23 Aug 2017

All eyes will be in  Zürich this evening, where Botswana’s 400-metre runner, Isaac Makwala is expected to hoist the country’s flag high in the Diamond League final.

Makwala is thirsty for victory after he was controversially withdrawn from 400 metres final at the IAAF World Championships.

Now he will show his mettle, and should he finish in position one, he will win a lucrative Diamond Trophy and over P500 000.

With the absence of South African World Record holder, Wayde Van Niekerk, Makwala’s chances of bringing the Diamond trophy home are high. Makwala is completely unmarked looking at his red hot form, and his hunger should drive him to deal with Steven Gardiner of Bahamas, who is a serious threat to Makwala.

The 400 metre entry list consists of Kevin Borlee of Belgium, South African Pieter Conradie, Pavel Maslak of Czech Republic, Steven Gardiner as well as Vernon Norwood and Gil Roberts both from USA.

However, the road to the final for Makwala is smooth for him to make the cut, given that in Lausanne he finished in position three with a time of 44.08, finishing behind South African Van Niekerk, who recorded 43:62 while Baboloki Thebe recorded 44:02 In Monaco, he clocked 43:84 and finished in position two after Van Niekerk. Makwala qualified for the finals after ranking position seven with 13 points.

He said in an interview that he has prepared well for the finals, adding that he used the Birmingham Diamond League 200 metres for speed work.

“The 400 metres final has been my big target, I want to win the Diamond trophy, and I am focused,” he said.
Meanwhile, according to the new rules, the IAAF Diamond League has adopted a championship style model with the finalists competing for a prize pool of US$3.2 million.

This season, athletes earned points in the first 12 IAAF Diamond League meetings to qualify for two final meetings, where US$100 000 will be at stake in each of the 32 Diamond disciplines, including US$50 000 for each winner.

The Diamond League website says in previous seasons, athletes accumulated points throughout the IAAF Diamond League season with the overall winner of each of the 32 events being the athlete with the highest number of points irrespective of whether they won the final or not.

The season is now a race to reach the finals with the winners crowned as IAAF Diamond League champions. As in a championship, the performance of athletes in the final alone will determine who the champion will be and the prize money won. ENDS