African athletes storm to three national records, a World Junior Record and various world-leading times on a record-breaking night at the Meeting Herculis – [link id=”450″ tax=”post_tag” text=”IAAF Diamond League “] in Monaco on Friday.
Kenyan [link id=”276″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Silas Kiplagat”] produced the shock of the meeting after out-sprinting compatriot [link id=”207″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Asbel Kiprop”] to win the men’s 1500m in 3:27.64. His performance earned him a Diamond League Record and he became the fourth fastest man in history.
Kiprop, the two-time world champion, finished in a season’s best of 3:28.45 – a huge anti-climax after he had prepared for a supposed attempt on Hicham El Guerrouj’s 16-year-old world record of 3:26.00 by setting the fastest 800m time of the year, 1:43.34, at the Diamond League meeting in Paris earlier this month.
Behind them two national records were set by Ayanleh Souleiman for [link id=”181″ tax=”category” text=”Djibouti”] with 3:29.58 in fourth place and Aman Wote for [link id=”82″ tax=”category” text=”Ethiopia”] with 3:29.91 in sixth place.
“At 1200m I knew the race was too slow,” said Kiprop. “We went through in 2.47 and I had asked for 2.45. In the home straight, I could see the others behind me on the big screen and I knew they would get back on me. I could see Silas coming closer and closer. It was a tough race.”
As for Kiplagat, he is now thinking in terms of mounting a world record attempt himself.
“I have the fast time now, but why not be faster and attack the world record?” he said. “I’m still young and ready to train for it. I always run well here, so I’m thinking my win and result is no surprise. I was aware I can do it.”
Botswana’s [link id=”424″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Nijel Amos”] overtook the World record-holder [link id=”198″ tax=”post_tag” text=”David Rudisha”] of Kenya to win the men’s 800m in a world-leading time of 1:42.45, with Pierre-Ambroise Bosse setting a French record of 1:42.53 in second place.
[link id=”82″ tax=”category” text=”Ethiopia”]’s 2013 world champion [link id=”256″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Mohammed Aman”] clocked a season’s best of 1:42.83 for third, while [link id=”81″ tax=”category” text=”Kenya”]’s Ferguson Rotich Cheruiyot finished fourth in a personal best of 1:42.84 and Rudisha settled for fifth place in 1:42.98.
African champion [link id=”479″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Isaac Makwala”] of [link id=”96″ tax=”category” text=”Botswana”] came third with 44.90 in the men’s 400m won by American world champion LaShawn Merritt with relative ease in 44.30. Another American Gil Roberts clocked 44.52 in second place.
Kenya’s Jairus Birech won the men’s 3000m steeplechase 50m clear of his nearest challenger in 8:03.33, just under a second shy of his 2014 world-leading time of 8:02.37 to tale pole position in the Diamond Race for his event.
[link id=”82″ tax=”category” text=”Ethiopia”]’s [link id=”379″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Genzebe Dibaba”] overcame a powerful challenge from her compatriot Almaz Ayana to record a 2014 world-leading time of 14:28.88 in the first Diamond League women’s 5000m to be held in Monaco.
Ayana clocked 14:29.19 after she and Dibaba had broken clear of their last challenger, Kenya’s Viola Kibiwot, who finished third in 14:33.73, in the final lap.
Two Africans battled it out with the world’s best in the women’s 100m race. Moscow 2013 silver medallist [link id=”205″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Murielle Ahoure”] was third in 10.97, with Nigeria’s [link id=”158″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Blessing Okagbare”] fourth in the same time. Race was won by American Tori Bowie in 10.80 ahead of Jamaica’s resurgent Veronica Campbell-Brown, who clocked 10.96.
American Ajee Wilson inflicted the first defeat for more than a year on Kenya’s world champion [link id=”275″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Eunice Sum”] to win the women’s 800m in 1:57.67, with the Kenyan second in 1:57.92.
[link id=”410″ tax=”post_tag” text=”Winnie Nanyondo”] set an Ugandan record of 1:58.63 to finish in third position.
