Shanghai Recap: Faith Kipyegon (3:56.82), Muktar Edris (12:59.96) & Hyvin Kiyeng (9:07.42) Get World Leaders; Justin Gatlin (9.94) & Omar McLeod (12.98) Pick Up Big Wins

By LetsRun.com
May 14, 2016

The Asian leg of the 2016 Diamond League season concluded in Shanghai on Saturday with some fast distance action. Three of the four distance races saw world leaders, with Faith Kipyegon (3:56.82 1500), Muktar Edris (12:59.96 5000) and Hyvin Kiyeng (9:07.42 3000 steeple) all putting on dominant displays to win their respective races. The one exception was the debacle of a men’s 800, which we discuss in a separate article here: LRC A Diamond League Debacle: David Rudisha Beaten By Four Men, Nick Symmonds Runs 1:48 in Farce of an 800 in Shanghai.

In non-distance action, Jamaica’s Omar McLeod kept rolling in the men’s 110 hurdles, breaking 13.00 for the first time this year in 12.98, while Justin Gatlin easily won the 100 in a pedestrian 9.94. There were also surprise first-time wins for Americans Kurt Roberts in the shot put (21.40m to move from fourth to first on his final attempt) and Sam Kendricks in the pole vault (5.88m to take down World Indoor champ Renaud Lavillenie). Croatia’s Sandra Perkovic also set a Diamond League record of 70.88m to win the women’s discus.

We recap the entire meet below starting with the distance events. Full results here.

Women’s 1500: Faith Kipyegon Crushes Everyone, Sets Kenyan National Record

The pace in this one went out quickly, with rabbit Tamara Tverdostup taking the field through 400 meters in 62.92 seconds. 2015 World Championship silver medallist Faith Kipyegon, running her first track race of 2016, was first among racers about a second behind with Jenny Simpson in the middle of a pack that had already begun to string out.

The field understandably slowed over the next lap, as the rabbit hit 800 in 2:08.96, with Kipyegon about half a second behind. Simpson had moved up to ninth place and with 500 to go, she was in sixth.

At that point, the rabbit dropped out and Kipyegon dropped the pace and Simpson was dropped with 500 to go.  With a lap to go, five women had separated, with Kipyegon leading a trio of Ethiopians (Besu Sado and World Indoor medallists Dawit Seyaum and Gudaf Tsegay) and fellow Kenyan Hellen Obiri. They had about six meters on Simpson, who led the chase pack, and that lead would only grow over the final 400.

Article continues below player.

Kipyegon began to press at the bell and within 100 meters she had dropped Obiri (1200m was reached in 3:13.3). She would pour it on the final 300m. By the top of the home stretch, Kipyegon was clear and had about eight meters on Seyaum and Sado.

Kipyegon still had another gear and she really opened it up over the final 100 to win by a massive 2.52 seconds in 3:56.82, a world leader and Kenyan national record. Obiri, who had been in a distant fourth with 100 to go, moved up very well over the home straight to make it a Kenyan 1-2 sweep in 3:59.34. Seyaum also broke 4:00 as Sado just missed out in fourth. Simpson was never in contention and wound up sixth in 4:04.56, her season-best time a small consolation.

But this was all about Kipyegon, who picked up right where she left off in 2015 by closing in an astonishing 58.54 for the final lap, 28.6 for the final 200. A truly dominant performance.

Quick Take #1: Faith Kipyegon is in tremendous shape
We don’t need to say much about this — any time you break a Kenyan national record in the distance events, you know you had a great night. Just like her last trip to China, at Worlds last year, Kipyegon was in a different realm than most of the field. The only women who could hope to close in 58.54 in a DL race like she did tonight are Genzebe Dibaba and Sifan Hassan. But with Dibaba’s distance uncertain for Rio and Hassan reportedly banged up right now according to Steve Cram, Kipyegon could enter the Olympics as the gold medal favorite.

One thing worth noting: it is rather amazing that the American record in the 1500 (3:56.29) is actually faster than the Kenyan record. That is the only distance event on the track, men’s or women’s, where that statement is true.

Quick Take #2: Should Jenny Simpson be worried? Yes.
Excluding the 2013 DL final in Brussels, Simpson hadn’t finished this low in a Diamond League 1500 since August 2012 and she was never a factor. That in itself wasn’t a great sign, and it’s worrying that Simpson wasn’t in position to move with the leaders even when the pace wasn’t super fast early on. But Simpson has time between now and Rio to improve her fitness. What’s more troubling if you’re a Simpson fan is that Kipyegon appears to be in the same kind of shape — perhaps even better shape — than she was last year. And Simpson isn’t beating the Kipyegon that closed in 1:57.6 last year at Worlds or the one that closed a 3:56 race in 58.54 tonight.

