Shenzhen joins the thirteen other meetings already announced and allows China to count with Shanghai (since 2010) two competitions in the major track and field circuit, a commitment made in 2019 when the Chinese group Wanda had become the title sponsor of the League. diamond.
China has not held an international athletics competition since 2019 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
A total of 32 events are back on the program (16 for women, 16 for men) and will crown their winners in the finals on September 7 and 8 in Zurich (Switzerland).
Asked on a conference call, Sebastian Coe, president of the International Athletics Federation, said he saw no harm in China holding athletics competitions, as the fate of the Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai is still a cause for concern.
“We are happy to be able to host competitions internationally and China has a strong tradition in athletics,” he said.
"We have strong and clearly established principles, whether in terms of human rights or sustainability," said the former Olympic champion.
"I am philosophically opposed to boycott measures in sport. I have experienced them and generally they do not achieve their goals," said the Briton.
"We are worried like all athletes. But it is better to have a dialogue than to pull the drawbridge," he added.
The calendar of the Diamond League 2022:
May 13 - Doha (Qatar)
May 21 - Birmingham (UK)
May 28 - Eugene (United States)
June 5 - Rabat (Morocco)
June 9 - Rome (Italy)
June 16 - Oslo (Norway)
June 18 - Paris (France)
June 30 - Stockholm (Sweden)
July 30 - Shanghai (China)
August 6 - Shenzhen (China)
August 10 - Monaco
August 26 - Lausanne (Switzerland)
September 2 - Brussels (Belgium)
September 7/8 - Zurich (Switzerland)
© 2021 AFP