IAAF Diamond League Podcast

Join host Alex Seftel for another laid-back sit down with a track and field star. In this episode: World, Olympic, European and Diamond League champion Katerina Stefanidi talks about what there is still left to achieve in her pole vault career after a wonderful end to 2018. The Greek athlete jokes that husband and coach Mitch Krier "sees vectors and numbers" when she vaults and is brilliant at giving her cues to improve.

Find out which footballer Marie-Josee Ta Lou wanted to be like as a child, whether the Ivorian sprinter prefers the 100m or 200m, and how she copes with long term pain in her knees. Meanwhile, Alex Seftel discusses who is looking to be in form ahead of the conclusion of the IAAF Diamond League season in Zurich and Brussels.

Did you know American sprinter Jenna Prandini used to be a volleyball player? She jointly leads the Diamond League standings in the women's 200m heading into the final at the end of this month. Tom Byrne discovers that she has plenty of other talents too!

New Zealand's Tomas Walsh talks about the prospect of breaking the world record in the shot put and reclaiming the Diamond Trophy. 2018 has already been a successful year for the IAAF World Indoor champion and Commonwealth Games winner, who used to build houses for a living. Meanwhile, Alex Seftel runs through how things are looking on the #RoadToTheFinal with #BirminghamDL coming up.

This week, North American steeplechase record holder Evan Jager talks about immersing himself in the sport of track and field after initially growing up as a soccer player. The Olympic silver and world bronze medalist also discusses his great relationship with his father, who bought him a Ford Mustang before he could drive after running a fast time as a child.

2005 world 400m hurdles champion Bershawn Jackson talks about what defines his career. Having grown up in a poor neighbourhood in Florida, he describes the coach that encouraged him to try track and field as having "saved his life". The Olympic medalist also discusses his emotions following the death of his father and grandmother in the last few years.

In this episode, we catch up with Olympic, World, European, Commonwealth and Diamond League champion Greg Rutherford, who bid an emotional farewell to the London Stadium last weekend. Also featuring is Kyron McMaster, who took home the Diamond Trophy in 2017. The 400m hurdler reflects on his career to date including the tragic loss of his coach during Hurricane Irma last September. Meanwhile Alex Seftel runs through a few key highlights of some wonderful meetings in Monaco and London.

Italian high jumper Alessia Trost talks about her love of the discipline, achieving big things at a young age and the challenge of facing up to a 2.00m barrier. Meanwhile, Alex Seftel runs through how the road to the final is shaping up in some key competitions ahead of the next rounds of the IAAF Diamond League in Monaco and London.

Olympic bronze medalist Eliza McCartney describes what it was like to taste success on the international stage at just 19-years-old, while Alex Seftel discusses how the road to the final is shaping up ahead of the next IAAF Diamond League meeting in Rabat.

Jamaican sprint hurdler Hansle Parchment talks to Alex Seftel about growing up and practicing jumping over metal fences and the excellent form of his countrymen in his discipline. Meanwhile, Tom Byrne, Michelle Sammet and Pete Matthews are out in Switzerland, looking at the #RoadToTheFinal ahead of the Athletissima meeting in Lausanne.

World silver medalist Shamier Little talks about getting over disappointment, making the USA national team, and how fellow 400m hurdler Sara Slott Petersen "saved her life". Also in this episode, Alex Seftel and Tom Byrne look at how the #RoadToTheFinal is shaping up as Diamond League action returns. Follow the IAAF Diamond League on social media and interact with us to have your say on the discussion.

In this week's podcast, Adam Kszczot talks to Thomas Byrne about how a conversation with a taxi driver after the London 2012 Olympics motivated him to become one of his country's greats.

Six meets into the IAAF Diamond League season and the #RoadToTheFinal is very much up and running. Alex Seftel and Tom Byrne discuss some of the most notable performances so far and catch up with Jamaican discus star Fedrick Dacres, who jokingly says that he chose his discipline because "sprinting would've been too easy".

In this week's podcast, Armand Duplantis tells us about the sudden change from calculating how high he'd have to vault - and at what age - in order to be able to compete against his idol, Renaud Lavillenie, while Ramil Guliyev tells us about the day he got into track & field. Meanwhile, Alex Seftel, Matthew Quine, Michelle Sammet and Kit Holden talk about the action we'll see in the Oslo and Stockholm editions of the 2018 IAAF Diamond League.

Aisha Praught-Leer tells us how past failures at major championships motivated her to make the most of the Commonwealth Games and her pride that Jamaicans are starting to pay attention to the middle and long distance races.

This week's episode brings you exclusive interviews with both Jenny Simpson and Christian Taylor with Alex Seftel, Thomas Byrne, Michelle Sammet and Matthew Quine talking German javlein power and all things Prefontaine Classic.

The road to the final has begun. After a thrilling opener in Doha, track and field stars head to Shanghai for the second meet of the year, which includes the men's 110m hurdles, a event which has seen Jamaican Omar McLeod win Olympic and world titles in the last couple of years. Here, the 24-year-old describes his sacrifices growing up and discusses what he has left to achieve in the sport. Join host Alex Seftel for this episode, along with Tom Byrne and Matthew Quine who are in China catching up on all the latest news and gossip.

Ahead of the start of the 2018 IAAF Diamond League, Alex Seftel and Thomas Byrne talk us through the start-lists and some of the key battles we'll see on Friday 5 May 2018. In addition, Matthew Quine is joined by Olympic Champion Thomas Röhler where they delve deeper into the German's 'defining moment' of his career to date: the point in which he switched from triple jump to the javelin.

The first IAAF Diamond League meeting of 2018 in Doha is now just around the corner. Alex Seftel and Tom Byrne are here to take a look back at some of the big moments of 2017, some new stars we might see on the circuit in 2018 and give you an introduction on what to expect from future podcasts. Want to join in the conversation? Use #IDLPodcast on Twitter and Instagram.