And this was Hellen Obiri’s first Diamond League race since 2014 due to childbirth. Afterwards she said, “I gave birth to Tanya one year and one week ago, so to come back and run 3:59 in my first race since 2014 is great. My training has gone well for many months and I hope to go on and run later this season 3:56 and win a medal at the Olympic Games.”

1500 Metres - Women                                           
                                                            Pts
    1 Kipyegon , Faith Chepngetich     KEN    3:56.82         10        
    2 Obiri , Hellen Onsando           KEN    3:59.34          6        
    3 Seyaum , Dawit                   ETH    3:59.87          4        
    4 Sado , Besu                      ETH    4:00.08          3        
    5 Tsegay , Gudaf                   ETH    4:02.73          2        
    6 Simpson , Jennifer               USA    4:04.56          1        
    7 Ennaoui , Sofia                  POL    4:05.10                   
    8 Chepkwemoi , Nancy               KEN    4:05.22                   
    9 Lagat , Violah Cheptoo           KEN    4:06.77                   
   10 Zhao , Jing                      CHN    4:09.28                   
   11 Buckman , Zoe                    AUS    4:10.28                   
   12 Zheng , Xiaoqian                 CHN    4:10.32                   
   13 Johnson , Lauren                 USA    4:12.43
   14 Måkestad Bovim , Ingvill         NOR    4:14.12
      Tverdostup , Tamara              UKR        DNF                


Men’s 5000: Muktar Edris Prevails in Thrilling Last-Lap Battle

With eight Ethiopians in the field hoping to make their case for Olympic selection, there was an incentive to make the pace fast in this race, and though the race went out quickly (4:12 at 1600), it was actually Uganda’s World Junior 10k champ Joshua Cheptegei (the only man to go with the rabbits for the first 800) and Kenya’s Olympic bronze medallist Thomas Longosiwa (who led the charge to bring the pack back to the rabbits) who were the ones setting the tempo early.

The pace remained quick but not brutal throughout, as the field hit 3k in 7:56 and 3200 in 8:26, but with two laps to go (11:03) there were still 10 men together and a sub-13:00 clocking was slipping away. At that point, 17-year-old Abadi Embaye was the man in front, and he led the field through a sub-60-second penultimate lap to set up a thrilling finale.

The fireworks began at the bell. At that point, Embaye led with Longosiwa on his shoulder. World Indoor champ Yomif Kejelcha was a few steps behind with 2014 world leader Muktar Edris a few meters further back. Longosiwa made the first big move, taking the lead with 300 to go as Kejelcha followed on his shoulder. But his lead would be short-lived as Cheptegei launched an attack 50 meters later, leading the field into the final turn. Then with 150 to go, it was Edris moving faster than anyone, and he took the lead entering the home stretch.

That would be the end of the lead changes as Edris stormed away from the field over the final 100; so confident was he in his lead that he began fist-pumping in celebration with 25 meters to go. His last lap was an impressive 55.5 seconds, with a 26.9-second final 200 — and that included a celebration. Edris’ reward was the world’s first sub-13:00 of 2016 (12:59.96). Cheptegei got a big 28-second PR of 13:00.60 to take second with Longosiwa finishing third.   

Quick Take #1: What a terrific last lap
It’s exciting to see someone break 13:00, but it’s even more exciting to see multiple guys battling it out over the final 400. We got both tonight, which is about as much as you can ask for from a Diamond League 5,000. In all, there were four different leaders on the last lap.

Quick Take #2: Muktar Edris is looking good for Rio
Edris has two reasons to think he’ll be on the start line in Rio this summer. First, he ran a world-leading 12:59.96, which for the reasons we pointed out in our preview, could hold up as one of the fastest 5k times in the world by the time Olympic entries are due on July 18 (remember, Ethiopia usually picks its squad by time). Second, Edris was clearly the best guy in the field over the final 150 and he was well ahead of his closest Ethiopian rival, Embaye, who was 2.53 seconds back in fourth. With all the top Ethiopians here (save Dejen Gebremeskel), Edris is in very good position and should like his chances to beat a field like this again should the Ethiopians go after another fast time in Oslo or Stockholm next month.

