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As Bhubaneswar gears up to host the World Athletics Continental Tour Silver Meeting at Kalinga Stadium on Saturday, it was confirmed at a news conference on Tuesday that world No. 6 and Paris 2024 Olympic Games men’s 400m bronze medallist Muzala Samukonga will compete at the event. Having run 44.02s this year, he will be the highest-ranked athlete in the competition. Nigeria’s world No. 10 Chukwuebuka Enekwechi, the Commonwealth Games men’s shot put champion and a Paris Olympics finalist, will be the other top 10 ranked athlete in the fray. Overall, as many as 36 athletes ranked within the world’s top 50 will be among the 188 competitors from 28 nations who will line up for the one-day event. For the hosts, the highest-ranked Indian athlete will be Murali Sreeshankar. The 27-year-old two-time Commonwealth Games silver medallist is ranked 15th in men’s long jump. Men’s javelin thrower Rohit Yadav, two-time Asian Games men’s shot put champion Tajinderpal Singh Toor and men’s 200m national record holder Animesh Kujur are among the other prominent Indian athletes who will be in action at the meet. Besides India, which will field a contingent of 88 athletes, Sri Lanka (17), South Africa (14) and Brazil (11) are the other nations sending sizeable squads. The single-day competition will feature a total of 18 events split equally between men and women. Male athletes will contend in the 100m, 400m, 800m, 110m hurdles, high jump, long jump, shot put, and javelin throw. Female athletes will compete in the 100m, 400m, 1500m, 100m hurdles, high jump, long jump, javelin throw, and discus throw. Top performers will earn substantial rewards alongside crucial world ranking points, with cash prizes of $1,600 awarded for first place, $1,200 for second place, and $900 for third place. Speaking at the news conference, Athletics Federation of India spokesperson Adille J Sumariwalla said fans, both in the stadium and watching the live streams, are in for a treat. “The presence of so many top athletes, including a couple of them who are in the top 10 in their respective events, will deliver high-quality competition,” he said. This will be the second such tournament to be held in Bhubaneswar after the city hosted the Bronze Level Continental Tour last year. “AFI is thankful to the Odisha government for its continued support of track and field sport,” Sumariwalla said in a release. “We are hopeful that Odisha will host even a Gold Level meeting.”