Rabat DL Recap: Obiri Wins The Deepest 5k in History, Kejelcha Dominates 3K, & Lasitskene Is Finally Beaten
By LetsRun.com
July 13, 2018
Stop #9 of the 2018 Diamond League season is in the books, and tonight’s Meeting International Mohammed VI d’Atlétisme de Rabat had a little bit of everything. The most exciting race was the men’s 100, which lived up to the pre-race hype. American Christian Coleman earned the victory in his first race in six weeks, finishing with the same time (9.98) as Ronnie Baker as U.S. 100 champ Noah Lyles was third in 9.99. That race got its own recap here: Christian Coleman Defeats Noah Lyles, Ronnie Baker and Mike Rogers at Rabat Diamond League 100m.
One of the other major stories was Mirela Demireva’s upset win in the women’s high jump, which ended Maria Lasitskene’s win streak at 45 competitions.
In the distance races, there was an upset in the men’s 1500 as Morocco’s Brahim Kaazouzi earned the win on home soil in a pb of 3:33.22 (Matthew Centrowitz was 10th in an SB of 3:35.17) while Yomif Kejelcha destroyed the field in the men’s 3,000 to win in 7:32.93 (Paul Chelimo was 4th in 7:34.83). World champ Hellen Obiri won a historically deep women’s 5,000 (five women under 14:25) in 14:21.75 as Sifan Hassan set a European record in second (14:22.34). There were also wins for Caster Semenya (1000 in 2:31.01), Francine Niyonsaba (800 in 1:57.90), and Benjamin Kigen (steeple in a world-leading 8:06.19).
A full event by event recap, with analysis, results, and some video highlights appears below starting with the distance events before going to the sprint and then field events.
Men’s 1500 Morocco’s Brahim Kaazouzi Pulls the Upset, Centro 10th
With chain in mouth Kaazouzi was all grit
Matthew Centrowitz has never won a Diamond League meet, but Brahim Kaazouzi has.
Kaazouzi, the unheralded Moroccan who came in with only a 3:34.46 PR and 3:35.58 season’s best, stunned the field by kicking to a win over the final 100m in 3:33.22, holding off a charge from Filip Ingebrigtsen as Ayanleh Souleiman was third in 3:33.42. Centrowitz faded all the way back to 10th, but his 3:35.17 was a season’s best.
The rabbit went out in 55.36 and 1:53 and was followed by all the main contenders, including Centrowitz, who was the third racer behind the two rabbits. A few people went around Centro 900 meters into the race, giving the hint that this would not be his day. The second rabbit carried on till 1200 meters, which Aman Wote hit in the lead in 2:51.85.
Around the final turn, Souleiman led but a bunch of guys were in contention including Kaazouzi, who made a nice pass on the turn to get right on Souleiman with 100m to go. From there on it was just a mad sprint to the finish with the more credentialed Souleiman pumping his arms and grimacing. Kaazouzi was doing the same, but he was being roared on by the Moroccan crowd. At one point, Kaazouzi had his gold chain clenched in his mouth as Souleiman slowly began to fade. Ingebrigtsen was moving up late but did not have enough to catch Kaazouzi, who got the shock win.
1 Kaazouzi , Brahim MAR 3:33.22 8
2 Ingebrigtsen , Filip NOR 3:33.40 7
3 Souleiman , Ayanleh DJI 3:33.42 6
4 Holuša , Jakub CZE 3:33.80 5
5 Da'Vall Grice , Charles GBR 3:34.20 4
6 Gregson , Ryan AUS 3:34.38 3
7 Wote , Aman ETH 3:34.39 2
8 Simotwo , Charles Cheboi KEN 3:34.75 1
9 Lewandowski , Marcin POL 3:35.06
10 Centrowitz , Matthew USA 3:35.17
11 Ouldha , Hicham MAR 3:35.35
12 Essalhi , Younéss MAR 3:36.28
13 Tolosa , Taresa ETH 3:38.53
14 Debjani , Ismael BEL 3:39.27
Akbache , Mounir FRA DNF
Elkaam , Fouad MAR DNF
Kibet , Vincent KEN DNF
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QT: What an upset
Track and field needs more races like this. An unheralded guy looking like he wanted it more than everyone else. No way is it that simple, but there aren’t a lot of upsets in the sport, and when a hometown hero can pull one off it is a good thing.
Kaazouzi credited the crowd, “I am happy about my performance. This is a dream come true. I owe my victory and personal best to the crowd.”