Selected Results
200 Metres – Men – Wind: -0.5 m/s
- Gatlin, Justin USA 19.68
- Ashmeade, Nickel JAM 19.99
- Lemaitre, Christophe FRA 20.08
- Gay, Tyson USA 20.22
- Mitchell , Curtis USA 20.28
- Bailey, Ryan USA 20.37
- Dwyer, Rasheed JAM 20.48
- McLean , Sean USA 20.67
400 Metres – Men
- Merritt, LaShawn USA 44.30
- Roberts, Gil USA 44.62
- Makwala, Isaac BOT 44.90
- McQuay, Tony USA 44.92
- Santos, Luguelín DOM 44.97
- Williams, Conrad GBR 45.53
- Borlée, Kévin BEL 45.60
- Anne, Mame-Ibra FRA 45.87
800 Metres – Men
- Amos, Nijel BOT 1:42.45
- Bosse, Pierre-Ambroise FRA 1:42.53
- Aman, Mohammed ETH 1:42.83
- Rotich, Ferguson Cheruiyot KEN 1:42.84
- Rudisha, David Lekuta KEN 1:42.98
- Lewandowski, Marcin POL 1:44.24
- Rowe, Alexander AUS 1:44.40
- Osagie, Andrew GBR 1:45.68
- Kaki, Abubaker SUD 1:46.90
1500 Metres – Men
- Kiplagat, Silas KEN 3:27.64 4
- Kiprop, Asbel KEN 3:28.45 2
- Kwemoi, Ronald KEN 3:28.81 WJP
- Souleiman, Ayanleh DJI 3:29.58 NR
- Iguider, Abdalaati MAR 3:29.83
- Wote, Aman ETH 3:29.91 NR
- Willis, Nicholas NZL 3:29.91
- Manzano, Leonel USA 3:30.98
- Centrowitz, Matthew USA 3:31.09
- Ingebrigtsen, Henrik NOR 3:31.46
- Özbilen, Ilham Tanui TUR 3:33.10
- Cronje, Johan RSA 3:33.69
- Carvalho, Florian FRA 3:35.68
3000 Metres Steeplechase – Men
- Birech, Jairus Kipchoge KEN 8:03.33 4
- Kipruto, Conseslus KEN 8:09.81 2
- Yego, Hillary Kipsang KEN 8:10.23 1
- Hughes, Matthew CAN 8:12.81
- Nganga, Bernard Mbugua KEN 8:15.01
- Jager, Evan USA 8:15.49
- Koech, Paul Kipsiele KEN 8:18.29
- Taleb, Brahim MAR 8:19.19
- García, Víctor ESP 8:20.08
- Kipruto, Brimin Kiprop KEN 8:21.49
- Mutai, Abel Kiprop KEN 8:23.53
- Huling, Daniel USA 8:24.04
- Koech, John Kibet BRN 8:26.79
- Kowal, Yoann FRA 8:44.54
110 Metres Hurdles – Men Wind: +0.2 m/s
- Martinot-Lagarde, Pascal FRA 12.95 4
- Ortega, Orlando CUB 13.01 2
- Shubenkov, Sergey RUS 13.14 1
- Wilson, Ryan USA 13.18
- Riley, Andrew JAM 13.19
- Oliver, David USA 13.38
- Merritt, Aries USA 13.47
- Bascou, Dimitri FRA 13.61
High Jump – Men
- Bondarenko, Bohdan UKR 2.40m
- Barshim, Mutaz Essa QAT 2.37m
- Ukhov, Ivan RUS 2.34m
- Kynard, Erik USA 2.34m
- Drouin, Derek CAN 2.34m
- Protsenko, Andriy UKR 2.34m
- Fassinotti, Marco ITA 2.30m
- Tobe, Naoto JPN 2.30m
- Zhang, Guowei CHN 2.30m
- Dmitrik, Aleksey RUS 2.30m
Long Jump – Men
- Li, Jinzhe CHN 8.09m+0.5
- Gaisah, Ignisious NED 8.01m +0.9
- Rivera, Luis MEX 8.00m +0.5
- Tomlinson, Christopher GBR 7.94m 0.0
- Menkov, Aleksandr RUS 7.93m +1.0
- Hartfield, Mike USA 7.88m -0.1
- Taylor, Christian USA 7.88m +0.6
- Tornéus, Michel SWE 7.83m +0.1
Discus Throw – Men
- Malachowski, Piotr POL 65.84m
- Fernández, Jorge Y. CUB 65.46m
- Kanter, Gerd EST 64.98m
