The Diamond in the Crown: The year's premier event in the world of athletics gets underway

The Diamond League will reach its conclusion this weekend, and even if you are not a fan of athletics and only watch it during the Olympic Games, it is worth following the next two days in Brussels to see who will be crowned the 32 champions of the year.

This was expected to be another fairly good season, but the events in Zurich last week turned the final competition into something we have not seen in recent years. In fact, it felt like the first half of a main event that will culminate this coming weekend.

The first recommended event takes place tonight at 21:00 in the pole vault. For a moment, it seemed we were firmly in the era of Mondo Duplantis, who has already soared to 6.25 meters, but a successor seems to be knocking at the door.

Greek athlete Emmanouil Karalis has become the hottest name in world athletics over the last six months, holding a record of 6.20 m set during the great battle in Zurich. The gap is significant, but perhaps for one evening, we will witness history, potentially including a world record from one of them.

The running heats on Friday will also bring interesting battles. In the men's 100 meters, Oblique Seville will appear—the fastest Jamaican since Usain Bolt—with a personal best of 9.77 seconds and a season best of 9.82. Joining him on the track is Nigerian Kayinsola Ajayi, who clocked an amazing 9.84 seconds this year. For those looking for another heat to watch tonight, the men's 400m final is expected to be one of the highest quality in recent years.

Drama for women

While Friday brings quality battles, Saturday (21:00) looks even more interesting with a season finale that, on paper, justifies the ticket prices being sold on the black market for over 400 euros—a testament to the heights world athletics has reached.

For the women, the most interesting heat will take place, as a world record was broken just last week. American record holder Masai Russell won gold in the 100-meter hurdles with a new world record of 12.09 seconds at the previous Diamond League stage in Zurich. This improved upon the four-year-old record of Tobi Amusan from Nigeria (12.12 seconds), and both will now compete head-to-head.

For the men, it will be worth following the long-distance races in the 3,000 and 5,000 meters. The absence of Indian legend Neeraj Chopra in the men's javelin throw following an injury last week leaves the competition as a completely open battle.