Two of the biggest names in track and field have agreed to a 100m race to see who is fastest over athletic’s premier distance.
Newly christened double Olympic pole vault champion Armand Mondo Duplantis will take to the track in a sprint against Norwegian 400m hurdler Karsten Warholm on September 4 in Zurich, Switzerland.
Hosted in collaboration between Puma, Red Bull and Weltklasse Zurich, the two athletic stars will race at the Letzigrund Stadium ahead of the scheduled Diamond League meeting on September 5.
The clash is the result of an almost year-long back-and-forth between the athletes after a clip was shared on social media of the duo discussing the possibility or racing each other.
It will be the first event both men have participated in following the conclusion of the Olympic Games. In Paris, Duplantis broke his own world record clearing 6.25m as he cruised to a second pole vault Olympic gold while Warholm added a silver medal to the Olympic gold he earned at Tokyo 2020.
Despite the two athletes being professionals in other track and field events they have remarkably close 100m times which makes this race a tantalising prospect.
Warholm, who holds the world record for the 400m hurdles with a time of 45.94 seconds, recorded a 100m sprint effort of 10.49 seconds back in 2017. Duplantis, meanwhile, clocked a 10.57 just a year later when he was still a high school senior.
Duplantis has also previously voiced his desire to compete in sprint relays for Sweden on top of his pole vaulting heroics. He said: “I would have loved to do that. And I would love to be part of breaking the Swedish record.”
Fans can purchase tickets to the event in Zurich to see which of the two Olympians truly if the fastest over 100m.
