Tyson Gay to make European seasonal debut in Manchester

American sprinter Tyson Gay will make his first European appearance of the year at the Great City Games in Manchester on Sunday 15 May.

The former 100m and 200m world champion will race over 150m at the street meeting on Deansgate.

Gay set a world best for 200m on a straight track with 19.41 seconds in Manchester last year.

"My primary goal is to get my first competition of the year in the books," he said.

"I'm just looking forward to coming back to Manchester and I want to perform as well as I did last year.

"It was my first ever 'straight' 200m race and obviously when you're used to running a turn, it was strange adjusting to not having one.

"So I was very pleased to adjust to something really new and get the world-best performance. Maybe if conditions are better I might be able to run faster than last year."

The 28-year-old will be hoping to beat the world 150m best of 14.35sec that Usain Bolt achieved at the inaugural meeting.

Gay clocked the fast 100m in the world last year (9.78sec) and also handed world record holder Usain Bolt his first sprint defeat for two years when he beat him in Stockholm.

Marlon Devonish, who set a British record of 14.88sec when runner-up behind Bolt in 2009, and European 200m silver medalist Christian Malcolm lead the domestic challenge while Portugal's European Indoor 60m champion Francis Obikwelu will also be in the field.

The event will also see Britain's world and European heptathlon champion Jessica Ennis make her first appearance of the outdoor season when she competes in the 150m and the hurdles.