Hobbs will need to stop the clock at 11.07 or better to gain automatic entry to the Olympics. There are other ways to get to Paris – via ranking points or regional allocations – but the 25-year-old is targeting the direct route initially.
And with good reason.
She has enjoyed a spectacular campaign so far in 2023, coming after a breakthrough season last year. Hobbs ran a sizzling 10.97 in Sydney in mid-March, a week after her wind assisted 10.89 at the national championships in Wellington. Five days later she recorded 11.02 at the Sir Graeme Douglas meet in Auckland – despite adverse weather conditions that night.
After that Australasian success she spent time on the road in May, racing in Asia and Africa. She finished fifth in the Doha Diamond league final – just her second meet at that level, with a time of 11.08, before placing second at the Kip Keino Classic in Kenya in 10.97, though the tail wind in Nairobi was just above the legal limit of two seconds.
Hobbs then took out the Seiko Golden Grand Prix in Yokohama (11.20). She returned home for a short training bloc, then relocated to Europe last late month.
On Saturday she competed in another Diamond League race in Lausanne, Switzerland.
The Taranaki product finished fifth in 11.20, in chilly conditions, with Marie-Josee Ta Lou (Ivory Coast) clocking 10.88s in first.
After tomorrow’s event, it’s understood Hobbs could race up to two more Diamond League events, before tapering down ahead of an extended training camp in Montpelier, France, prior to Budapest.