This was also the earliest sub-13:00 since 2010. Check out the dates of the first sub-13:00 over the past seven years.

2016: May 14 (Shanghai)
2015: June 4 (Rome)
2014: July 5 (Paris)
2013: June 6 (Rome)
2012: May 27 (Rabat)
2011: May 26 (Rome)
2010: May 14 (Doha)

Only two men have ever broken 13:00 outdoors on an earlier date: Augustine Choge and Craig Mottram, who did it at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne on March 20.

Quick Take #3: There was some great young talent in this race
18-year-old World Indoor champ Yomif Kejelcha may have been the most familiar name among the youngsters in this race, but he was beaten by two other teenagers tonight. Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei, who won last month’s Carlsbad 5000, continued his fine 2016 (he also ran 27:56 for 10k on the roads in March) by running 13:00 for second. Cheptegei had primarily run the 10,000 before tonight, so this could mean one of two things: 1) His best event is actually the 5,000; or 2) He’s going to be even better in the 10,000 thanks to his newfound speed. We lean more toward the latter (it probably makes sense for him to run both events in Rio since the 10,000 is first)  but if Cheptegei can keep up this level of performance once the top Kenyans and Americans are added to the field, he could have a chance at a 5,000 medal.

The other teen was third placer Abadi Embaye, who ran 13:02.49 tonight and at 17 is actually a year younger than Kejelcha. Tilastopaja listed a grand total of two races for him prior to tonight (13:13 last year in Heusden and an XC win in France in January) but he’s clearly got potential. He led for much of the final mile and can still make some tactical improvements, but he’ll certainly be one to watch over the next few years.

5000 Metres - Men                                             
                                                            Pts
    1 Edris , Muktar                   ETH   12:59.96         10        
    2 Cheptegei , Joshua Kiprui        UGA   13:00.60          6        
    3 Longosiwa , Thomas Pkemei        KEN   13:01.69          4        
    4 Embaye , Abadi                   ETH   13:02.49          3        
    5 Kejelcha , Yomif                 ETH   13:03.29          2        
    6 Gebrhiwet , Hagos                ETH   13:04.12          1        
    7 Rop , Albert Kibichii            BRN   13:04.87                   
    8 Merga , Imane                    ETH   13:06.25                   
    9 Soi , Edwin Cheruiyot            KEN   13:07.68                   
   10 Alamirew , Yenew                 ETH   13:08.70                   
   11 Ayalew , Aweke                   BRN   13:18.15                   
   12 Haji , Yasin                     ETH   13:19.50                   
   13 Legese , Birhanu                 ETH   13:31.67
   14 Duo , Bujie                      CHN   14:20.80
      Choge , Augustine Kiprono        KEN        DNF                   
      Rono , Geoffrey Kipkoech         KEN        DNF                   
      Koech , John Kibet               BRN        DNF
Jebet falls on rail Jebet falls on rail

Women’s Steeplechase: World Champ Hyvin Kiyeng Gets Her First Sub-9:10 Clocking

The rabbit took this one out fast in 2:59 and only former World Junior champ Ruth Jebet of Bahrain (formerly Kenya) went with her (there was a fall 600m in that knocked down one runner, we were not sure who, possibly Lidya Chepkurui). The rabbit dropped out the 2nd km (6:03.2) and Jebet was a couple of seconds clear of world champion Hyvin Kiyeng at that point.

Jebet would maintain the lead until the final lap despite chopping her steps during the run-up to many of her barriers. Kiyeng was in hot pursuit on the final lap  and went by Jebet with 200m to go as Jebet was totally out of steam. Kiyeng was 7-8 meters in front with 100m to go when Jebet tripped on the rail and went down. Kiyeng powered home to a 9:07.42 pr (previous best 9:10.15 last year in Brussels). Jebet got up and still finished second in 9:15.98 (previous best 9:20.55) with the fall likely costing her a sub-9:10 clocking.

Here’s a tweet that shows Jebet’s fall.

https://twitter.com/AthleticsSweden/status/731459245749702656

Different angle of fall Different angle of fall

QT #1: Add Jebet Into the Mix
We already knew Kiyeng was very good, being the world champion. Kiyeng’s 9:07.42 makes her the 6th-fastest woman of all time.