- Hadadi, Ehsan IRI 64.47m
- Milanov, Philip BEL 62.99m
- Urbanek, Robert POL 62.56m
- Ståhl, Daniel SWE 61.60m
- Harradine, Benn AUS 61.25m
100 Metres – Women Wind: +0.8 m/s
- Bowie, Tori USA 10.80
- Campbell-Brown, Veronica JAM 10.96
- Ahouré, Murielle CIV 10.97
- Okagbare, Blessing NGR 10.97
- Felix, Allyson USA 11.01
- Fraser-Pryce, Shelly-Ann JAM 11.01
- Soumaré, Myriam FRA 11.03
- Akakpo, Stella FRA 11.39
800 Metres – Women
- Wilson, Ajee USA 1:57.67
- Sum, Eunice Jepkoech KEN 1:57.92
- Nanyondo, Winnie UGA 1:58.63 NR
- Busienei, Janeth Jepkosgei KEN 1:58.70
- Poistogova, Ekaterina RUS 1:59.31
- Beckwith-Ludlow, Molly USA 1:59.32
- Roesler, Laura USA 1:59.44
- Judd, Jessica GBR 1:59.99
- Lamote, Renelle FRA 2:00.06
- Fedronic, Justine FRA 2:00.41
5000 Metres – Women
- Dibaba, Genzebe ETH 14:28.88
- Ayana, Almaz ETH 14:29.19
- Kibiwot, Viola Jelagat KEN 14:33.73
- Kipyego, Sally Jepkosgei KEN 14:37.18
- Saina, Betsy KEN 14:39.49
- Huddle, Molly USA 14:42.64
- Cherono, Mercy KEN 14:44.56
- Rowbury, Shannon USA 14:48.68
- Kisa, Janet KEN 14:59.93
- Hassan, Sifan NED 15:08.05
- Belete, Mimi BRN 15:11.60
- Calvin, Clémence FRA 15:12.83
- Conley, Kim USA 15:37.09
400 Metres Hurdles – Women
- Spencer, Kaliese JAM 54.09
- Moline, Georganne USA 54.73
- Tate, Cassandra USA 55.07
- Yaroshchuk- Ryzhykova, Anna UKR 55.24
- Theron Nel, Wenda RSA 55.29
- Adekoya, Oluwakemi BRN 55.38
- Hejnová, Zuzana CZE 55.86
- Carter, Kori USA 55.94
Pole Vault – Women
- Murer, Fabiana BRA 4.76m
- Suhr, Jennifer USA 4.71m
- Stefanídi, Ekateríni GRE 4.71m
- Ryzih, Lisa GER 4.65m
- Sidorova, Anzhelika RUS 4.55m
- Boyd, Alana AUS 4.55m
- Fiack, Marion FRA 4.40m
- Boslak, Vanessa FRA 4.40m
- Silva, Yarisley CUB 4.40m
- Lotout, Marion FRA 4.40m
- Büchler, Nicole SUI 4.40m
- Bauer, Katharina GER 4.40m
Triple Jump – Women
- Ibargüen, Caterine COL 15.31m 0.0
- Koneva, Ekaterina RUS 14.89m +0.6
- Williams, Kimberly JAM 14.59m +1.2
- Urrutia, Yosiri COL 14.58m +0.7
- Mamona, Patrícia POR 14.34m +1.6
- Gay, Mabel CUB 14.33m +0.8
- Gumenyuk, Irina RUS 14.11m +0.2
- Li, Yanmei CHN 13.62m +0.4
Shot Put – Women
- Adams, Valerie NZL 20.38m
- Schwanitz, Christina GER 19.54m
- Carter, Michelle USA 19.05m
- Borel, Cleopatra TTO 18.96m
- Kolodko, Evgeniia RUS 18.81m
- Johnson, Felisha USA 18.79m
Javelin Throw – Women
- Špotáková, Barbora CZE 66.96m
- Ratej, Martina SLO 64.58m
- Mickle, Kimberley AUS 62.94m
- Palameika, Madara LAT 61.41m
- Stahl, Linda GER 60.32m
- Andraud, Mathilde FRA 59.80m
- Patterson, Kara USA 57.64m
- Ebihara, Yuki JPN 56.52m
Meet The Authors
Yomog Meje is a former Nigerian junior athlete and the Associate editor at Athletics Africa.
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