The organiser of the annual Great CityGames believes the event has now sprinted into the hearts and minds of Manchester sports fans.
Now in its fifth-year of running, the Deansgate showpiece is expected to attract a crowd of 3,000 people to the city centre tomorrow to witness the free event.
And organiser Peter Riley expects the event to be a push for street athletics with sprinting megastars like Yohan Blake in attendance.
He told MM: “It is a mainstream track-and-field event in an open stadium on Deansgate and free to the public so it is absolutely going to be interesting.
“The event has got its place in world athletics (this year) because there are no World Championships or Olympics taking place this year.
“For every athlete, every event they do will be competitive so you go into the competition with full force.
“Any sport is looking to reinvent itself so it can match the public interests and street athletics is no exception. “
Riley, who also organises the Great Run and Great Swim national events, beleives elite athletes will always draw a crowd with Blake and homegrown hero Greg Rutherford set to star in this year’s event.
“The biggest thing we have is Blake, of course, which is similar to Usain Bolt (who appeared) back in 2009. Manchester’s got a big Jamaican community which I believe will be out in full force tomorrow.”
All eyes will be drawn to the performance of Blake – hyped as the second fastest man on the planet behind Bolt.
Sports correspondent Andre Lowe for the Jamaica Gleaner, the biggest selling newspaper in the country, told MM that he believes Blake will be absolutely desperate tomorrow to come back from the worst injury of his career so far.
“There has been last year’s injury problems, but he has looked good in his few local appearances to date and the reports coming out of his training sessions in Kingston is that he is back to his best physically and importantly, psychologically,” he said speaking.
“It is not far-fetched to think that Blake will one day better Bolt’s world records.
“(His speed of)19.26 seconds over 200metres and 9.69 over 100m shows his class and I think that track-and-field fans all over the world should be excited to see him back on the circuit and people should pay really close attention to his continued development because something very special is coming.”
Despite a lack of experience at the 150m distance he will be running on Sunday, Lowe has tipped Blake to reign supreme in the Deansgate event.
“Blake has never competed over 150m before in his career but I’m sure he will be looking to get close to that 14.35 seconds world record to confirm the kind of condition that he is in,” said Riley.
“He is extremely motivated and his return to the track this season will bring much-welcomed competitiveness to the 100m and 200m scene after what can be described as a low year in 2013.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what he does in front of the spectators in Manchester in what has become an event that Jamaicans pay keen attention to.”
Image courtesy of BBC via Youtube, with thanks