Jebet was the World Junior Champion in Eugene (2014) for Bahrain and was 11th at Worlds last year, but her run today she showed she can be a force on the global stage. Jebet had a big lead – 2-3 seconds at the bell – on the women who ended up becoming the 6th fasest women in history.

3000 Metres Steeplechase - Women                              
                                                            Pts
    1 Jepkemoi , Hyvin Kiyeng          KEN    9:07.42         10        
    2 Jebet , Ruth                     BRN    9:15.98          6        
    3 Assefa , Sofia                   ETH    9:21.07          4        
    4 Nganga , Virginia Nyambura       KEN    9:21.15          3        
    5 Kirui , Purity Cherotich         KEN    9:22.47          2        
    6 Rotich , Lydia Chebet            KEN    9:23.49          1        
    7 Chespol , Celliphine Chepteek    KEN    9:24.73                   
    8 Singh , Sudha                    IND    9:26.55                   
    9 Zhang , Xinyan                   CHN    9:29.52                   
   10 Chemutai , Peruth                UGA    9:31.34                   
   11 Chepngetich , Rosefline          KEN    9:35.22                   
   12 Chepkurui , Lidya                KEN    9:36.47                   
   13 Babar , Lalita Shivaji           IND    9:43.30
   14 Fente , Birtukan                 ETH   10:04.42
      Heiner Hills , Madeline          AUS        DNF                   
      Ayalew , Hiwot                   ETH        DNF                   
      Tuigong , Caroline Chepkurui     KEN        DNF

 

Men’s 100: Justin Gatlin Wins Again

Qatar’s Femi Ogunode came into Shanghai as the world leader at 9.91, but he left a badly beaten man as Justin Gatlin showed why he came within .01 of beating Usain Bolt at Worlds last year. Gatlin destroyed Ogunode and everyone else in the field by running 9.94 to Ogunode’s 10.07 in a race that was run with zero wind.

Gatlin afterwards talked about Mike Tyson and his coach Dennis Mitchell saying, “I came out here to execute and I know being an Olympic year, it is a long season and my coach and I have a plan. He is training me like Mike Tyson to knock out the opposition and keep swinging! The ankle injury over the winter made it a difficult preparation, but Diamond League races are important to win.”

https://twitter.com/AthleticsSweden/status/731449387235332097

100 Metres - Men Race 3                                       Wind: 0.0 m/s
                                                            Pts
    1 Gatlin , Justin                  USA       9.94         10        
    2 Ogunode , Femi                   QAT      10.07          6        
    3 Rodgers , Mike                   USA      10.10          4        
    4 Collins , Kim                    SKN      10.17          3        
    5 Young , Isiah                    USA      10.22          2        
    6 Forte , Julian                   JAM      10.23          1        
    7 Gittens , Ramon                  BAR      10.24
    8 Xie , Zhenye                     CHN      10.31
    9 Mo , Youxue                      CHN      10.66

Men’s 110 Hurdles: Omar McLeod Keeps Rolling with Year’s First Sub-13.00

This race took a long time to start as there were two separate false starts, first by Cuban turned Spaniard Orlando Ortega and second by world record holder Aries Merritt of the U.S. But nothing has stopped Jamaica’s Omar McLeod in 2016, and the extra wait didn’t slow him down as he blitzed a world-leading 12.98. Like last week in Doha, McLeod clipped hurdle nine, but it didn’t throw him off nearly as much this time and he powered to the win. He now joins David Oliver and Liu Xiang as the only men in history to break 13.00 before the month of June; only Oliver (who ran 12.95 in Doha on May 9, 2008) has done it earlier in a season.

110 Metres Hurdles - Men                                      Wind: +1.2 m/s
                                                            Pts
    1 McLeod , Omar                    JAM      12.98         10        
    2 Parchment , Hansle               JAM      13.12          6        
    3 Xie , Wenjun                     CHN      13.34          4        
    4 Bascou , Dimitri                 FRA      13.34          3        
    5 Oliver , David                   USA      13.38          2        
    6 Richardson , Jason               USA      13.44          1        
    7 Zhang , Honglin                  CHN      13.79                   
      Merritt , Aries                  USA         DQ                   
      Ortega , Orlando                 ESP         DQ

Women’s 200m: Ahoure Wins

Murielle Ahoure was challenged by Veronica Campbell-Brown throughout but held her off for the win in 22.72. 18-year-old World Junior champ Kaylin Whitney of the U.S. was 6th in 23.39.