We were trying to figure out the last time there was an upset like this and there was one last year at Oslo, where Jake Wightman got the win in 3:34.17 and he beat Elijah Manangoi in the process.
QT: Centro struggles
Centrowitz will always be an Olympic champion, but he very easily may never win a Diamond League. He doesn’t do great in time trial races and has never broken 3:30. A 3:33 race like this one might have been one of his better chances to win a Diamond League, and he just didn’t have it today.
Women’s 5,000: Hellen Obiri is back as Sifan Hassan breaks the European record in a ridiculously deep race
Obiri is back
2018 has been a year of ups and downs for Hellen Obiri. After a 2017 campaign that saw her go unbeaten at 5,000 meters, including World Championship gold in London, Obiri missed out on the medals in the 3,000 at World Indoors, placing 4th. She bounced back to take Commonwealth gold in the 5k but then finished 14th in the Diamond League 3k opener in Doha — per Tilastopaja, her lowest finish in any race, ever.
But Obiri was back to her terrific self tonight in Rabat, clocking a world-leading 14:21.75 to sprint away from the Netherlands’ Sifan Hassan, who set a European record of 14:22.34 in second.
The race began quickly as rabbit Eva Cherono hit 800 in 2:16.4 (Senbere Teferi, the 2015 world championship silver medallist at 5000 who debuted in the marathon in Dubai this year in 2:24:11 at age 23 was the first racer at 2:16.9, which is 14:15 pace — just four seconds off the world record). It would slow to 4:38.8 for Teferi at 1600 (14:31 pace) and would remain fairly constant for the next mile as Obiri led the six-woman lead pack at 9:16.6.
Teferi and Obiri would trade the lead over the next few laps; as they kept the pedal down, Genzebe Dibaba, the fourth fastest woman in history, was surprisingly beginning to struggle, and by 1k to go, she was off the back.
The race really got going with 500 meters to go when Hassan, who had been content to lurk at the back of the lead pack, made a move on the homestretch, up to third at the bell and positioned to strike. Teferi still led, with Obiri in second.
Obiri tried to take the lead on the backstretch, and though Teferi fought hard to hold her off, Obiri eventually got around just before 200 to go as Hassan followed into second. Those two would break away, and coming off the final turn, Hassan still had a chance, but she just couldn’t get by Obiri, who was too good on this night, closing out her victory with a stellar 60.2 final 400 (Hassan, with a 60.7, was almost as good).
While Obiri didn’t set a pb, the next four finishers did — Hassan ran 14:22.34, Letesenbet Gidey, the 20-year-old Prefontaine runner-up ran 14:23.14 (lowering her pb from 14:30.29), Senbere Teferi ran 14:23.33 (previous pb of 14:29.22), and Kenya’s Agnes Tirop, the 2015 world XC champ and 2017 world 10,000 bronze medallist ran 14:24.24 (previous pb of 14:33.09).
1 Obiri , Hellen KEN 14:21.75 8
2 Hassan , Sifan NED 14:22.34 7
3 Gidey , Letesenbet ETH 14:23.14 6
4 Teferi , Senbere ETH 14:23.33 5
5 Tirop , Agnes Jebet KEN 14:24.24 4
6 Dibaba , Genzebe ETH 14:42.98 3
7 McColgan , Eilish GBR 14:52.83 2
8 Kipkirui , Caroline Chepkoech KEN 14:55.63 1
9 Scott , Dominique RSA 15:11.65
10 Huddle , Molly USA 15:21.24
11 Nabeshima , Rina JPN 15:27.54
12 Twell , Stephanie GBR 15:36.45
13 Farkoussi , Kaoutar MAR 15:48.73
Bahta , Meraf SWE DNF
Cherono , Eva KEN DNF
Fentie , Kalkidan ETH DNF
Kite , Gloria Chebiwatt KEN DNF
Tverdostup , Tamara UKR DNF
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Quick Take: This was a historically deep race
Before today, only eight women in the history of the world had broken 14:25 (Obiri and Dibaba were two of of them but Dibaba didn’t do it). In Rabat, five women did it in the same race (before today, there had never been a race in which more than two women broke 14:25). Obiri remained in 5th on the world all-time list (her pb is 14:18.37). Hassan (#7), Gidey (#8), and Teferi (#9) all broke into the top 10, while Tirop (#11) just missed out.
As you might expect, that meant there were new all-time best marks for place for Gidey in third, Teferi in fourth, and Tirop in fifth (Hassan was .37 shy of being the fastest runner-up in history).
