Day 1 London Recap: Mo Farah, Vivian Cheruiyot Win With Ease As Maryam Jamal Shocks Women's 1,500 Field

By LetsRun.com
July 13, 2012

*Day 1 Recap Here

Day 1 of the two day London Diamond League took place on Friday. Below, we recap all of the action for you starting with the mid-d and distance action first.

Day 1 was full of disappointment for the American and British 1,500 women as well as Dathan Ritzenhein, but Mo Farah and Vivian Cheruiyot picked up wins in the 5000, Tyson Gay won again in the 100, and Aries Merritt and Javier Culson who put up world leading marks in the hurdles.

Women's 1500: The Americans Disappoint As Maryam Jamal Gets The Win

Disappointment.

There is no doubt that is the feeling most American fans were feeling after watching the end of the women's 1500. With World #1 Morgan Uceny, world champion Jenny Simpson and 2009 bronze medallist Shannon Rowbury comprising the US women's 1500 Olympic team this year, there were three good reasons to hope for a US medal this year.

But there was little reason for optimism after this race was over as the Americans were all soundly beaten in a tactical race by Maryam Jamal, who had finished only 9th in Paris last week.

The field had no interest in going with the rabbit and after slow opening 800 of 2:15, the race was destined to come down to the last lap. At the bell, Uceny, who had run most of the race in the back before moving into perfect position with 500 meters to go, found herself in second on Jamal's shoulder with Simpson in third and Rowbury in 4th. Those four would maintain those positions until the final 100. With about 130 meter to go, Jamal and Uceny started to pull away from Rowbury and Simpson. Given her prowess last year and Jamal's struggles last week, undoubtedly most US fans expected Uceny to blow away Jamal.

But halfway down the homestretch, it was clear that Jamal was going to pull away and get a comfortable victory and once beaten Uceny started to fade. She was caught by Simpson and then Uceny's training partner Anna Pierce who was moving up from the back. To add insult to injury, Uceny let up at the line and lost fourth to British champ Laura Weigthman.

In the end, after a 61.56 last lap, Jamal was on top by nearly a full second in 4:06.78 to Simpson's 4:07.76, Pierce's 4:08.06, Weightman's 4:08.19, Uceny's 4:08.22 and Rowbury's 4:08.63.

QT #1: The US runner's had better hope that this is a sign that the enigmatic Jamal is returning to her old form - the form that won her word championship gold in 2007 and 2009 - as she was only 9th in Paris last week so losing to her by so much today isn't encouraging. It should be pointed out that Paris' was Jamal's 2012 outdoor 1,500 opener.

QT #2: US fan's can hope but Jamal's 61.56 last lap was nothing earth-shattering by 2012 standards and yet it decimated the field. What is shattering is the fact that in Paris the leading duo ran 61.60 for their third lap and the last 400 for the winner was 61.66. So basically in Paris, the winner ran her last 700 at 61 second pace.

QT #3: Last year in her first European race, Uceny went through 1100 in 3:03 and closed in 61 point and ran 4:05 for the win in Lausanne. Today, she was 62 high 63 flat for her last 400 and ran 4:08.

QT #4: American fans, it could have been worse. 2011 silver medallist Hannah England, in her first race back since she suffered a spiked achilles while winning in Hengelo in her outdoor opener in 4:04.05 on May 7th, was dead last in 4:14.45.

Rank Athlete Nation Result Diamond Points Diamond Ranking
1
BRN
4:06.78
4
3
  
2
USA
4:07.76
2
5
  
3
USA
4:08.06
1
8
  
4
GBR
4:08.19
 
 
  
5
USA
4:08.22
 
 
  
6
USA
4:08.63
 
 
  
7
GBR
4:08.83
 
 
  
8
AUS
4:10.49
 
 
  
9
AUS
4:12.82
 
 
  
10
KEN
4:13.56
SB
 
 
  
11
GBR
4:14.45
 
 
  
 
CAN
DNF
 
 
  
Intermediate times:
400m - Cummins, Diane (CAN) - 1:05.27
800m - Cummins, Diane (CAN) - 2:15.63
1200m - Jamal, Maryam Yusuf (BRN) -3:21.60

Men's 5000: Mo Farah Dominates As Expected As Dathan Ritzenhein Fails To Impress

World 5000 champion Mo Farah's coach Alberto Salazar wanted Farah to practice his finishing kick today and that's exactly what happened as Farah ran 1:54.69 over his last 800 (58.37 - 56.32) to get a dominant victory in 13:06.04 as Australia's Collis Birmingham was second in a new personal best of 13:09.57.

