Jackson is the first athlete in history to win a full set of World Championships medals across three sprint disciplines (100m, 200m, and 400m), and she is the first Jamaican to have run under 11 seconds for 100m, under 22 seconds for 200m and under 50 seconds for 400m. She is a five-times Olympic medallist, most recently winning 4 x 100m relay gold and 100m and 4 x 400m bronze in Tokyo. At the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, in addition to winning 200m gold in a Jamaican record (21.45) - the second-quickest of all time - she took silver in the 100m and 4 x 100m. Her 100m best is 10.71 from the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Monaco in August 2022.
Asher-Smith, who won world bronze over 200m in Eugene 2022, is the British 100m record holder with a best of 10.83 set at the World Athletics Championships in Doha 2019, where she finished second. She also holds the British 200m record (21.88). Twice an Olympic 4 x 100m relay bronze medallist, she won the Wanda Diamond League 100m crown in 2019.
Jackson - who ran a world-leading 10.82 (-0.1m/s) in her first 100m race of the year at the MVP Velocity Fest 13, a World Athletics Continental Tour Challenger event in Kingston on 22 April - has won four of the five previous meetings between the two over 100m.
The quality of the field extends beyond the highly decorated duo and also includes three of the USA’s World Championships winning 4 x 100m relay team, Melissa Jefferson (10.82 PB), Abby Steiner (10.90 PB) and Twanisha Terry (10.82 PB). Former NCAA champion Sha’Carri Richardson (USA), who ran an exceptionally quick 10.57 (+4.1m/s) at the Miramar Invitational in Florida on 8 April, will also run. Her legal best is 10.72.
Teahna Daniels, Olympic 4 x 100m silver medallist in Tokyo with a best of 10.83, and Zoe Hobbs, Oceania champion and New Zealand national record holder with a best of 10.97, complete the impressive line-up.
“After starting my season with a few 400m races, I’m excited to drop down in distance to race over 100m in Doha,” said Jackson, the 2022 Wanda Diamond League 200m champion. “I know I’m in good shape after running my quickest 400m since 2019 this year, but now it’s time to sharpen up and run really fast.”
The 2023 Wanda Diamond League comprises 14 meetings in total*, starting with Doha at the Qatar Sports Club on 5 May and concluding with a single final across two days in Eugene (16-17 September). Each of the 13 series meetings will be broadcast globally in a live two-hour programme.
*In an update to the 2023 calendar, the Shanghai meeting scheduled for July will no longer take place.
