Christophe Lemaitre of France wins the 100m at the IAAF / VTB Bank Continental Cup in Split (© Getty Images)
Facing the stiffest of early season tests, triple European champion Christophe Lemaitre will take on World record holder Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell, two of history's three fastest men, in the 100m at the Compeed Golden Gala in Rome on 26 May, the third stop on the 2011 Samsung Diamond League series.
The 21-year-old Frenchman dominated the 100 and the 200m at the European Championships in Barcelona last summer and collected his third gold medal in the 4x100m Relay. No other European sprinter had achieved the feat before in the history of the continental Championships.
Lemaitre joined the 100m sub-10 shortly after his 20th birthday at the French championships last July when he clocked a national record 9.98. At the Rieti IAAF World Challenge meeting in late August, he equalled the performance in the heats and lowered it further to 9.97 in the final. The Frenchman concluded his season on a high note with a high profile 100m victory at the IAAF / VTB Bank Continental Cup in Split, Croatia. Lemaitre competed at the Golden Gala last summer in his last race as a teenager, where Powell, the former World record holder, prevailed in 9.82 to Lemaitre's 10.09.
However, the men's 100m will not be the only highlight in Rome. As previously announced the meeting in the Italian capital will also be headlined by the double 200/400m sprint clash between the two US sprint reigning World champions Sanya Richards (400m) and Allyson Felix (200m).
World 800m record holder and 2010 Athlete of the Year David Rudisha, who will compete in his specialty, was also previously announced. The Kenyan has already got off to a fast start this year, clocking a world-leading 1:43.88 at the opening leg of the 2011 IAAF World Challenge in Melbourne on 3 March.
Samsung Diamond League
