Kenyans to watch at the Rabat Diamond League

World 800m champion Lilian Odira will launch Kenya’s assault at the Rabat Diamond League on Sunday night when she steps onto the track for the women’s 800m at 9:28pm EAT.

Odira will be making only the second Diamond League appearance of her career after bursting onto the global scene last season.

The Kenyan star returns to elite competition after her Diamond League debut in Silesia, where she clocked 1:56.52 to finish behind Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson.

In Rabat, she faces another stacked field featuring Olympic silver medallist Tsige Duguma, world indoor silver medallist Audrey Werro, USA’s Addison Wiley and South Africa’s world indoor champion Prudence Sekgodiso.

Botswana’s Oratile Nowe and Ethiopia’s Nigist Getachew  who defeated Odira at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi  are also expected to provide a stern test.

At 9:57pm EAT, world 1,500m bronze medallist Reynold Cheruiyot will take centre stage in the men’s 1,500m as he hunts a breakthrough Diamond League victory.

Cheruiyot opened his season strongly in Shanghai over 3,000m, clocking 7:26.11 to finish second behind Belgium’s Mohamed Abdilaahi.

The Kenyan youngster narrowly missed victory at last year’s Rabat meeting after finishing second in 3:31.78 behind Kenyan-born American Jonah Koech.

This time, he faces another loaded field led by Portugal’s world champion Isaac Nader, USA’s Yared Nuguse, France’s Azeddine Habz and Ethiopia’s steeplechase world record-holder Lamecha Girma. Also in the field is Kenya’s Festus Lagat .

In the women’s 1,500m, Kenya’s Caren Chepchirchir and Nancy Jepng’etich will battle a strong Ethiopian contingent.

Kenya’s world and Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi will then open his Diamond League season in the men’s 800m at 10:35pm EAT.

The 21-year-old heads to Rabat seeking redemption after falling short at the same meeting last year.

Wanyonyi finished third in Rabat in 1:43.37 behind Botswana’s Tshepiso Masalela and Britain’s Max Burgin.

Wanyonyi has already shown promising signs this year after opening his season with victory over 1,500m at the 2026 Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi.

Competing outside his specialty, he clocked 3:34.11 to beat Reynold Cheruiyot and Daniel Munguti.

In Rabat, however, he faces another world-class field featuring USA’s 2019 world champion Donavan Brazier, Britain’s Max Burgin and Ireland’s Mark English, who won the Diamond League 800m in Shanghai.

The final event of the night at 10:46pm EAT promises fireworks as Kenya’s world bronze medallist Edmund Serem lines up in a blockbuster men’s 3,000m steeplechase clash.

Serem will face Morocco’s double Olympic and two-time world champion Soufiane El Bakkali in front of a passionate home crowd.

New Zealand’s world champion Geordie Beamish will also feature in the highly anticipated contest, meaning the full World Championships podium will reunite in Rabat.

Serem will be hoping for a stronger outing after opening his season with a fourth-place finish at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi.

Simon Koech and Abraham Serem will also fly Kenya’s flag in the steeplechase showdown.