None of the sprints were fast tonight even with temps in the 70s. VCB was not pleased with this one saying, “To be honest, I’m disappointed. I’ve been really hitting my marks in training, but I failed to deliver. Such is life. I think maybe I need to take it a little easier in training and listen to my body a little more and not allow my killer instinct to take over.”

Ahoure was happy with the win and continued comeback from injury, “I’m really happy to win my first 200m of the season, especially coming off a really serious knee injury. I couldn’t walk or jog for a long time. I took eight months out and that’s why I missed indoors. I’ve only been back two months. I’m blessed to be back with the main goal to be fit and well for the Olympics.”

200 Metres - Women                                            Wind: +0.7 m/s
                                                            Pts
    1 Ahouré , Murielle                CIV      22.72         10        
    2 Campbell-Brown , Veronica        JAM      22.82          6        
    3 McLaughlin-Whilby , Anneisha     JAM      22.94          4        
    4 Lalova-Collio , Ivet             BUL      23.04          3        
    5 Wei , Yongli                     CHN      23.29          2        
    6 Whitney , Kaylin                 USA      23.39          1        
    7 Townsend , Tiffany               USA      23.42                   
    8 McGrone , Candyce                USA      23.50                   
    9 Lin , Huijun                     CHN      23.88

 

Women’s 400m: Shaunae Miller Gets First DL Win of 2016

Miller of the Bahamas was the world leader coming in with her 49.69 and she backed it up with a win here. She got out hard the first 200m and the field closed a bit on the the final turn, but Miller had something left the final 50m and was strongest when it mattered most, getting the win in a modest 50.45.

QT: Weird race with Miller getting out hard and then having something the final 50m.  Miller, Williams-Mills, and Spencer had all run nearly a second quicker than they did today.

400 Metres - Women                                            
                                                            Pts
    1 Miller , Shaunae                 BAH      50.45         10        
    2 McPherson , Stephenie Ann        JAM      50.98          6        
    3 Hastings , Natasha               USA      51.10          4        
    4 Williams-Mills , Novlene         JAM      51.96          3        
    5 Spencer , Ashley                 USA      52.46          2        
    6 Jackson , Shericka               JAM      53.02          1        
    7 Razor , Bianca                   ROU      53.09                   
    8 Wang , Chunyu                    CHN      54.30

Men’s 400 Hurdles: Tinsley Wins a Close One

Most of the field was still in contention in the home stretch of this one, and coming off the final hurdle it seemed as if Turkey’s Yasmani Copello was going to be your winner. But he faded badly over the final meters; instead, it was Olympic silver medallist Michael Tinsley of the U.S. who came on strong to take the victory in 48.90.

400 Metres Hurdles - Men                                      
                                                            Pts
    1 Tinsley , Michael                USA      48.90         10        
    2 Dobek , Patryk                   POL      49.01          6        
    3 Gibson , Jeffery                 BAH      49.11          4        
    4 van Zyl , L.J.                   RSA      49.13          3        
    5 Copello , Yasmani                TUR      49.14          2        
    6 Bett , Nicholas Kiplagat         KEN      49.31          1        
    7 Clement , Kerron                 USA      49.56                   
    8 Culson , Javier                  PUR      49.58                   
    9 Tumuti , Boniface Mucheru        KEN      50.16

 

Women’s High Jump: Levern Spencer Gets St. Lucia’s First-Ever DL Win

This field wasn’t particularly strong by DL standards, but Levern Spencer won’t care much about that as the 31-year-old, who was fifth at World Indoors, earned the first-ever DL victory for her small home nation of St. Lucia (population: 182,000). Spencer now has three wins in three starts outdoors under a new coach, clearing 1.92 in Athens (GA) on April 9 1.95 at Drake on April 30 and 1.94 tonight.

Spencer said after, “I have finally won a Diamond League event, so I’m really happy. My hamstring started hurting me at one point and I wondered if I should carry on, but I’ve been jumping really well this season. I am working with a new coach (Petros Kyprianou), we’ve been working on a few technical things and it is really starting to come together. It is a great way to start my Diamond League season.”

