Major athletics meets often boast deep. Yet, even in a sport saturated with prestige and pedigree, there are moments when one name alone reshapes the temperature of an entire event. Kishane Thompson has done precisely that. With his staggering 9.75-second performance at the Jamaican national trials, faster than anything recorded since Usain Bolt ruled the straightaway, the 23-year-old has shifted attention firmly toward Eugene. And he is having some lofty ambitions going into the race, particularly raising a threat for another champion…

As the start list grows heavier with former champions and world medalists, the men’s 100 meters at the Prefontaine Classic promises theater. Christian Coleman remains a proven starter, an athlete whose early phases can trouble anyone. Others in the field bring consistency, international silverware, or the raw hunger of rising talent. But none of them, not one, arrives in Oregon as the man who just ran the fastest time of the decade.

It is here, in this convergence of form and timing, that Thompson becomes the man to watch. And perhaps the man to beat. His display in Kingston was not simply fast. It was composed. The mechanics were settled, his posture sharp, and his drive phase unusually well-contained. While he hasn’t declared targets in bold type, the subtext of his recent comments suggests assurance. “Anything is possible,” Thompson said when asked about the meet record, “but I won’t jinx it for the bad, nor the good. I just gotta come out there, execute, do my best, you know, enjoy myself.” His voice, notably calm, conceals the magnitude of his form. 

And that calm is not new. In Paris last year, during his first Olympic Games, Thompson nearly stunned the field in the final. He led deep into the race before Noah Lyles clawed back the margin in the last five meters. That silver, though a breakout by most standards, left the Jamaican unsettled. The hunger has sharpened since.

Now, with just weeks remaining until the World Championships in Tokyo, Thompson has reason to use Eugene as a declaration. Not one born of impulse, but of evidence. The fastest man of the year enters the weekend with a world lead in hand, the memory of near-gold still fresh, and a measured sense of what could lie ahead if the execution matches the confidence. However, despite oozing confidence, he still has to face the threat of Christian Coleman.

Kishane Thompson disrupts the equation as Christian Coleman’s stronghold weakens

The aura around Christian Coleman’s name has, for years, been inextricably linked to success at the Prefontaine Classic. Three victories, each claimed against some of the finest sprinters of the era, have preserved his position at the summit of this particular stage. Yet, as he returns in 2025 to equal Justin Gatlin’s streak of three consecutive wins, a sharper challenge rises. This time, the looming threat does not come from a seasoned rival but from a Jamaican who appears intent on reshaping the hierarchy.

Kishane Thompson’s tone following his recent triumph in Kingston was not ambiguous. Thompson’s recent aim of beating the meet record, placed within the context of his 9.75 world lead, may appear self-assured. However, with Coleman navigating a string of uneven results, third at the Tom Jones Invitational, and no 100m victories to date in 2025, the declaration lands with particular weight. 

The Prefontaine Classic has often served as a reaffirmation for Coleman. In 2019, he registered a world-leading 9.81. In 2023, he held off Noah Lyles with a 9.83. Even in 2024, his 9.95 kept him ahead of Omanyala and Hicklin. But the texture of the field in 2025 is notably different. Trayvon Bromell and Ackeem Blake are both in form. Bayanda Walaza has been surging. And Thompson, by contrast, has not lost. If Coleman were to falter, it would not be entirely unexpected.

The discourse has shifted. Coleman is no longer discussed solely as a frontrunner. Thompson’s entry has altered the rhythm of expectation. The question now is not whether Coleman can maintain his grip on the Prefontaine Classic, but whether it has already slipped.