The rabbits tried to make things honest as they went out in 4:13 but the field had no interest in going with them and was already behind. It was clear this was going to be a sit and kick affair. The field went through 3000 in 7:58.38 and 4000 in 10:39.11 as things didn't really start to heat up until two laps remained. With 800 remaining, Farah put the pressure on and instantly the lead pack of six which included Farah's training partner, American Dathan Ritzenhein, was down to three as only Birmingham and Uganda's Moses Kipsiro were able to keep with Farah's surge. On the last lap, Birmingham was the only one within striking distance as the runners hit the backstretch but in the end the race didn't end up being close.

Kipsiro ended up third in 13:09.98; Mark Kiptoo was fourth in 13:13.77 and Ritzenhein 5th in 13:15.91.

QT #1: We've been hearing all year how Ritz thinks he's in top shape and is going to return to sub-13 territory but he's done nothing all year to indicate that's even a possibility. Losing to 36-year old Kenyan Mark Kiptoo who only ran 13:06 last week in Paris can't make Ritz confident heading into the Olympics.

QT #2: This seemingly was a race set up to let Farah win. As we pointed out in our preview, 15 guys so far this year have broken 13:00 in the 5,000 - only 8 of whom can be in the Olympics (3 Kenyans, 3 Ethiopians, Farah and Galen Rupp)- but there were no other sub 13:00 guys in 2012 in the field but Farah. 

Rank Athlete Nation Result Diamond Points Diamond Ranking
1
GBR
13:06.04
8
1
img
2
AUS
13:09.57
PB
2
5
  
3
UGA
13:09.98
1
7
  
4
KEN
13:13.77
 
 
  
5
USA
13:15.91
 
 
  
6
KEN
13:23.05
 
 
  
7
AUS
13:23.85
 
 
  
8
MEX
13:35.44
 
 
  
9
AUS
13:37.35
 
 
  
10
JPN
13:43.43
 
 
  
11
UGA
13:45.29
 
 
  
12
ERI
13:50.96
 
 
  
 
KEN
DNF
 
 
  
 
KEN
DNF
 
 
  
Intermediate times:
1000m- Ndiwa, Remmy Limo (KEN) - 2:35.49
2000m- Ndiwa, Remmy Limo (KEN) -5:16.07
3000m-Mutahi, Sammy Alex (KEN) -7:58.38
4000m- Kipsiro, Moses Ndiema (UGA) -10:39.11

Women's 5000: Vivian Cheruiyot Wins As Expected

Double world chmap Vivian Cheruiyot, who hasn't lost a track race since this meet was held two years ago on August 13, 2010, remained undefeated on the track for the year with a victory in a ho-hum women's 5000 in 14:48.86. Coming into this race, we had said it was pretty clear there was no one in the field that would be able to challenge Cheruiyot as all of the top challengers were Kenyan but none of the other challengers had even made the Kenyan Olympic team this year, and that certainly was the case.

21-year old Mercy Cherono, who was 5th at world's last year, stayed close until the end as Cheruiyot squeezed it down over the final 1200 with laps of 69.30, 68.22 and 64.45 but that was mainly because Cheruiyot was doing the bare-minimum to get the victory. Cherono ended up second in 14:49.26 and 2009 world 10,000 champ Linet Masai was third in 14:53.93.

QT #1: Without talking to Cheruiyot, we guess there is no way for us to 100% prove she wasn't going all out but common sense says she wasn't pressed at all.

But if you compare her final four laps today with the final four laps that double Olympic champ Tirunesh Dibaba had in New York when she was pressed by Defar before winning in 14:50.80 win, you'll believe us:

Leader's 4 last laps
in NY (14:50.80)
4 out - 70.27
3 out - 66.92
2 out - 64.54
Last lap - 61.54
4:23.27

Leaders 4 last laps
in London (14:48.86)
4 out - 72.24
3 out - 69.30
2 out - 68.30
Last lap - 64.45
4:34.29
Rank Athlete Nation Result
1
KEN
14:48.86
2
KEN
14:49.26
SB
3
KEN
14:53.93
SB
4
KEN
14:57.75
5
ETH
15:02.51
SB
6
GBR
15:10.06
PB
7
KEN
15:28.64
8
GBR
15:35.45
9
GBR
15:44.62
PB
10
AUS
15:47.81
11
GBR
15:48.32
12
GBR
15:51.90
 
