Drake Relays Hurdles to Feature Olympians, World Champions and World Record Holder
In addition to announcing elite 100m and 110m hurdles fields, Drake Relays Dunk Contest Champion Will Williams will return to Des Moines in the men’s long lump.
DES MOINES, Iowa — Thanks to generations of historic and thrilling performances, the hurdles have become a marquee event at the Drake Relays presented by Xtream powered by Mediacom. The 113th installment of the Drake Relays will be no different with current women’s World Champion and world record holder Tobi Amusan and reigning Olympic gold medalist Hansle Parchment returning to Drake Stadium.
Combined, the men’s 110-meter hurdles and women’s 100-meter hurdles fields, announced today by Franklin P. Johnson Director of the Drake Relays Blake Boldon, feature a pair of Olympic medalists, eight Olympians, seven World Championship qualifiers and the last two women’s World Champions. Boldon also announced the men’s long jump field, including World Championship qualifier and 2023 Drake Relays dunk contest winner Will Williams.
The men’s long jump is slated to begin at 2:05 p.m. on Saturday, April 29 while the women’s 100-meter hurdles are scheduled to start at 2:35 p.m. followed immediately by the men’s 110-meter hurdles.
“We are thrilled to continue to stage some of the best hurdles events in the world with a pair of fields the likes of which you would expect to see at a Diamond League meet or Olympic trials,” Boldon said. “These athletes always put on a show and love competing at the Drake Relays, with Olympic medalists like Hansle Parchment and Nia Ali coming back year after year to start their seasons at Drake Stadium.”
The women’s lineup boasts the last two World Champions, Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan and the USA’s Nia Ali, and the 2015 World Champion, Danielle Williams of Jamaica.
Amusan set the world record of 12.12 last summer in the semifinals of the World Championships before blitzing the field to win the final. A 2016 Olympic semifinalist, she finished one spot off the podium in 2021. A regular on the Blue Oval, she is making her third Drake Relays appearance in search of adding a Relays crown to her storied career.
Nia Ali owns the 12th fastest time in history, set at 12.34 while winning the 2019 World Championship two years after winning the silver medal at the 2016 Olympics. Another familiar face at Drake Stadium, Ali, will be appearing in her fifth Drake Relays.
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