Four years on from the first IAAF Continental Cup in Split, only one European athlete returns to defend a title in Marrakech this weekend.
But for Christophe Lemaitre, it might be more than just holding onto the crown he won in 2010.
In Croatia, Frenchman Lemaitre won the 100m in 10.06 from Antigua’s Daniel Bailey in 10.10 and Great Britain’s Mark Lewis-Francis in 10.16, yet he arrives here no longer holding the title of European champion as he did back then.
But if Lemaitre has been left waiting for the chance to beat the man who won the event in Zurich in August, the opportunity has arrived.
Lemaitre went into the European Athletics Championships chasing a 100m hat-trick after his victory in Barcelona - in the same year as Split - and then in Helsinki in 2012.
This time, though, he could not match the speed of Britain’s James Dasaolu who triumphed in 10.06 with Lemaitre second in 10.13.
Since then Dasaolu has run even faster with 10.00 at the Diamond League in Brussels last Friday, his quickest time of a year where he missed the start of the outdoor season as he recovered from injury.
That performance moved him to third on the European Athletics rankings which are led by another Frenchman, Jimmy Vicaut, with 9.95.
And while Lemaitre and Dasaolu line up as European teammates for their race on Saturday evening, this final major 100m of the summer will be a chance for either of them to put down one last individual psychological marker before the long winter days of training begin.
This summer Lemaitre has been split between the 100m and 200m - where he also won silver in Zurich - and after Marrakech, next stop for them both could be the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Prague in March.
It will be a fascinating duel in a race where Richard Thompson, of Trinidad and Tobago, is the fastest man with 9.82, while American Mike Rodgers will be a big threat too.
Lemaitre brushed aside his rivals four years ago, and he will try his best to do so again.