The 2021 Diamond League

The crowds at 2019 London Anniversary Games, photo by Getty Images / British Athletics

Men’s 100m, Birmingham DL 2019, photo by Getty Images / British Athletics

This is Stuart Weir’s piece on the planned 2021 Diamond League, and it has an view about the paradigm changing disappearance of one Diamond League meeting in the UK and the disappearance of a day in the Anniversary Games, plus the move to mid week from the weekend.

Big changes in UK.

2021 Diamond League Program

The good news is that there is a Diamond League scheduled for Britain in 2020, the Anniversary Games on Tuesday 13 July in London. That is indeed good news after both the scheduled Diamond Leagues in the UK in 2020 had to be cancelled.

2019 Anniversary Games, photo by Getty Images / British Athletics

Those of us who have enjoyed Birmingham over the years will be sad to see it disappear – hopefully temporarily from the schedule. “Birmingham” would actually have been Gateshead as the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham is still being renovated for the 2022 Commonwealth Games. That means that poor old Gateshead – like Naples – appeared in the 2020 Diamond League schedule, was cancelled and did not appear again.

Hagos Gebrihewot battles with Jakub Ingebrigtsen, photo by Getty Images / British Athletics

That the Anniversary Games will be on a Tuesday evening only rather than its usual Friday/Saturday slot will be a disappointment to many. Stating the obvious, it means that they were be only half the normal events (or less). Stating the slightly less obvious it will significantly diminish the number of opportunities for up and coming British athletes to participate. I cannot see there being, for example, sprints with two prelims and a final, which in previous years enabled more local athletes to get a lane.

Laura Muir, London 2019, photo by Getty Images / British Athletics

UK Athletics told me that “Tuesday was to avoid the weekend clashes with other sports events”. That is perhaps understandable after the financial hit taken when the 2018 Athletics World Cup clashed with the Soccer World Cup final and Wimbledon. Remember too that the London Stadium (the venue of the 2012 Olympics) is now the West Ham United soccer stadium and is only available for athletics during a short window each summer.

Laviai Nielson, London 2019, photo by Getty Images / British Athletics

There has been no official explanation as to why two events have been reduced to one – three sessions reduced to one, so anything I suggest is just speculation. Questions have been raised to whether the new CEO, Jo Coates, sees big events as a priority. Cherry Alexander’s departure could support that theory. There is the ongoing issue of whether BBC will renew the TV contract and after a year of very little income due to the pandemic, perhaps UKA understandably feels that it has to be cautious and prudent financially. To be fair, the decision is having to be taken before we have any guarantee that spectators would be allowed to attend without restrictions.

Women’s 100m, Anniversary Games, photo by Getty Images / British Athletics

Another issue about the 2021 Anniversary Games is that the date is only 17 days before the athletics program of the 2020 Olympics starts. Asked about that issue last week, the new GB Head Coach, Christian Malcolm, said: “Not all our big athletes have always competed at the Anniversary Games. It depends on their preparation. It is a short window. But [as an athlete] I’ve experienced going into a championship when there was a short window going from our home Grand Prix, whether it was Gateshead or London, back in the day. I think it lends an opportunity for some to have a last big race and a big completion. For others it doesn’t because it cuts into their preparation. It also gives an opportunity for our fans to say goodbye and farewell in Tokyo”.

Birmingham 2019 DL, photo by Getty Images / British Athletics

One of the new UKA buzz phrases is “Athletes first”. A number of British athletes have told me how important they regard the Anniversary Games.

Jake Wightman “Every year British athletes have been given the chance to race against the best in the world there. What bigger sell can you have for athletics in Britain than an event in the Olympic stadium which reminds everyone how good London 2012 was? You still get a bit of that amazing atmosphere and nostalgia. It is such a great celebration of athletics in Britain”

Holly Bradshaw told me: “The Anniversary Games are really important to me. The Anniversary Games offer a lot of opportunities for British athletes to compete against the best in the world and to try and get qualification marks, so maybe they up their game”.

Laura Muir: “The Anniversary Games are very important to me. It’s a very special competition. It was there that I got my first British record running the 1500m in 2016 [3:57.49]. When you’re on home turf it helps you find that extra gear”.

Laviai Nielsen: “The Anniversary Games is such a big event on the British athletics calendar. British athletes always run well there because of the atmosphere and because of the fans – it brings out the best in us. It’s my favorite stadium in the whole world. I have run my PB there. It’s incredibly important. Sometimes you can be in the next lane to Olympic champion but the British public will be supporting you. It feels like the crowd are running with you”.

I give the last work to Andy Pozzi, who tweeted: “Having only one UK Diamond League in 2021 feels like a huge step backwards for the sport in our country. Athletics in the UK is facing many challenges, but I fear reducing its top offering to a single Tuesday night will only add to them”.

The full program: