Four-time Diamond League champion Timothy Cheruiyot will seek to avenge his previous loss to Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen in the 1,500m showdown on July 12 at the Monaco Diamond League.
The Monaco meet is set to preview their anticipated showdown at the Stade de France when the Olympic athletics programme kicks off on August 1.
In their last encounter at the Oslo Diamond League on May 30, Norway's Ingebrigtsen clinched victory with a world-leading time of 3:29.74.
Cheruiyot followed closely with a season-best of 3:29.77 while France’s Habz Azeddine (3:30.80) sealed the podium.
However, so intense was the pressure from Cheruiyot in the final stretch that the Norwegian middle-distance star had to hurl himself across the line in desperation to edge him out.
Cheruiyot, who was seeking his first Diamond League win of the year in Oslo, had previously placed second at the Doha meeting on May 10 with a time of 3:32.67, just behind Brian Komen (3:32.43).
At the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Ingebrigtsen bested Cheruiyot to claim gold with inn Olympic record time of 3:28.32, leaving Cheruiyot (3:29.01) and Josh Kerr (3:29.05) to complete the podium.
Cheruiyot’s season has also seen him compete at the Kip Keino Classic on April 20, where he placed seventh in the 800m (1:46.56), and at the National Championships on May 22, finishing fourth in the 1,500m (3:40.23).
He secured his spot in Team Kenya for the Olympics by placing third (3:35.90) at the trials last month.
Joining Cheruiyot in Monaco will be Komen, who is fresh from clinching gold at the African Senior Championship in Douala, Cameroon in 3:33.95.
European Championships bronze medallist Pietro Arese of Italy, alongside British duo Elliot Giles and Neil Gourley, will be looking to challenge the favourites.
Other contenders include Azeddine, Netherlands’ Niels Laros, Portugal’s Isaac Nader, Norway’s Narve Nordas and USA’s Yared Nuguse.
Valencia 10km road race bronze medallist Lilian Kasait will flex muscles with the Ethiopians Tsigie Gebreselama, Likina Amebaw and Marta Alemayo in the women’s 5,000m race.
Kasait aims to bolster her Olympic preparations after securing her spot in the women’s 10,000m with a third-place finish at the Prefontaine Classic (29:26.89).
World silver medallist in the 800m Emmanuel Wanyonyi will also test his readiness for Paris after setting a world-leading time of 1:41.70 at the Olympic trials.
He will face tough competition from World champion Marco Arop of Canada and 2022 World silver medallist Djamel Sedjati of Algeria.