GBR
DNF
Intermediate times:
1000m - Pallant, Emma (GBR) - 2:57.77
2000m - Cherono, Mercy (KEN) - 6:00.06
3000m - Nyaruai, Veronica (KEN) -9:03.54
4000m - Cheruiyot, Vivian Jepkemoi (KEN) -12:01.17

Other Running Events

Men's 100: Tyson Gay Wins Again

Tyson Gay picked up his second straight Diamond League victory as he came on midway through the race to run 10.03 into a 1.2 wind to beat Ryan Bailey (10.09)

QT #1: In the prelims, Gay looked so-so (2nd place 10.15 into a .7 wind) and Bailey looked great (10.06 into a 1.5 wind). *Bailey's Prelim Reslts *Gay's Prelim Result

Wind:-1.2
Rank Athlete Nation Result Reaction time Diamond Points Diamond Ranking
1
USA
10.03
0.107
8
1
img
2
USA
10.09
0.174
2
4
  
3
JAM
10.13
0.156
2
4
  
4
JAM
10.15
0.144
 
 
  
5
USA
10.19
0.143
2
4
  
6
USA
10.19
0.155
 
 
  
7
CAY
10.25
0.152
 
 
  
 
SKN
DNS
 
 
 
  

Men's 110 Hurdles: Aries Merritt Goes 12.93 Yet Again!!!

Aries Merritt equaled his world lead of 12.93 to establish himself as the man to beat in London as 2011 world champion Jason Richardson was second - the same order of finish at the US Trials.

QT #1: We'd be more confident in calling Merritt the Olympic favorite if Liu Xiang, who won his heat in the prelims but opted not to run the final, had run in the final. There is a reason why they hold the final afterall, but in the prelims, Xiang ran 13.27 with zero wind whereas Merritt ran 13.14 into a .9 wind. *Xiang's Prelim Results

Wind:+0.6
Rank Athlete Nation Result Reaction time
1
USA
12.93
=WL,MR
0.137
2
USA
13.06
0.166
3
USA
13.18
SB
0.153
4
USA
13.32
0.154
5
USA
13.39
0.149
6
USA
13.46
0.165
 
GBR
DNF
0.160

Men's 400 Hurdles: Javier Culson Remains Undefeated

Six for Six.

World leader and two-time world championship silver medallist Javier Culson remained undefeated on the year as he beat Britain's hope, Dai Greene, the 2011 world champ, just as he did a last week in Paris. Culson's winning time was the same as it was last week as well as he equalled his world leader of 47.78. 

Coming into the homestretch, Angelo Taylor and Culson were out front with Greene, who is known for his close, not too far behind but the margin of victory was much more comfortable than it was last week in Paris when Culson won by just .06 as today he won by .32.

QT #1: The British commentators were saying after the race that Greene's strength is he's good in a multi-round competition. They'd better hope that's the case this year as there is no doubt who is the best in a one-off competition.

QT #2: Bershawn Jackson's devastating 2012 got a little bit worse as the guy who agonizingly was 4th at the US Trials was DQd for a false-start. We're all for rules being followed, but come on guys - this is a 400. Let the guy run.

Rank Athlete Nation Result Reaction time Diamond Points Diamond Ranking
1
PUR
47.78
=WL
0.175
16
1
img
2
GBR
48.10
0.146
4
3
  
3
USA
48.43
SB
0.165
5
2
  
4
GBR
48.60
PB
0.186
 
 
  
5
DOM
49.68
0.184
1
7
  
6
USA
49.86
0.177
 
 
  
7
USA
50.28
0.134
3
4
  
 
USA
DQ
R 162.7
 
2
5
  

Women's 400 Hurdles: Perri Shakes-Drayton Gets PR and Win

23-year old British champ Perri Shakes-Drayton got a big win and big PR as she broke 54.00 for the first time in her career by running 53.77 to win by a ton over 2012 European champion Irina Davydova of Russia. The 4th placer at worlds last year, Kaliese Spencer, was third as last year's silver medalliMelaine Walker was fourth.  

QT #1: Davydova and Shakes-Drayton are now tied at #2 on the 2012 world list behind Russia's Natalya Antyukh who lead at 53.40.

Rank Athlete Nation Result Reaction time
1
GBR
53.77
PB
0.218
2
RUS
54.63
0.174
3
JAM
55.08
0.154
4
JAM
55.45
0.268
5
GBR
55.91
0.174
6
USA
56.03
0.185
7
USA
56.72
0.155
8
JAM
58.46
0.176

Women's 200: Charonda Williams Pulls The Upset

American Charonda Williams wasn't good enough to make the finals of the US trials in the 100 or 200 but she was good enough to get the win in London.