High Jump - Women                                             
                                                            Pts
    1 Spencer , Levern                 LCA       1.94         10        
    2 Dusanova , Nadiya                UZB       1.94          6        
    3 Šimic , Ana                      CRO       1.92          4        
    4 Radzivil , Svetlana              UZB       1.88          3        
    5 Demireva , Mirela                BUL       1.88          2        
    6 Chumachenko , Yuliya             UKR       1.85          1        
    7 Frederick , Priscilla            ANT       1.85                   
    7 Scheper , Jeanelle               LCA       1.85                   
    9 Wang , Yang                      CHN       1.80

Women’s Long Jump: Serbia’s Ivana Spanovic Dominates

Spanovic, the silver medallist at World Indoors, got out to 6.95, her third-longest jump ever, on her first attempt and that’s all she would need for the victory. She was so dominant that her second- (6.88) and third-best (6.82) jumps would have won the competition too and her fourth-best (6.75) would have tied for the win. World champ Tianna Bartoletta of the U.S. improved upon the 6.61 she jumped to win in Japan last week in her season opener but had to settle for third.

Long Jump - Women                                             
                                                            Pts               Wind
    1 Španovic , Ivana                 SRB       6.95         10              +0.7
    2 Nettey , Christabel              CAN       6.75          6              +0.3
    3 Bartoletta , Tianna              USA       6.75          4              +0.2
    4 Moguenara , Sosthene             GER       6.74          3              +0.5
    5 Ugen , Lorraine                  GBR       6.55          2              -0.2
    6 DeLoach , Janay                  USA       6.48          1              +0.4
    7 Jimoh , Funmi                    USA       6.43                         +0.5
    8 Xu , Xiaoling                    CHN       6.36                         +0.3
    9 Jiang , Yanfei                   CHN       6.33      +0.4
   10 Jarder , Erica                   SWE       6.11      +1.0

Men’s Long Jump: Xinglong Gao Wins in Front of Home Fans

The Chinese men’s best events are the jumps and they proved that tonight as 2015 Worlds fourth placer Xinglong Gao earned his first career DL victory on home soil tonight. Gao jumped exactly the same mark that got him fourth in Beijing last year — 8.14 meters. Gaoe recorded that winning mark in round 2, and though South Africa’s Rushwal Samaai tied him in round 5, Gao had a superior #2 mark at 8.09. Samaai tried for a big one on his final attempt but could only manage 7.87 as Gao held on for the win.

Long Jump - Men                                               
                                                            Pts               Wind
    1 Gao , Xinglong                   CHN       8.14         10              -0.2
    2 Samaai , Rushwal                 RSA       8.14          6              +0.4
    3 Lapierre , Fabrice               AUS       8.09          4              +0.7
    4 Henderson , Jeff                 USA       8.02          3              +0.3
    5 Wang , Jianan                    CHN       7.96          2              +0.8
    6 Zhang , Yaoguang                 CHN       7.87          1               0.0
    7 Huang , Changzhou                CHN       7.84                         -0.3
    8 Bramble , Daniel                 GBR       7.75                         -0.3
    9 Gaisah , Ignisious               NED       7.65      -0.7
      Smith , Tyrone                   BER         NM

Men’s High Jump: Bondarenko Spoils It For Home Fans

Bohdan Bondarenko ruined the hopes for a hometown Chinese victory as he beat co-world leaders Guowei Zhang (2nd at Worlds last year, 2.33 this year) and Yu Wang on countbacks as the top 4 here all cleared 2.28.

High Jump - Men                                               

    1 Bondarenko , Bohdan              UKR       2.28                   
    2 Zhang , Guowei                   CHN       2.28                   
    3 Wang , Yu                        CHN       2.28                   
    4 Ghazal , Majd Eddin              SYR       2.28                   
    5 Mason , Michael                  CAN       2.20                   
    6 Bába , Jaroslav                  CZE       2.20                   
    7 Starc , Brandon                  AUS       2.20                   
    7 Williams , Jesse                 USA       2.20                   
    9 Kroytor , Dmitry                 ISR       2.15
   10 Hsiang , Chun-Hsien              TPE       2.15

 

Women’s Discus: Sandra Perkovic Breaks the Diamond League Record

Croatia’s Perkovic has dominated the DL over the past several years, earning 28 victories, and she broke her own Diamond League record of 70.52 meters, set at this meet two years ago, by throwing 70.88 on her fourth attempt tonight. The throw was the second-longest of her career, behind only the 71.08 she threw to win the European Championships in 2014.

