Who to watch this weekend
Several Canadians will be racing in Tennessee, and Mo Farah will be making his much-anticipated return to the 10,000m in the U.K.
There’s still plenty of action for track fans to keep up with this weekend as athletes make their final bids for Olympic standard before the end of the qualifying window. There are a few Canadians lining up at the Music City Distance Carnival in Nashville, TN this Saturday and Sunday, and across the pond, Mo Farah will be toeing the line in his first 10,000m since 2017.
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Canadians in Tennessee
On Saturday evening, Natalia Hawthorn will be racing in the women’s pro 5,000m in Nashville at 7:50 p.m. CDT (8:50 ET). Hawthorn has already run the qualifying standard in both the 5,000m and the 1,500m, so she will be looking to improve her times to solidify a spot on the Canadian Olympic team.
Canadian 800m record-holder Brandon McBride will kick things off for the Canadian squad on Sunday, racing the men’s pro 800m ‘A’ race at 4:27 p.m. CDT (5:27 ET), and Hawthorn will be back on the track for the women’s pro 1,500m ‘A’ race at 5:54 p.m. CDT (6:54 p.m. ET). Fellow Candian Kate Van Buskirk, who has already run a qualifying time in the 5,000m, will be joining her on the start line, looking to run under the Olympic standard in the 1,500m.
On the men’s side, 2019 Canadian 1,500m champion Will Paulson and Para world champ Nate Riech will be competing in the men’s pro 1,500m ‘A’ race at 5:47 p.m. CDT (6:47 ET). Paulson ran a personal best in the 1,500m in 3:35.42 in Portland last weekend, and will no doubt be looking to get under the Olympic standard of 3:35:00 this Sunday.
To watch a live stream of the event, click here.
Mo Farah at the European Cup
Meanwhile, over in Birmingham, England, Farah will be lining up for his much-anticipated return to the 10,000m at the European 10,000m cup. He will be aiming to hit the Olympic standard of 27:28 to punch his ticket to Tokyo, which should not be a problem for the four-time Olympic gold medalist. The race is set to start at 12 noon ET on Saturday, with a live stream provided by BBC sports.
RELATED: Mo Farah breaks Haile Gebrselassie’s one-hour world record by 45 metres
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