The track and field events at the Olympic Games are usualy some of the most anticipated events at the games. That is because they are usually packed with action and suspense. Over the years, we have watched many athletes such as Usain Bolt conquer this area of sport and in 2020, we expect to watch some of the athletes below reclaim their gold medals or win their first-ever medals at an Olympic game.
The track program usually comprises of middle-distance running, sprints, and long-distance events for both the men and the women. Hurdles, as well as steeplechase and relays, are usually part of track and field events as well, and they comprise some of the fastest sports in the games.
Of course, we all know how effective Kenya and Ethiopia are in the long-distance runs and marathons, but the sprints and short-distance events are usually dominated by Jamaica and the US. These are excellent events for the whole family to watch. We’ve looked into who’s competing this year and made a list for who you should watch out for.
The 2020 Olympic Games will be held in Tokyo. Superstar athletes from around the world will gather in the city to compete and show viewers what they’re made of. Below are out picks of the names you should be watching out for during these Olympic games.
Mariya Lasitskene
Country: Russia
Sport: Track and Field
Mariya Lasitskene is a high jumper and considered the favorite to win the gold medal during the upcoming 2020 Olympic Games. She was previously banned from participating in the track and field events due to doping, but she has since been cleared and shall compete under her neutral flag. Previously she won the gold medals in 2015, and 2017, and has been ranked no.1 in the world.
Noah Lyles
Country: United States
Sport: Track & Field
Noah Lyles is 22 years old and managed to clock a time of 19:65 during the Diamond league meat of 2019 in Paris, which set a new record. He is expected to win big in the 2020 Olympics and he looks forward to breaking Usain Bolt’s record of 19:73. He shall be competing in three field events – 200-meters, 100-meters, and the 4×100 meter relay event.
Sydney McLaughlin
Country: United States
Sport: Track & Field
Sydney McLaughlin is a 16-year-old athlete who qualified for the 400-meter competition in 2016 in Rio. She will be the youngest athlete from the US in the last 36 years to make the track and field team. Ever since she started competing, she has never failed to make the finals, and she is expected to win big in 2020.
Ramil Guliyev
Ramil Guliyev is an Azerbaijani born natural citizen of Turkey, and he is a sprinter. He competes in the 200 and 100-meter events, and in 2017, he became the world champion during the 200-meter men’s race. This was the first-ever Gold medal for Turkey in the Olympic Games. He is expected to do very well in the 2020 Olympic Games.
Meryem Bekmez
This is a Turkish female race walker who specializes in the 5000 meters and the 10,000-meter walking races. She is a member of the municipally-owned Kayapinar club. In 2014, she was a runner-up in the Turkish championships where she was admitted to the national team camp. In 2016, she was the champion in the 5,000-meter competition.
In 2017, she competed in the World Under-18 Championship and won a silver medal, and also competed in the same event in the 10,000-meter race and won a bronze medal. Together with her teammate Ayse Tekdal, they won the bronze medal during the 2018 IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships that were held in Taicang China. This win broke national world records for the senior women category at a time of 44:17:69.
She was able to set a world record and became the world U20 leader in the 20km walk as well. She is however placed at position 11 in other races. During the Turkish Race League Walk of 2019 that was held in Koya, she was again able to set a new national record in the 5,000-meter event and also the women U20 category where she finished at a time of 21:54. She then won the gold medal in the 2019 European Race Walking in Alytus Lithuania. We are expecting excellent results in the 2020 Olympic Games.
Which Track and Field Star To Watch Out For Conclusion
The Olympic games bring people from around the world together and promote positive relationships among countries. Of course, there will shall be thousands upon thousands of athletes who will be competing in the events and some of them will be eliminated in the preliminary events. But the above five athletes are expected to do exceptionally well for their countries and show us what Olympic spirit in track and field is all about.
