New pro Hobbs puts unbeaten season on line in 100, Thomas looks to gain valuable experience in 200 in preparation for final year at Harvard

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

A pair of NCAA female sprint champions and collegiate record holders will be making their Diamond League debuts Thursday in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Former LSU star Aleia Hobbs is entered in the 100-meter dash and Harvard junior Gabby Thomas is scheduled to race the 200. The 100 race is part of the Diamond League series that contributes points toward determining the finalists for the Aug. 30 event in Zurich.

Hobbs, who became the first collegiate athlete to win the NCAA Division 1 and USATF Outdoor titles in the 100 in the same year since Oregon’s English Gardner in 2013, is one of two Americans in the field, along with Jenna Prandini, who won the USATF Outdoor title in the 200.

They will face a strong field of international veterans in Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson, Nigeria’s Blessing Okagbare-Ighoteguonor, Dafne Schippers of the Netherlands, along with the Ivory Coast pair of Murielle Ahoure and Marie-Josee Ta Lou.

“I’m really excited about racing Thursday. It’s a really big meet. My first really big meet,” Hobbs said. “This will feel like my first pro race because I came down here by myself. I’ll also be running against great athletes from other countries.”

Ta Lou boasts the fastest wind-legal time in the world this year at 10.85 from May 4 in Qatar, with Ahoure, Okagbare-Ighoteguonor and Hobbs all tied for No. 2 at 10.90. Thompson is sixth at 10.93, with Prandini equal to No. 8 at 10.98 and Schippers tied for No. 14 at 11.01.

Hobbs’ wind-legal personal best remains 10.85 from last year. During her unbeaten season, Hobbs – also the collegiate record holder in the 60-meter dash – has run under 11 seconds in the 100 in 10 of 12 races.

“Running against them will be a great experience and start to my professional career. It’s very important for me to challenge myself because this is what I’ll be doing from now on,” Hobbs said. “I haven’t been changing anything, just doing what I’ve been doing to get here. I believe the right conditions and competition can help me break the 10.9 I’ve been running all year.”

Thomas, the indoor collegiate 200 record holder, still has a year of eligibility remaining at Harvard following a runner-up finish June 9 in the 200 final at the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Championships.

Instead of racing June 23-24 at the USATF Outdoor Championships in Des Moines, Iowa, Thomas decided to focus only on select races in Europe this summer, in addition to her internship for the Hyams Foundation in Boston.

“Training has been going very well. It keeps getting better. I’m making a few breakthroughs and running fast, race-pace times in practice, so these are all good signs that I’m mentally and physically ready for my meets this summer, despite the long season,” Thomas said. “It is a little tough to be training on my own with no training partners, but the excitement of Europe has pushed me through.”

Thomas, who ranks No. 8 in the world this year with her wind-legal 22.32 effort, also faces a quality field of challengers, including fellow Americans Kyra Jefferson – the collegiate outdoor record holder at 22.02 – and Kimberlyn Duncan. Also scheduled to compete are Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson, No. 2 in the world this year at 22.05, as well as Trinidad and Tobago’s Michelle-Lee Ahye.

“My goals for the summer, to be honest, are to have fun and just run my best. The great thing about these meets is that they won’t count against me, and they’re great experience, especially as I consider continuing my career as a professional athlete,” Thomas said. “So far, the experience has been amazing. They treat the track athletes very well here. I’m excited to see what times I can pop out.”