Wind:-0.5
Rank Athlete Nation Result Reaction time Diamond Points Diamond Ranking
1
USA
22.75
0.184
6
2
  
2
JAM
22.81
0.166
2
6
  
3
USA
23.00
0.154
3
5
  
4
JAM
23.18
0.184
 
 
  
5
FRA
23.19
0.143
 
 
  
6
JAM
23.20
0.144
 
 
  
7
GBR
23.36
0.190
 
 
  
8
BAH
23.89
0.158
 
 
  

FIELD EVENTS

Men's Discus: Kanter Wins in Battle of Olympic Champs

In very difficult conditions, the reigning Olympic champ Gerd Kanter of Estonia got the best of of 2000 and 2004 Virgilijus Alekna of Lithuania.

Rank Athlete Nation Result
Wind		 Diamond Points Diamond Ranking   1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
1
EST
64.85
 
5
2
    
59.59
 64.85
 x
 63.49
 64.15
 62.61
2
LTU
63.71
 
4
5
    
58.16
 61.39
 61.39
 63.71
 61.67
 x
3
GBR
63.33
 
1
7
    
59.50
 56.53
 56.66
 63.33
 x
 x
4
NED
63.31
 
   
x
 59.16
 61.33
 61.07
 63.31
 x
5
ESP
63.23
 
2
6
    
60.84
 61.79
 62.58
 63.23
 x
 60.25
6
NED
61.93
 
   
60.63
 x
 61.32
 x
 61.62
 61.93
7
GBR
60.25
 
   
60.25
 x
 x
 56.78
 57.45
 x
8
GBR
59.87
 
   
59.72
 x
 59.87
 x
 x
 x
9
AUS
57.34
 
   
38.82
 57.16
 57.34
  
  
  
10
AUS
55.13
 
   
53.13
 55.13
 54.14
  
  
  

Men's Pole Vault: Lavillenie Loses For First Time Outdoors in 2012

2012 world leader and 2012 world indoor champ Renaud Lavillenie of France lost for the first time outdoors this year and the first time since February 14 as 2012 world #2 Björn Otto got the win.

The US champ Brad Walker didn't show up and 2008 Olympic champ Steve Hooker continued to struggle as he no-heighted.

Rank Athlete Nation Result
 Diamond Points Diamond Ranking   5.20
5.87		 5.40
5.93		 5.56
 		 5.66
 		 5.74
 		 5.81
 
1
GER
5.74
7
2
    
-
-
-
xxx
o
 
xxo
 
xxo
 
-
 
2
FRA
5.66
4
4
    
xo
 
xxo
 
xxo
 
xo
 
xx-
 
r
 
3
GER
5.66
1
7
    
-
 
o
 
xo
 
xxo
 
xxx
 
 
 
4
GRE
5.56
2
6
    
-
 
xo
 
xo
 
xxx
 
 
 
 
 
5
GER
5.40
 
 
    
-
 
o
 
xxx
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5
FRA
5.40
12
1
img
 
-
 
o
 
xxx
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
7
GBR
5.40
 
 
    
xo
 
xo
 
xxx
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
8
GBR
5.40
 
 
    
-
 
xxo
 
xxx
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
AUS
NM
 
 
    
-
 
xxx
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Women's High Jump: Chaunte Lowe Beats Chichero

US champ Chaune Lowe got the best of 2011 world champ and 2012 world leader Anna Chichero.

Rank Athlete Nation Result
 Diamond Points Diamond Ranking   1.79
2.00		 1.83
2.02		 1.87
 		 1.91
 		 1.94
 		 1.97
 
1
USA
2.00
17
1
img
 
-
xxo
o
xxx
o
 
o
 
o
 
o
 
2
BEL
1.97
SB
4
3
    
-
xxx
o
 
o
 
xo
 
xo
 
xxo
 
3
ESP
1.94
2
4
    
-
 
o
 
o
 
o
 
o
 
xxx
 
3
RUS
1.94
5
2
    
-
xxx
o
 
o
 
o
 
o
 
-
 
5
SWE
1.91
 
 
    
-
 
o
 
o
 
o
 
xxx
 
 
 
6
LTU
1.91
 
 
    
o
 
o
 
o
 
xo
 
xxx
 
 
 
7
GER
1.87
 
 
    
o
 
o
 
o
 
xxx
 
 
 
 
 
8
NOR
1.87
 
 
    
o
 
o
 
xo
 
xxx
 
 
 
 
 
9
GBR
1.83
 
 
    
o
 
o
 
xxx
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

*2012 Aviva London Grand Prix Day 1 Results

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