Quick Take: The track gods answered our prayers
In our meet preview, we mentioned how none of the recent Diamond League women’s 5ks have been particularly close and pleaded for a competitive race in Rabat. Well tonight’s race featured a last-lap battle between the world gold and bronze medalists, the outcome was still in doubt with 100 to go, and the race was decided by just .59 of a second. Thank you, track gods.
Quick Take: Sifan Hassan breaks the European record, moves to #7 on all-time list
Hassan has been best-known during her career as a 1500-meter runner, but her range extends from 800 (1:56 pb) to 5000. Last year, she became the first non-African runner to medal in the women’s 5k at Worlds since 2003, and tonight she made more history by erasing Liliya Shobukhova’s 14:23.75 European record from the books by clocking 14:22.34 — a massive 19-second PR for Hassan.
Hassan is just the fifth European woman to break 14:30, but three of them (Shobukhova, Turkey’s Elvan Abeylegesse, and Russia’s Olga Yegorova) have served doping bans. The other European in the sub-14:30 club is Paula Radcliffe (14:29 pb), who remains the only European-born woman to break 14:30 who hasn’t been sanctioned for doping.
Editor’s note: Initially we stated Radcliffe was the only European-born woman to break 14:30, but Shobukhobva and Yegorova were born in Europe.
Quick Take: Genzebe Dibaba was not herself tonight; neither was Molly Huddle
Dibaba was grabbing at her right hip during the race tonight and fell way back after getting dropped with 1k to go. It seems likely that she battled some sort of injury tonight, as she has been in incredible form this year — entering tonight, she had not lost a race shorter than 1500 meters, including World Indoor gold in the 1500 and 3000 and a 3:56 world leader in the 1500 outdoors.
U.S. 10k champ Molly Huddle, 33, was another woman who struggled tonight as she was only 10th in 15:21.24. That’s her slowest time (not counting prelims) since her 15:35 in the 2013 USA final, and her slowest time by far on the Diamond League circuit (previous slowest was a 15:10 in Paris in 2013).
Me after the 10k: oh cool the marathon makes you strong!
Me after the 5k: the marathon makes you ? slow . Def wasn’t ready for that one! Next week will be better ??— Molly Huddle (@MollyHuddle) July 13, 2018
Men’s 3000: Yomif Kejelcha destroys the field in the first 100 of the last lap
Kejelcha left no doubt in this one
A week ago, Yomif Kejelcha went viral for grabbing the pants of Selemon Barega in the 5000 in Lausanne after being clipped from behind by Barega in the final 150. Tonight, Kejelcha made sure no one was close to him as he absolutely blasted the first 100 of the last lap to instantly gap the field. He then held on for a comfortable victory in a world-leading 7:32.93 thanks to a final 400 of 53.3.
The race
The race started honestly as the first 1k was run in 2:30.51 and the guys were running single file, but things really slowed down on the fourth and fifth laps from the finish line (63.11 and 63.88). The slowdown in pace played perfectly in Kejelcha’s hands as he went out in last and was still next-to-last 3 laps into the race.
With the slowdown in pace, things bunched up big-time and even though the penultimate lap was a 60.39, at the bell, there were still 11 guys within 2 seconds of the lead. But within 50 meters, Kejelcha had a GIANT lead as he accelerated in a huge way approaching the bell.
We timed Kejelcha in an unofficial 12.5 for the first 100 of the last lap. On the backstretch, his lead approached 20 meters. Had Kejelcha misjudged things? Would he be caught? Yes and no were the answers.
Kejelcha’s final 400 was 53.3. The first half of that was way faster (25.6, 12.5, 13.1) than the second half (27.7), but his lead was so big it didn’t matter. Behind him, Bahrain’s Birhanu Balew, who was the benefactor of the Kejelcha-Barega tussle in Lausanne, ended up second in a pb of 7:32.26 (previous pb of 7:38.25) as Aussie Stewart McSweyn was a surprising third in a pb of 7:34.79 (previous pb of 7:47.65) as American Paul Chelimo (who led until the bell) was fourth in 7:34.83. Two other Americans were in this one. Ryan Hill was 7th in 7:36.81 as Eric Jenkins PR’d in 8th in 7:38.19 (previous pb of 7:39.43 indoors).
Splits for the entire field are here.
