event. Both the men's pole vault and women's 100-meter hurdles are ideal examples of these sorts of contests.