Faith Kipyegon, clocked 3:53.98 in her first 1.500m of the season during the Olympics trials held in June at the Nyayo National Stadium ,Nairobi, Kenya. photo Peter Njoroge BBC
Two-time Olympics and multiple 1,500m champion Faith Kipyegon, broke her own world 1500m record to set a new record from three minutes 49.11 seconds to 3:49.04 at the Paris Diamond League on Sunday afternoon.
The early pace was swift, with Kipyegon covering 800m in 2:04 as Australia’s Jess Hull positioned herself just a stride behind the multiple world and Olympic champion. With the pacemakers having dropped out, Kipyegon covered the third lap in 60.8 seconds and continued to increase her pace.
She kicked at the bell and opened up a gap over Hull, striding clear to win in 3:49.04, taking 0.07 off the world record she set last year in Florence. Hull finished second in 3:50.83, smashing her own Oceanian record to move to fifth on the world all-time list. Laura Muir was third in a British record of 3:53.79, and for the first time ever, 12 women finished inside four minutes.
“I knew the world record was possible because I recently ran very fast in Kenya,” said Kipyegon, who clocked 3:53.98 at Kenya’s Olympic Trials. “I was coming here to just run my race and to see what shape I’m in to defend my title at the Olympics.”
WORLD ATHLETICS SILVER MEDALIST IN THE 800M EMMANUEL WANYONYI . photo: World Athletics
The 800m fast show
Djamel Sedjati and Emmannuel Wanyonyi both arrived in Paris unbeaten in 800m finals this year, while Gabriel Tual had won the European title and clocked a PB to win the French title last weekend. But Wanyonyi was coming off the back of a world-leading 1:41.70 win at the Kenyan Olympic Trials, so was considered the man to beat.
The pacemaker had been instructed to cover the first lap in 49.60, so when he hit the half-way mark in 48.79 it appeared as though the tempo may have been a bit too ambitious. But Wanyonyi, Wyclife Kinyamal, Sedjati and Tual were all still in close contention as the pack headed down the back straight for the final time.
Wanyonyi led through the final bend with Sedjati on his shoulder, while Tual moved into third with 100m to go. Sedjati then used his trademark kick to pull ahead of Wanyonyi; the teenager tried to respond and managed to close some of the gap, while Tual was also closing fast on the outside, but Sedjati held them off to win in a world-leading national record of 1:41.56.
Wanyonyi was a close second in 1:41.58, revising his recent PB, while Tual took third in a French record of 1:41.61. It was the first time in history that three men have broken 1:42 in the same race; it’s also the first time that six men have finished inside 1:43.
“I’m satisfied with my race and I’m confident that I’ll prepare well for the Olympic Games in Paris in the coming weeks,” said Sedjati, who came within 0.02 of the meeting record set by David Rudisha back in 2012, just a few weeks before he struck Olympic gold with a world record. “I know I can do even better there.”
Competitive contests over the barriers
In one of the closest races of the day, Ethiopia’s Abrham Sime held off Kenya’s Amos Serem to win the steeplechase by two thousandths of a second, both men recording PBs of 8:02.36.
Abraham Kibiwot was third in a season’s best (8:06.70), and there were national records for Tunisia’s Mohamed Amin Jhinaoui (8:09.41), New Zealand’s Geordie Beamish (8:09.64, also an Oceania record) and India’s Avinash Sable (8:09.91).
In the ladies’ race, world record holder over the barriers Beatrice Chepkoech had a strong start of the race only to run out gas as Bahraini Winfred Yavi took the race honors with a season best of 9:03.68. Homegirl Alice Finot ran a national record and PB of 9:05.01 while Briton Elizabeth Bird also ran a season best of 9:09.07 as Chepkoech finished fifth in 9:27.21 dimming hopes of Kenya winning a medal at the fourth coming Summer Games in Paris scheduled to start end of this month (26th July).
Elsewhere on the track, Jacob Krop clocked a world-leading 7:28.83 to win a non-scoring men’s 3000m. while Australian Stewart Mcsweyn ran a season best of 7:29.46 as Sean Mcgorty of USA ran a personal best of 7:35.63 to finish second and third respectively.
“In the last lap my target was to be as strong as I could in the last 100m, and I was able to deliver. Before coming here, I wasn´t even considering to run that fast, but I was definitely going to go out there and try my best – and maybe I could improve on my time, and I finally did it. My preparation has been going well after trials for the Olympics, and that´s what I am training for now. I am aware that it is going to be very competitive, not soft at all, so all I can hope and work for is to do my best when I am out there.”
Omanyala gets it right on European soil.
Meanwhile the FBK Games – a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting – in Hengelo, Netherlands, Commonwealth champion Ferdinand Omanyala braved the cold and rainy weather in the Dutch city to win the men’s 100m in 10.01.
Ronnie Baker of the United States came in second in 10.03 and third place going to Canada’s Olympic 200m champion Andre De Grasse, who clocked 10.07.
While in the men’s 5,000m Ethiopia’s Telahun Bekele won a tactical men’s 5000m in 13:01.12 from Kenya’s Nicholas Kipkorir (13:02.25). Tadese Worku of Ethiopia finished third in 13:02.56.
material sourced from worldathletics.org