3000 Metres - Men - Diamond Discipline
Pts
1 Kejelcha , Yomif ETH 7:32.93 8
2 Balew , Birhanu BRN 7:34.26 7
3 McSweyn , Stewart AUS 7:34.79 6
4 Chelimo , Paul USA 7:34.83 5
5 Edris , Muktar ETH 7:36.13 4
6 Gebrhiwet , Hagos ETH 7:36.49 3
7 Hill , Ryan USA 7:36.81 2
8 Jenkins , Eric USA 7:38.19 1
9 Bouqantar , Soufiyan MAR 7:39.42
10 Rutto , Cyrus KEN 7:42.53
11 Birgen , Bethwell KEN 7:42.72
12 Hadis , Abadi ETH 7:42.83
13 Akankam , Hicham MAR 7:51.09
14 Outalha , Mouhcine MAR 7:51.55
15 Kissa , Stephen UGA 7:54.32
16 Abid , Mohammed MAR 8:07.67
Gómez , Jesús ESP DNF
Iguider , Abdelaati MAR DNF
Letting , Vincent KEN DNF
Doukkana , Rabii MAR DNS
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Quick Take: As good at Kejelcha looked, let’s hold on just a little bit before anointing Kejelcha the next Mo Farah
Kejelcha looked fantastic today. And we’ve always said if you give a top African talent the resources and tactics of the Nike Oregon Project, then watch out. Would Kejelcha have bounced back as quickly as he did this year coming off his injury after indoors without the NOP’s resources? Who knows. But it’s clear, his tactics as a member of the NOP are to go out slow at the start and grab the lead before the bell.
But before we declare him to be unbeatable, however, we need to remember that this was a 3000, not a 5000. Kejelcha, the 2014 and 2016 world indoor champ at 3k, has always thrived at 3k.
Quick Take: Top non-African-born honors and breakthrough performance of the race goes to Australia’s Stewart McSweyn.
Let there be no doubt, the fact that McSweyn got third in this field was a big surprise. Also, let there be no doubt, the 23-year-old, who ran the 5,000 and 10,000 at CWGs (5th in 5k, 11th in 10,000), is a big talent. This year he’s PR’d at 1500 (from 3:41.31 to 3:34.82), 3000 (from 7:47.65 to 7:34.79), 5000 (from 13:19.98 to 13:19.96) and 10k (from 28:29.65 to 28:05.37)
Men’s 3000 steeple: Benjamin Kigen pulls off the upset yet again
Pass in steeple was on backstretch
The men’s steeplechase was the last event of the night as undoubtedly the meet organizers were hoping for a second straight victory by Moroccan Soufiane El Bakkali. El Bakkali, the 2017 world championship silver medallist, took the lead just before the bell but victory was not to be as on the backstretch Ethiopia’s Chala Beyo and Kenya’s Benjamin Kigen both went by him and never looked back. Kigen, the Prefontaine winner and Rome runner-up this year, went on to grab the victory in a pb and world-leading 8:06.19 (previous pb of 8:09.07 at Pre) as Beyo ended up second, also in a pb of 8:07.27 (previous pb of 8:11.22) with El Bakkali third in a seasonal best 8:09.58 (previous sb of 8:20.97). American Hillary Bor stayed with the leaders until just before the bell and ended up fourth in a near pb of 8:12.20 (pb of 8:11.82). Canada’s Matt Hughes was fifth in 8:13.13 – not too far off his 8:11.64 Canadian record.
The race
The race was billed as a sub-8 attempt and the first km was very fast (2:38.63) but the second kilometer was a lot slower (2:47.43). As a result at 2k (5:26.06), eight men were in the lead pack but surprisingly, Conseslus Kipruto, the 2016 Olympic, 2017 World and 2018 Commonwealth champ, wasn’t one of them as he had a horrible night and ended up 12th in 8:27.36.
The lead pack was down to the final 4 half a lap later and then it became a 3-way battle over the final lap and a 2-way battle over the final half-lap.
After the race, El Bakkali admitted he isn’t in the same form as last year, as he said, “First of all I would like to say sorry for the fans for not winning. The race was extremely difficult, however I feel satisfied for finishing 3rd especially that it reflects my preparations.”
