The Paris Olympics are finally here! After months, if not years, of lead up, the biggest quadrennial meet in the world will hit the purple track in style with medals, records, and glory on the line.

A full schedule of events with live results can be found here. You can also find a searchable list of entries and a helpful FAQ on the World Athletics website.

In the United States, track and field events will be broadcast on Peacock (subscription required) and the NBC/Universal family of TV stations. A full broadcast schedule can be found here. If you don’t live in the U.S. and want to watch, more information on international broadcasts can be found here.

We’re excited to have a full CITIUS MAG team on the ground in Paris providing daily live shows before and after the action, including interviews with competing athletes, our TORCH TALK recap show, and the return of GOOD MORNING TRACK AND FIELD. Make sure you’re subscribed to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel for live shows, and subscribe (and share with your friends!) to the CITIUS MAG newsletter for daily newsletters in your inbox after every day of track and field competition.

Without further ado, here’s everything you need to know about the women’s sprint events at the Paris Olympics.

Women’s 100 meters

First round: Friday, August 2, 5:50 am E.T.

An American has not won the women’s Olympic 100m in the last five editions… could 2024 be the year? With reigning World champ Sha’Carri Richardson heading into Paris the world leader and many of her competitors facing questions about health or fitness, this could be the year. It’s been a rough season so far for Jamaican sprint fans, with Elaine Thompson-Herah’s Olympic threepeat dreams dashed by injury, veteran Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce’s competition cycle abbreviated by training setbacks of her own, and last year’s silver medalist Shericka Jackson pulling up short in her most recent race, a 200m in Hungary.

Top contenders: Richardson has to be the favorite by default as the world #1 and the only medalist from 2023 who hasn’t publicly disclosed health issues this year. But she won’t have it easy – Fraser-Pryce and Jackson are proven gametime performers who shouldn’t be counted out in any championship setting. And even with the Jamaicans at or near top fitness, they still may not be the biggest threats to Richardson’s gold medal aspirations as Texas-based St. Lucian Julien Alfred has looked phenomenal all year. Last year’s Bowerman Award winner finished fifth in Budapest last year after a long NCAA season, and with fewer races stacked up early in the spring, she heads into Paris with the #2 seed and even fresher legs.

More names to watch: It’s entirely possible that SAFP and Jackson are only the second and third Jamaicans on the day if rising star Tia Clayton continues her ascent to the top of the international stage. The 19-year-old ran sub-11 seconds twice at the Jamaican championships, and if she continues to trend upward, she’ll be a real threat for the podium. At the other end of the experience spectrum, championship regulars Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith of Côte d'Ivoire and Dina Asher-Smith of Great Britain are always in the finals mix – and Asher-Smith may be benefitting from her move to Texas to train with Alfred and coach Edrick Floreal. We also can’t count out the possibility of multiple medals for Team USA if Melissa Jefferson or TeeTee Terry can move from the 10.8s to the 10.7s when it matters most.

Women’s 200 meters

First round: Sunday, August 4, 4:55 am E.T.

Many of the same contenders in the 100m will be back in action in the 200m, including last year’s World gold medalist, Shericka Jackson. The biggest difference in the longer event is the addition of American Gabby Thomas, the bronze medalist from Tokyo who’s run the #1, 2, and 3 fastest times in the world this year. Whether Thomas cruises to gold or not will likely depend entirely on Jackon’s fitness. When the 30-year-old Jamaican is at her best, her only real competition is the 21.34 mark in the history books left by Florence Griffith-Joyner. But her health status is still unclear. It’s unlikely that Jackson will be a non-factor in the 100m and then come back to dominate the 200m, so keep an eye on the early rounds of racing in the first event before placing any last-minute bets here.

Top contenders: In addition to Thomas, Team USA will be well-represented in this event by reigning NCAA champ McKenzie Long and 2019 World silver medalist Brittany Brown. A sweep is highly unlikely, but multiple medals is a real possibility. Julien Alfred gave Thomas a good fight in London, and even though historically she’s shined brightest in the 60m and 100m, she is the NCAA champ and world #3 over 200m as well. And the Brits probably have a better shot at a medal over 200m than 100m thanks to Dina Asher-Smith and Daryll Neita.

More names to watch: The 200m will probably be one of the tougher events for a dark horse to crack, as sub-22 second performances don’t tend to materialize out of thin air in August. But one athlete who’s run under the barrier in the past is Favour Ofili of Nigeria, and both Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith and Swiss star Mujinga Kambundji have been close.

Women’s 400 meters

First round: Monday, August 5, 5:55 am E.T.

Between Sanya Richards-Ross in September 2009 and Shaunae Miller-Uibo in July 2018, no woman had broken 49 seconds in the 400m. Fast-forward six years, and going into Paris we will have five women toeing the line who have broken that barrier. It looks very much like it could take a sub-49 performance to even reach the podium – a much higher threshold than recent years when sub-50 was more than enough. Is there a favorite? Hard to say. Jamaican (and Arkansas Razorback) Nickisha Pryce has the times – 48.89 to win NCAAs and 48.57 to win the London Diamond League – but Marileidy Paulino has the medals as the 2x World champion. Paulino struggled to break 50 seconds early in the season but appears to be rounding into form nicely, having run 49.30 in Oslo and then 49.20 in Paris in early July.

