So what are the chances of medals? The field will be weaker than the world championships, with the three who finished directly behind Wightman in Eugene – Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway and Spanish pair Mohamed Katir and Mario Garcia – not taking part.
But there are still quality athletes involved. Timothy Cheruiyot, the former world champion and silver medallist from the Tokyo Olympics, and his Kenyan compatriot, Abel Kipsang, will provide stiff competition.
Stewart McSweyn of Australia is another capable of quick times. But what does Wightman think?
“Part of the privilege of being the world champion [is] the pressure is higher and people look to me to what I’m going to do,” he adds.
“But there are still athletes who have Olympic and world medals, so it’s not an easy field. If I’m good enough on the day, hopefully I will be hard to beat.”
