MONACO: Norwegian world record holders Karsten Warholm and Jakob Ingebrigtsen will headline Friday’s Diamond League meet in Monaco in the absence of American sprinter Noah Lyles, a late withdrawal from a stellar line-up.

After two world records in Paris last week, Monaco is the penultimate meet before the Paris Olympics, the perfect opportunity for athletes to finetune preparations for the Games. Lyles, however, will not be there. The reigning world 100m and 200m champion and star of the Netflix series “Sprint” was meant to be running the longer sprint, but said Wednesday he had opted to remain at his training camp in Florida for extra work as he builds towards the Olympics.

“My coach, my entire team and I are very pleased with what we were able to achieve at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene, however, in order to put myself in the best possible position to succeed in Paris, we have decided to spend an extra week at our training base in Florida before traveling to Europe,” Lyles said.

In his absence, US teammate Courtney Lindsey and Botswana’s prodigious talent Letsile Tebogo will be favorites. The men’s 400m hurdles will see world and Olympic champion Warholm put through his paces in a strong line-up including American Rai Benjamin and Brazilian Alison Dos Santos - the three fastest men in history in the event.

Dos Santos won at the Paris meet, while Warholm claimed victory in Oslo. “The time can be improved, but we’re on the right path to continue to work towards the next competitions,” Dos Santos said after victory in the French capital.

“We are definitely working on maximizing my best abilities. The only thing that is keeping me away from doing well at the Olympics is getting enough rest. We’ve put in all the work, now we need to be patient to see the results coming through.”

Ingebrigtsen will race the 1,500m, but perhaps the most mouth-watering middle-distance event will be the 800m. The two-lap race in Paris produced one of the most memorable ever run, producing the third, fourth and fifth fastest times of all time.

Two-lap clash

Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati won in 1min 41.56sec ahead of Kenyan Emmanuel Wanyonyi and France’s Gabriel Tual. Sedjati and Tual will once again line up in Monaco, on a track known to be quick in the often balmy weather that accompanies the meet.

“I’ve prepared very well this season: I’m preparing for the Olympics. I’m very calm and, God willing, it’ll be the gold medal,” Sedjati said. “I ‘m following my coach’s advice. I’m confident and up until now, all my training has paid off.”

European champion Tual, who smashed the French record with 1min 41.61sec, said he was “over the moon” with his result in Paris. “It’s crazy! In training you feel when you’re capable of good times. I was saying to myself 1min 42sec, but to to run 1min 41.6, I can’t even believe it,” he said.

“We all know the reputation of this meeting and what the athletes achieve here: I am coming to give it my all and chase a big time. I can’t wait to compete against the best. The form since the Europeans is still there, I want to confirm it!” Joining the stellar 800m field is Canadian Marco Arop, the world champion and twice a winner in Monaco.

Other stand-outs include British sprinter Dina Asher-Smith in the women’s 100m and American three-time world champion Grant Holloway in the 110m hurdles. “I’m looking forward to racing in Monaco, on a track where I have some very fond memories,” said Holloway, who has a best of 12.99sec at Stade Louis II. – AFP