3000 Metres Steeplechase - Men - Diamond Discipline
Pts
1 Kigen , Benjamin KEN 8:06.19 8
2 Beyo , Chala ETH 8:07.27 7
3 Elbakkali , Soufiane MAR 8:09.58 6
4 Bor , Hillary USA 8:12.20 5
5 Hughes , Matthew CAN 8:13.13 4
6 Kibiwott , Abraham KEN 8:14.35 3
7 Ezzaydouny , Ibrahim MAR 8:14.62 2
8 Bett , Nicholas Kiptonui KEN 8:17.83 1
9 Carro , Fernando ESP 8:19.30
10 Kirui , Amos KEN 8:20.00
11 Tindouft , Mohamed MAR 8:21.13
12 Kipruto , Conseslus KEN 8:27.36
13 Meyan , Cleophas Kandie KEN 8:27.57
14 Ben Zahra , Abdelkarim MAR 8:30.48
15 Bayer , Andrew USA 8:35.69
16 Haileselassie , Yemane ERI 8:40.10
Kipsang , Lawrence Kemboi KEN DNF
Sassioui , Mounaime MAR DNF
Sigueni , Hicham MAR DNF
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Quick Take: It looks like the world record attempt by Kipruto won’t be happening in Monaco next week
All year, Kipruto has been saying he’d go for the world record in Monaco. It will be interesting to see what he says after this one – was he sick or did he perhaps overtrain trying to get in world record shape? – as it was shocking to see him lose contact so early.
Women’s 1000: Caster Semenya PBs but Misses WR, Americans Ce’Aira Brown and Kaela Edwards 2-3
Caster Semenya is unbeatable at 800m right now, so the only question for her on the track this year, really, is if she can break the world record. She took a crack at the 1,000m world record here, but the record never really was in jeopardy as Semenya got a PB and win in 2:31.01.
200m into this one the rabbit Chrishuna Williams and Semenya were clear of the field (59.55 at 400 for Williams). Semenya was then racing the clock and when she hit 2:01.84 at 800, Svetlana Masterkova‘s 2:28.98 world record was safe.
Americans Ce’Aira Brown and Kaela Edwards, third and fourth at the US champs, were second (2:35.85) and third (2:36.13) in this one respectively.
1000 Metres - Women - Promotional Event
1 Semenya , Caster RSA 2:31.01
2 Brown , Ce'aira USA 2:35.85
3 Edwards , Kaela USA 2:36.13
4 Nanyondo , Winnie UGA 2:36.13
5 Jepkosgei , Nelly KEN 2:37.41
6 Verstegen-Wolters , Sanne NED 2:37.49
7 Chebet , Winny KEN 2:37.82
8 Guerrero Puigdevall , Esther ESP 2:37.85
9 Hilali , Siham MAR 2:41.17
10 Nalyanya , Eglay Nafuna KEN 2:41.19
11 Benkassem , Khadija MAR 2:46.39
Williams , Chrishuna USA DNF
QT: If Semenya wants a record she’s going to have to get out faster
60 seconds for the first 400 was too slow today and Semenya knew it saying, “It was a very good race, but unfortunately it was not as fast as I expected.”
Women’s 800: Francine Niyonsaba wins again
Close with 100 to go
With no Caster Semenya, no Ajee Wilson, and no Habitam Alemu in the field, Burundi’s World Indoor champion Francine Niyonsaba was the heavy favorite to collect her second straight DL win in Rabat. She did just that, clocking 1:57.90 to hold off Jamaica’s Natoya Goule for the victory.
Niyonsaba was the only woman to go with the rabbit (and she’s probably the only woman who should have, considering how fast they were running). Rabbit Bianka Keri hit halfway in 56.88, with Niyonsaba just behind in 57.5, 10 meters ahead of the rest of the field. But Goule, the Commonwealth Games bronze medalist who ran a PR of 1:57 in Paris two weeks ago, wasn’t licked yet and worked hard to close the gap; by 200 to go, she was on Niyonsaba’s shoulder in position to strike.
But just as in Lausanne, where she held off Wilson in the home straight, Niyonsaba was too strong over the final 100 and she powered to the win as Goule continued her stellar season with a runner-up finish in 1:58.33.
800 Metres - Women - Diamond Discipline
Pts
1 Niyonsaba , Francine BDI 1:57.90 8
2 Goule , Natoya JAM 1:58.33 7
3 Arafi , Rababe MAR 1:58.84 6
4 Wambui , Margaret Nyairera KEN 1:59.09 5
5 Tuei , Emily Cherotich KEN 1:59.19 4
6 Akkaoui , Malika MAR 1:59.27 3
7 Sharp , Lynsey GBR 1:59.86 2
8 Roesler , Laura USA 2:00.56 1
9 Sum , Eunice Jepkoech KEN 2:03.51
Kéri , Bianka HUN DNF
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Quick Take: Niyonsaba has now won 13 straight when Semenya isn’t in the field
Niyonsaba has raced Semenya a lot in recent years, so she doesn’t always get a chance to win races as Semenya has been invincible. But when Semenya isn’t in the field, Niyonsaba is the one who is invincible — you’d have to go back almost three years, to July 18, 2015, to find the last time Niyonsaba lost a race that didn’t contain Semenya.