Top contenders: If either Pryce or Paulino falters, Polish European champ Natalia Kaczmarek is the queen of consistency, winning silver at each of the last two Worlds, and clocking PBs of 48.98 then 48.90 this summer. Rhasidat Adeleke ran 49.07 for silver at the European Championships behind Kaczmarek and subsequently went 49.17 to win in Monaco. Irish fans certainly consider her a medal contender, if not a co-favorite.

More names to watch: Sada Williams of Barbados was the world bronze medallist in 2022 and 2023, and has an uncanny habit of bringing her best when it matters. Lieke Klaver (Netherlands) was sixth in Budapest last year and in 2024 she has been gradually chipping away at her PR, now 49.58. Team USA’s Kendall Ellis (49.46), Aliyah Butler (49.71) and Alexis Holmes (49.78) all have shown the ability to perform in championships, but also have a bit wider range of possible outcomes than top contenders. They could each just as likely medal as miss the final. Pryce’s Arkansas teammate Amber Anning is representing Great Britain internationally and also has an outside shot at the podium.

Bahraini Salwa Eid Naser is the 2019 World champion, and the third fastest athlete in history with 48.14. Following a two-year whereabouts suspension and an injury last year she appears to be coming back into form, with three sub-50 races over the last few weeks coming into the Games. And double Olympic Shaunae Miller-Uibo is making her return after having a baby. She squeaked into Olympic qualifying through the world rankings. Health and fitness are big question marks, but early rounds should give us a sense of whether the Bahamian can pick up her astounding seventh global medal in the event.

Women’s 100m hurdles

First round: Wednesday, August 7, 4:15 am E.T.

The 100m hurdles has to be one of the most closely-matched and densely-packed events of the entire Olympics. At least eight competitors could credibly have a legitimate shot at gold, there’s no clear favorite, and hell, any of those eight could conceivably miss the final. Who you decide to back likely depends on whether you weight recent times or past championship success more heavily – do you look at Masai Russell’s and Ackera Nugent’s sub-12.30s as indications that they’re the ones to beat, or do you bet on recent World/Olympic champs Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, Tobi Amusan, or Danielle Williams?

Top contenders: Camacho-Quinn, the 27-year-old Puerto Rican, is the defending Olympic champ and has medaled at each of the last three global championships – the only athlete in the field to have done so. She’s only eighth on the entry list by season’s best (12.39) but she’s won seven of her nine finals this year. Amusan, the world record holder and 2022 World champ, is one spot below her at 12.40, and she’s also notched some high-profile wins. Most recently, however, she was beaten by Grace Stark at the Holloway Classic. The third-placer from the U.S. Trials is clearly trending in the right direction alongside Trials runner-up Alaysha Johnson and Russell. World Indoor champ Devynne Charlton of the Bahamas isn’t quite as strong over the 100m hurdles as its 60-meter counterpart, but she’s also been trending upward coming into the Olympic year.

More names to watch: The home crowd would love to see Cyrena Semba-Mayela win a medal for France, and while the 23-year-old has ascended to a new level this year, she’s also battled COVID in recent weeks. Two other European stalwarts, Nadine Visser of the Netherlands and Pia Skrzyszowska of Hungary, have run sub-12.40 already this season and could mix it up. And reigning World champ Danielle Williams hasn’t made much of an impact so far in 2024… but she is having a very similar season to last year, where she pulled out her best performance when it really counted in Budapest.

Women’s 400m hurdles

First round: Sunday, August 4, 6:35 am E.T.

It’s hard to have any conversation about this event without starting and ending at Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. The defending Olympic champ and world record holder has not lost a 400H race in this decade and her last loss – at the World final in 2019 – came when she was 20-years-old and it took a world record to beat her. European track fans will surely point to Femke Bol’s recent 50.95 European record as a sign that SML is not a lock for gold, but while Bol is the reigning champ and would be the heavy, heavy favorite in SML’s absence, there’s no real evidence to suggest she’ll leapfrog her American rival. What will likely happen instead is Bol’s presence will successfully challenge McLaughlin-Levrone for deep enough into the race to produce a truly shocking winning time.

Top contenders: The only thing more surprising than Bol beating McLaughlin-Levrone would be anyone else in the world breaking up their 1-2 hold on the event. The battle for bronze, however, will likely come down to another U.S.-Jamaica showdown between Anna Cockrell, Jasmine Jones, Rushell Clayton, and Janieve Russell. A 53-second performance likely won’t cut it, but 52-mid may be the best of the rest.

More names to watch: Michigan’s Savannah Sutherland represents Team Canada internationally and her 53.26 is #7 in the world this year. And last year’s fourth-placer at Worlds, Kemi Adekoya of Bahrain, has run a pair of 53-second performances already this summer and should be in the mix for the middle places of the final once again.

4x100m Relay:

First round: Thursday, August 8, 5:10 am E.T.

The 2022 World Championships should serve as a reminder – and warning – to all teams that success in the individual 100m does not necessarily translate over to the relay. Despite sweeping the medals, Jamaica still fell to Team USA by 4/100ths of a second, and the next year, Team USA defended its title by an even larger margin (0.18 seconds). Either Jamaica or the U.S. has won every global 4x100m championship going back to 2008, when the Americans got DQed in the prelims and Jamaica missed an exchange in the final. Both teams messing up is likely the only path to gold for anyone else, but Great Britain and Northern Ireland has a good record in this event, with bronze medals in 2016, 2021, and 2023 and silvers in 2017 and 2019. Germany, Italy, and Poland all have strong individual legs that could deliver a medal as well if they play their cards right, and the favorites fumble theirs.

4x400m Relay:

First round: Friday, August 9, 4:40 am E.T.