Olympic champion Jacobs wins on Rome return

Marcell Jacobs on Saturday won his first 100 metres race in Europe this year in the build-up to his Olympic title defence in Paris.

Italian Jacobs, who stunned the athletics world three years ago with two golds in the Covid-delayed Tokyo Games, clocked a time of 10.07 seconds to win his race at the 'Sprint Festival' in Rome.

His win at the low-key event kicked off a run of competitions before the Olympics which begin on July 26, after returning to Italy from his new base in Florida.

Next Jacobs will compete in Ostrava on May 28 and the Oslo Diamond League event two days later, ahead of defending his European 100m title in Rome next month and then his 100m and 4x100m relay Olympic crowns in Paris.

Jacobs, also a former 60m indoor world champion, has struggled with a series of muscular problems and flopped at last year's worlds in Budapest where he was eliminated in the semi-finals.