Niyonsaba showed again why she is so tough to beat — even after going out hard, she still had the strength to hold off Goule’s challenge in the final straight.
Quick Take: What a year for Natoya Goule
The dominance of Semenya and Niyonsaba can sometimes overshadow the rest of the women’s 800 runners, but Goule has had a fantastic season for herself. The 27-year-old Clemson grad, a three-time NCAA champion, entered 2018 with a 1:59.38 pb, but she almost beat that indoors (1:59.86 in January) and smashed it at her first outdoor meet, running 1:58.82 to take Commonwealth bronze in April. Now she’s down to 1:57.69, and today’s race was her fourth sub-1:59 of the year.
Sprints
Men’s 100: Christian Coleman returns with a win
(Editor’s note: We gave this race it’s own article but decided to paste it below for your convenience)
Christian Coleman is back — both literally and figuratively.
Coleman, who indoors set a world record at 60m and won the world indoor title, returned with a vengeance after a six-week hiatus due to a hamstring injury as he won the men’s 100 in 9.98.
The race featuring America’s four best men lived up to the hype as it was extremely tight as the top 3 were separated by just .01 and top 4 by just .03. Finishing second, also in 9.98, was the 2018 US-runner-up and co-world leader Ronnie Baker as 2018 US champ Noah Lyles, who got off to a horrific start, was third in 9.99 with Mike Rodgers 4th in 10.01.
100 Metres - Men - Diamond Discipline Wind: -0.4 m/s
Pts
1 Coleman , Christian USA 9.98 8
2 Baker , Ronnie USA 9.98 7
3 Lyles , Noah USA 9.99 6
4 Rodgers , Michael USA 10.01 5
5 Prescod , Reece GBR 10.09 4
6 Ujah , Chijindu GBR 10.19 3
7 Kiryu , Yoshihide JPN 10.20 2
8 Cissé , Arthur CIV 10.22 1
9 Mohammed , Abdullah Abkar KSA 10.30
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Quick Take: It’s great to see Coleman return with a win
Injuries can permanently derail a sprinter’s career. Just ask Yohan Blake and Andre De Grasse. We’re glad that Coleman’s injuries scare from earlier in the year seems to be a thing of the past. After the race, Coleman said it was a “sigh of relief” that he got the win and he viewed today’s race a second season opener of sorts. He said it was the first time all year he felt full confident in the health of his leg. That being said, he wasn’t surprised he won.
“It was a perfect night for me – good race and good time. I could not be happier. I am not so surprised to win for my first race, even with such a great field because I was very fast in practice these last days,” said Coleman. “When I was injured, I managed to maintain a good condition. Now I am gonna run in London then Birmingham.”
Quick Take #2: If this race hadn’t been called back for a false start, Noah Lyles likely would have been your winner.
The fastest runner today was Lyles. His reaction time of 0.198 was not good at all. Coleman’s reaction time was .160. However, the race was run after a false start. Britain’s Reece Prescod reacted in under the allowable .10 (.079) the first time they tried to start (but wasn’t DQ’d). Lyles’ reaction time then was .142 – nearly identical to Coleman’s .144.
It’s worth noting that when the race was actually run, every single runner in the field had a slower reaction time than the first time the gun was fired.
Men’s 400: Akeem Bloomfield wins his DL debut
In his first Diamond League meeting and his first meet in Puma gear, Akeem Bloomfield, the 2018 NCAA runner-up indoors and out for Auburn, got a convincing win in a meet record of 44.33 as Qatar’s Abdalleleh Haroun was second in 44.69. The second and third placers at USAs, Paul Dedewo and Michael Cherry, finished next to last and last.
400 Metres - Men - Diamond Discipline
Pts
1 Bloomfield , Akeem JAM 44.33 8
2 Haroun , Abdalleleh QAT 44.69 7
3 Hudson-Smith , Matthew GBR 44.79 6
4 Santos , Luguelín DOM 44.80 5
5 Dedewo , Paul USA 44.82 4
6 Cherry , Michael USA 45.40 3
Women’s 200: Shaunae Miller-Uibo makes up a big deficit to remain undefeated in 2018
Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith has been in fine form in 2018, and she flew out of the blocks in this one and held the lead off the turn. At that point, U.S. champ Jenna Prandini was second with Commonwealth champ Shaunae Miller-Uibo in third, three meters behind Asher-Smith.