Discus Throw - Women                                          
                                                            Pts
    1 Perkovic , Sandra                CRO      70.88         10        
    2 Samuels , Dani                   AUS      67.77          6        
    3 Caballero , Denia                CUB      66.14          4        
    4 Su , Xinyue                      CHN      64.45          3        
    5 Pérez , Yaime                    CUB      62.77          2        
    6 Ashley , Whitney                 USA      59.56          1        
    7 Barrios , Yarelys                CUB      58.63                   
    8 Lally , Jade                     GBR      58.51                   
    9 Tomaševic , Dragana              SRB      56.81
   10 Lewis-Smallwood , Gia            USA      56.02
      Chen , Yang                      CHN         NM                   

 

Men’s Shot Put: American Kurt Roberts Earns Surprise Win

Roberts had never before won a Diamond League event and was beaten his last time out at the Kansas Relays on April 22. But Roberts put together a fine indoor season (all-conditions PR of 21.57 in Boston, USA title in Portland) before a stinker at Worlds (he was last in 17.94 after fouling his first two of three throws) and he bounced back nicely to take the win here, moving from fourth to first on his final attempt to beat out World Indoor champ Tom Walsh and World Outdoor champ Joe Kovacs.

Shot Put - Men                                                
                                                            Pts
    1 Roberts , Kurt                   USA      21.40         10        
    2 Walsh , Tomas                    NZL      21.20          6        
    3 Kovacs , Joe                     USA      20.82          4        
    4 Majewski , Tomasz                POL      20.76          3        
    5 Nedow , Tim                      CAN      20.40          2        
    6 Clarke , Jordan                  USA      20.30          1        
    7 Elemba , Franck                  CGO      19.47                   
    8 Whiting , Ryan                   USA      19.34                   
    9 Liu , Yang                       CHN      19.30
   10 Richards , O'Dayne               JAM      19.22
   11 Wu , Jianxing                    CHN      18.80

Men’s Javelin: Röhler Wins In Round 1

Three days after 2004 and 2008 Olympic champ Andreas Thorkildsen abandoned his comeback and called it a career, 24-year-old German Thomas Röhler, who was 4th at Worlds last year, won the men’s javelin with an 85.71m first-round throw. Word leader Jakub Vadlejch (86.76m coming in) of the Czech Republic was second in 84.77m with 2013 world champ Vítězslav Veselý third in 83.81m.

 

Javelin Throw - Men                                           
                                                            Pts
    1 Röhler , Thomas                  GER      85.71         10        
    2 Vadlejch , Jakub                 CZE      84.77          6        
    3 Veselý , Vítezslav               CZE      83.81          4        
    4 Abdelrahman , Ihab               EGY      83.16          3        
    5 Peacock , Hamish                 AUS      82.28          2        
    6 Arai , Ryohei                    JPN      80.07          1        
    7 Krukowski , Marcin               POL      76.81                   
    8 Zhao , Qinggang                  CHN      75.92                   
    9 Ma , Qun                         CHN      75.16
   10 Laanmäe , Tanel                  EST      73.88

Men’s Pole Vault: Kendricks Wins First DL Meeting

American Sam Kendricks picked up the first Diamond League win of his career thanks to an third-attempt clearance of 5.88m (19′ 3½”)- a new outdoor pb for the 2016 World Indoor silver medallist (Kendricks cleared 5.90m (19′ 4¼”) indoors to win USAs). Kendricks also needed three attempts to get over 5.83m. Renaud Lavillenie, the reigning World Indoor and Olympic champ, was the only other man to clear 5.83m.

5.88m moves Kendricks to #2 on the 2016 outdoor list of highest vaulters. 2016 world leader (5.91m) and 2015 World champ Shawn Barber was third at 5.70m.

Pole Vault - Men                                              
                                                            Pts
    1 Kendricks , Sam                  USA       5.88         10        
    2 Lavillenie , Renaud              FRA       5.83          6        
    3 Barber , Shawnacy                CAN       5.70          4        
    4 Joseph , Stanley                 FRA       5.70          3        
    5 Lisek , Piotr                    POL       5.62          2        
    6 Yao , Jie                        CHN       5.62          1        
    7 Filippídis , Konstadínos         GRE       5.52                   
    8 Xue , Changrui                   CHN       5.40                   
      Sobera , Robert                  POL         NM                   
      Huang , Bokai                    CHN         NM
Want More? Join The Supporters Club Today
Support independent journalism and get:
  • Exclusive Access to VIP Supporters Club Content
  • Bonus Podcasts Every Friday
  • Free LetsRun.com Shirt (Annual Subscribers)
  • Exclusive Discounts
  • Enhanced Message Boards