Golden Gala Athletics in Florence: Jacobs, Kerley and all the participants

Seven individual Olympic champions in office, as many world champions: the Golden Gala Pietro Mennea 2023 (edition n. 43), scheduled with 15 competitions on Friday 2 June, extraordinarily at the Ridolfi in Florence since the Olimpico in Rome is undergoing renovations in sight of the European 2024, promises entertainment and emotions. The meeting – presented yesterday at Palazzo Vecchio – this year the third round of the Diamond League after Doha (May 5) and Rabat (28), is moreover permanently among the top ten of the special ranking drawn up by the world federation (eighth in 2022) and for many stars it is an unmissable appointment. Live on Rai 3 from 8pm, the two grandstands are already sold out: only a few hundred tickets remain available for the curves, on sale online on the TicketOne platform and in authorized ticket offices.

The cast

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The Ugandan Joshua Cheptegei in the 5000m, the Kenyan Faith Kipyegon in the 1500m, the German Malika Mihambo in the long run, the American Katie Moon Nageotte in the auction: the four are both golds in the five circles of Tokyo 2021 and world champions of Eugene 2022 (Cheptgei in 5,000 the first case, in 10,000 the second). To them, among the Olympians, are added the blue Marcell Jacobs in the 100m, the Kenyan Peruth Chemutai in the 3000m steeplechase and the American Valerie Allman in the discus. Among the world champions are the Americans Fred Kerley in the 100m and Grant Holloway in the 110m hurdles and the Chinese Feng Bin in the discus. Many others, of course, the expected big names. With particular attention to the men’s 100m, the race of races.

The 100

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It will propose the highly anticipated Jacobs-Kerley confrontation, but not only. On the starting blocks, together with the two sacred monsters, will line up the other American Trayvon Bromell, world bronze, the Kenyan Ferdinand Omanyala, 9″84 on Saturday in Nairobi, the South African Akani Simbine, in the last two Olympics and in the last three World beyond the fifth place (but never on the podium…), the Jamaican Yohan Blake, the Sinhalese from Rome Yupum Abeykoon and the new European champion of the indoor 60m, the Tuscan (from Massa) Samuele Ceccarelli, revelation of the winter season, at the first 100 of the “new” career.

Italians

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In addition to the two sprinters, Italy will be able to count (at the moment) on another fifteen representatives: Filippo Tortu and Fausto Desalu in the 200m, Lorenzo Simonelli in the 110m hurdles, Emmanuel Ihemeje in the triple, Zane Weir and Leo Fabbri in the weight, Zaynab Dosso in the 100, Alice Mangione in the 400m, Sinta Vissa and Ludovica Cavalli in the 1500m, Ayo Folorunso in the 400m hurdles, Roberta Bruni and Elisa Molinarolo in the pole, Larissa Iapichino in the long and Daisy Osakue in the disc. The support, it goes without saying, will be all for Fabbri and Iapichino, real Florentines. In addition to that of Yeman Crippa, the day after engaged in the European team championships of 10,000m in Pacè, in France, the absence of Gianmarco Tamberi stands out. The organizers and the Olympic champion of the high, at least for now, have not reached an agreement.