With the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics fast approaching, sports fans worldwide are digging into their favourite events, eager to discover who the must-watch names are going into the Games. Track and field draws a lot of attention, particularly the sprints. This year, a Canadian mainstay remains in the hunt, as fans from coast to coast hope for another strong showing from Andre De Grasse, who was one of the highlights for the nation back in 2021. Let’s see whether the online sportsbooks, the hype, and Andre himself see eye-to-eye ahead of the opening heats.
Is De Grasse an Underdog or a Dark Horse?
Those coming in without paying much attention since the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (held in 2021) will likely be surprised that De Grasse isn’t ranked exceptionally high for his events. His run (pardon the pun) in Japan was spectacular, seeing him win bronze in the 100-metre dash, gold in the 200-metre dash, and silver with his Canadian teammates in the 4×100-metre relay. Before this, he won silver (200m) and two bronzes (100m and 4x100m) in the 2016 Olympics in Brazil.
Alas, those two games were four and eight years ago, respectively, meaning that miles have been added to the now 29-year-old’s body, and a new wave of prime-aged competitors will line up against him. Diving into his history, you get the unfortunate feeling that De Grasse’s best is likely behind him, with his top 10 recorded times (9.89 to 9.97) in the 100m all coming in 2021 or previous, along with eight of his top 10 in the 200m (19.62 to 19.91).
There is some hope within that, however. For one, on the 200m front, two of those top times came back in September, with his fourth-fastest run (19.76) coming at the Prefontaine Classic, just a week and a half after his ninth-fastest time in Brussels (19.89). He’s also been building up his times in the 100m in recent months, posting a 10.10 for the first time in two years at the Ostrava Golden Spike in May, followed by a 10.07 at the World Athletics Continental Tour in Hengelo, Netherlands – good for third place in that event.
Perhaps De Grasse is saving his absolute best for the big stage, which wouldn’t be unprecedented. After all, three of his five fastest times in the 200m came on the Olympic stage, including his gold medal-winning 19.62 result and career in 2021. Similar can be said for his 100m results, with his best (9.89 in Tokyo) and two more of his five best coming on the big stage.
Still, he has work to do to regain the trust of the rankers and land himself back on the podium. His last major championship in the 100m was the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon, where he finished 19th and 20th in his two runs. His most recent 200m runs were in the World Championships in Budapest last year, where he finished 12th in the first heat, seventh in the semi-finals, and sixth in the finals. This leaves him presently ranked 18th in the world for the 100m, and sixth for the 200M – far cries from the second and first rankings he had at his peak, but still impressive.
Andre De Grasse 100m Odds
| Runner |  | Runner | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kishane Thompson (JAM) | +115 | Akani Simbine (RSA) | +2500 |
| Noah Lyles (USA) | +187 | Ackeem Blake (JAM) | +2800 |
| Oblique Seville (JAM) | +800 | Ferdinand Omanyala (KEN) | +2800 |
| Letsile Tebogo (BOT) | +1400 | Kenneth Bednarek (USA) | +2800 |
| Lamont Marcell Jacobs (ITA) | +2200 | Zharnel Hughes (GB) | +3300 |
| Fred Kerley (USA) | +2200 | Andre De Grasse (CAN) | +4000 |
With those world rankings in mind, suddenly, it doesn’t feel so disrespectful for De Grasse to be given the 12th-shortest odds to win the 100m. Sure, it’s not quite in line with his 2021 performance, but it’s also a few notches above his present rank. Maybe that’s a matter of local market demand for the best Canadian hope, or maybe it’s an understanding that he’s been building himself back up in recent months, and his best showing might be yet to come. Either way, he’s an option, though realistically a longshot to win it all here. It’s hard to expect a victory given that we’re hoping for a return to his prime, and his prime wasn’t enough to take gold.
Oddsmakers currently like Kishane Thompson, who just posted the three fastest times of his career in the last month, running for 9.82, 9.84, and 9.77 seconds in the Jamaican Championships on June 27th and 28th. Just behind him is American Noah Lyles, who also had a career fastest time even more recently, posting a 9.81 at the London Athletics Meet on Saturday. Lyles is the highest-ranked runner in the event at second globally, with World No. 1 Christian Coleman shockingly failing to qualify at the U.S. Olympic Trials. Coleman could still end up on the 4x100m relay team. Jamaica’s Oblique Seville rounds out the top three.
Andre De Grasse 200m Odds
| Runner | | Runner | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Noah Lyles (USA) | -286 | Erriyon Knighton (USA) | +1000 |
| Kenneth Bednarek (USA) | +450 | Andre De Grasse (CAN) | +1800 |
| Letsile Tebogo (BOT) | +650 | Zharnel Hughes (GB) | +2500 |
If you’re eager to bet on De Grasse, the 200m would be a much better-suited event. After all, it has historically been his bread and butter, where he’s won Olympic gold and the level where he still has success today. Top Canadian Sportsbooks like bet365 have him ranked in the top-five favourites to win gold, with fairly meaty odds at +1800. He faces stiff competition, though. Lyles is once again in the hunt here and has taken this discipline by storm in recent years. All of his top-10 performances in the 200m are faster than De Grasse’s personal best in Tokyo, including a 19.31 result at the 2022 World Championships that makes him the third-fastest man on record in the 200m, trailing only Usain Bolt (19.19 in 2009) and Yohan Blake (19.26 in 2011). Kenneth Bednarek is also in the hunt, having run a 19.59 in June that barely beats De Grasse’s career best.
Canada 4x100m Odds
Lastly, expect De Grasse to be part of Canada’s men’s relay team, which also features Aaron Brown, Jerome Blake, and Brendan Rodney. The trio participated in the World Athletic Relays back in May and finished second to the United States, giving some reason for optimism. World Athletics ranks Canada as the third-fastest nation this running season in the men’s relay, trailing only the USA and Italy. Books are yet to offer odds for the event as some teams still need to be decided, but this is another one to keep an eye on Canada for.