But Miller-Uibo’s 400 strength showed over the final 100 as she ran Asher-Smith down to win in 22.29, her eighth win in eight finals this year. Miller-Uibo’s perfect record will get its biggest test next week in Monaco as she will face Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser — also undefeated in 2018 — over 400 meters.
200 Metres - Women - Diamond Discipline Wind: -0.5 m/s
Pts
1 Miller-Uibo , Shaunae BAH 22.29 8
2 Asher-Smith , Dina GBR 22.40 7
3 Prandini , Jenna USA 22.60 6
4 Thomas , Gabrielle USA 22.70 5
5 Ahouré , Murielle CIV 22.70 4
6 Williams , Jodie GBR 23.26 3
7 Okagbare-Ighoteguonor , Blessing NGR 23.42 2
8 Forbes , Shashalee JAM 23.51 1
Women’s 100 Hurdles: Brianna McNeal Keeps Winning
With the exception of Doha, Brianna McNeal has been unbeatable this year if she makes it through the race cleanly, and that streak continued tonight, as she got her 3rd DL win of the year (she also won in Shanghai and Stockholm and was 2nd in Doha. In her other losses this year she’s been 9th and 8th).
100 Metres Hurdles - Women - Diamond Discipline Wind: +0.1 m/s
Pts
1 McNeal , Brianna USA 12.51 8
2 Nelvis , Sharika USA 12.58 7
3 Manning , Christina USA 12.72 6
4 Harper-Nelson , Dawn USA 12.86 5
5 Amusan , Tobi NGR 12.87 4
6 Roleder , Cindy GER 12.87 3
7 Dutkiewicz , Pamela GER 12.89 2
8 Thompson , Yanique JAM 12.93 1
9 Boons , Eefje NED 13.32
Field Events
Women’s high jump: Maria Lasitskene’s win streak ends
The story of the high jump was that Russia’s Maria Lasitskene lost for the first time after 45 straight wins. Lasitskene cleared 1.85m and 1.90m with no misses but then missed three times at 1.94 and was just third as Bulgaria’s Mirela Demireva, the 2016 Olympic silver medallist, won with a first-attempt clearance at 1.94m.
Lasitskene made no excuses after the loss saying, “I am disappointed of course but these things happen. I lost myself. I had no problem, no injuries, it was just a bad day. Now I need to go back to training and work hard.”
It indeed was a bad day for her as in her 18 wins this year, all but one of them had featured a clearance of at least 1.94 (she won the Russian champs indoors at 1.88m).
High Jump - Women - Diamond Discipline
Pts
1 Demireva , Mirela BUL 1.94 8
2 Levchenko , Yuliya UKR 1.94 7
3 Lasitskene , Mariya ANA 1.90 6
3 Tabashnyk , Kateryna UKR 1.90 6
5 Lake , Morgan GBR 1.90 4
6 Skoog , Sofie SWE 1.90 3
7 Jungfleisch , Marie-Laurence GER 1.90 2
7 Okuneva , Oksana UKR 1.90 2
9 Spencer , Levern LCA 1.90
Quick Take: In case you are wondering, Lasitskene’s win streak was not close to the longest in women’s high jump history.
Lasitskene’s 45 wins in a row, which dated to the 2016 Russian nationals, was the second longest in the event’s history as Romania’s Iolanda Balas, the two-time Olympic champ, won 154 in a row back in the 1960s.
Quick Take: Superstitious? Blame the IAAF for Lasitskene’s loss
Earlier today, the IAAF published a video entitled, “Mariya Lasitskene – Unstoppable.” She lost less than 10 hours later.
Women’s shot put: Christina Schwanitz wins, Valerie Adams improves
There haven’t been a lot of opportunities for women’s shot putters in 2018 as this was only the second DL meet of the year. Germany’s Christina Schwanitz got the win with the second-farthest throw of the year as Valerie Adams in her comeback from childbirth last year got a season’s best of 18.93 in 3rd (18.70 previous best).
Shot Put - Women - Diamond Discipline
Pts
1 Schwanitz , Christina GER 19.40 8
2 Dubitskaya , Aliona BLR 19.21 7
3 Adams , Valerie NZL 18.93 6
4 Saunders , Raven USA 18.51 5
5 Crew , Brittany CAN 18.25 4
6 Ramsey , Jessica USA 18.17 3
7 Roos , Fanny SWE 18.06 2
8 Thomas-Dodd , Danniel JAM 18.04 1
Women’s Triple: Caterine Ibargüen remains undefeated in TJ
Ibargüen got the win and world leader to stay unbeaten in 2018 in the triple jump. She nearly got to at 15 meters, a marks she hasn’t hit since winning Olympic godl in Rio with a 15.17 jump.
Triple Jump - Women - Diamond Discipline
Pts Wind
1 Ibarguen , Caterine COL 14.96 8 +0.1
2 Williams , Kimberly JAM 14.47 7 +0.4
3 Franklin , Tori USA 14.42 6 +0.4
4 Petrova , Gabriela BUL 14.40 5 -0.5
5 Soares , Nubia BRA 14.30 4 0.0
6 Peleteiro , Ana ESP 14.29 3 -0.7
7 Panturoiu , Andreea ROU 14.15 2 -0.9
8 Rypakova , Olga KAZ 13.83 1 -0.5
9 Diallo , Rouguy FRA 13.66 0.0
Men’s pole vault: Sam Kendricks wins with meet-record 5.86 clearance
U.S. and world champ Sam Kendricks has a busy weekend on tap as he was competing in tonight’s DL meet in Rabat and will compete again in London at the Athletics World Cup on Sunday. Kendricks completed the first part of his double successfully as he was the only man over 5.86 meters, one centimeter higher than Pawel Wojciechowski’s meet record from last year.
Pole Vault - Men - Diamond Discipline
Pts
1 Kendricks , Sam USA 5.86 8
2 Wojciechowski , Pawel POL 5.80 7
3 Morgunov , Timur ANA 5.80 6
4 Barber , Shawnacy CAN 5.60 5
5 Braz , Thiago BRA 5.60 4
6 Filippídis , Konstadínos GRE 5.60 3
6 Huang , Bokai CHN 5.60 3
8 Houston , Scott USA 5.45 1
8 Lavillenie , Renaud FRA 5.45 1
8 Marschall , Kurtis AUS 5.45 1
Quick Take: Thiago Braz’s struggles continue
The more time passes, the more amazing it becomes that Brazil’s Thiago Braz won the 2016 Olympic pole vault. Since that win in Rio, where Braz cleared 6.03 meters (his only career six-meter clearance), here are Braz’s Diamond League results: 3rd, 4th, NH, NH, 9th, NH, NH, 11th, 5th.
Though Braz did clear 5.90 indoors in February, he has cleared a grand total of two bars in Diamond League events in 2018. He cleared 5.45 meters on his third attempt in Paris and 5.60 meters tonight. That’s it. For comparison, Kendricks cleared five bars tonight alone.
Men’s javelin: Magnus Kirt wins with national record in sixth round
Estonia’s Magnus Kirt came up big in the sixth round as he threw 89.75m to get the win in a new national and meet record (previous pb of 88.73). It was the third time this year that the 28-year-old Kirt has set a national record as he came into the year with a 86.65 pb. Kirt’s best throw before round six was just 84.80, which would have placed him 4th.
“I feel really happy about my performance. I was struggling in the first rounds, but in the end I did much better. It is always an honour to have a MR,” said Kirt.
Javelin Throw - Men - Diamond Discipline
Pts
1 Kirt , Magnus EST 89.75 8
2 Hofmann , Andreas GER 88.58 7
3 Vadlejch , Jakub CZE 85.31 6
4 Röhler , Thomas GER 85.19 5
5 Chopra , Neeraj IND 83.32 4
6 Magour , Ahmed Bader QAT 83.30 3
7 Walcott , Keshorn TTO 83.26 2
8 Mardare , Andrian MDA 81.28 1
9 Štrobinders , Rolands LAT 78.96
Men’s long jump: Jamaica’s Tajay Gayle wins it
This was a non-DL points event, so world leader Juan Miguel Echevarria of Cuba was absent, as was world champ Luvo Manyonga of South Africa. In their absence, Jamaica’s Tajay Gayle picked up the win thanks to his 8.09-meter final-round jump, beating out Americans Marquis Dendy and Jarrion Lawson.
Long Jump - Men - Promotional Event
Wind
1 Gayle , Tajay JAM 8.09 +0.1
2 Dendy , Marquis USA 8.05 -0.3
3 Lawson , Jarrion USA 8.03 -0.7
4 Nilsson Montler , Thobias SWE 7.85 -0.8
5 Gaisah , Ignisious NED 7.81 +0.5
6 Visser , Zarck RSA 7.79 -0.1
7 Berrabah , Yahya MAR 7.78 -0.3
8 Khoua , Mouhcine MAR 7.62 +0.6
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