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≡ XIAMEN DIAMOND LEAGUE ≡
The Diamond League season opened with a bang in Xiamen (CHN), with seven world-leading (outdoor) performances, including a world best for hurdles star Karsten Warholm:
● Men/3,000 m Steeple: 8:05.61, Samuel Firewu (ETH)
● Men/110 m hurdles: 13.06, Cordell Tinch (USA)
● Men/300 m hurdles: 33.05, Karsten Warholm (NOR)
● Men/Vault: 5.92 m (19-5), Mondo Duplantis (SWE)
● Women/1,000 m: 2:29.21, Faith Kipyegon (KEN)
● Women/5,000 m: 14:27.12, Beatrice Chebet (KEN)
● Women/Shot: 20.47 m (67-2), Jessica Schilder (NED)
World Athletics has added – for reasons still unspecified – the 300 m hurdles as an official event and while there is no world record in place, the all-time best was 33.26 by Warholm in 2021 in the Covid year of 2021 in a home race in Oslo.
Fully healthy to start the season, he roared out of his preferred lane seven and led from the start, winning in 33.05, well ahead of Matheus Lima (BRA: 33.98) and Ken Toyoda (JPN: 34.22). American CJ Allen was eighth in 34.96, believed to be the best in U.S. history.
The other world leaders were in more conventional events:
● The men’s Steeple had Olympic champion Soufiane El Bakkali (MAR) towering over the field, and he had the lead at the bell, but Paris sixth-placer Samuel Firewu (ETH) took over with a half-lap left, cleared the final water jump well and flew into the straight, winning in 8:05.61, with El Bakkali suffering a rare defeat in 8:06.66 and Kenyan Simon Koech in third in 8:07.12.
El Bakkali had won 14 straight finals from 2021 to August 2024, but has now lost two straight, having been edged by Amos Serem (KEN) at the Diamond League Final in Brussels last September.
● Olympic 110 m hurdles champ Grant Holloway of the U.S. got his usual rock start and was in front until he clubbed the seventh hurdle, lost his stride and then faded over the last two hurdles, and finished 10th in 13.72. Meanwhile, countryman Cordell Tinch had been second and moved up to win in 13.06 (wind +0.3 m/s), his fourth-fastest time ever and the world leader for 2025. Japan’s Rachid Muratake was second (13.14) with American Olympic stars Freddie Crittenden (13.28) and Daniel Roberts (13.35) in fourth and fifth.
● Swedish superstar Duplantis needed only three vaults – all makes – to win the vault at 5.92 m (19-5), with Olympic bronze winner Emmanouil Karalis (GRE) second at 5.82 m (19-1). Duplantis continued to 6.01 m (19-8 1/2), but missed three times.
● The women’s 1,000 m was a world-record shot by three-time Olympic 1,500 m champ Kipyegon, who took the lead from the pacesetters at the 800 m mark, already way ahead of everyone else. She pushed hard to the finish, running 29.5 for her last 200 m, but had to settle for the no. 3 performance in history at 2:29:21. Only Russian Svetlana Masterkova’s 1996 record of 2:28.98 and Kipyegon’s 2:29.15 from 2020 are faster.
Australia’s Abbey Caldwell was a distant second (2:32.94); American Sage Hurta-Klecker was fourth in 2:33.45, now no. 3 all-time U.S.
● Chebet, the brilliant Olympic 5,000-10,000 m winner, was battling a group of six Ethiopians in the women’s 5,000 m, with Hirut Meshesha leading at the bell. Inevitably, it came down to Chebet and two-time World Champion Gudaf Tsegay, with Chebet finally in front for good with 200 m to go and breaking away in the final straight to win, 14:27.12 to 14:28.18, with Birke Haylom third (14:28.80) and Meshesha fourth (14:29.29).
● In the women’s shot, World Indoor silver winner Schilder got off a national record throw of 20.47 m (67-2) in the first round and no one could catch her. Two-time World Champion Chase Jackson of the U.S. got closest, reaching 20.31 m (66-7 3/4) in round two; Maggie Ewen of the U.S. was sixth (19.04 m/62-5 3/4) and Jaida Ross was 10th (17.65 m/57-11).
The U.S. had two other winners, with Tokyo women’s 200 m Olympian Anavia Battle scoring a 22.41 (+0.4) to 22.79 win over Jamaica’s two-time World Champion Shericka Jackson (22.79), with Jenna Prandini of the U.S. in third (22.97) and TeeTee Terry eighth (23.50).
Olympic discus champ Valarie Allman continued her brilliant throwing with her 19th straight win, reaching 68.95 m (226-2) on her third throw, enough to win over Yaime Perez (CUB: 66.26 m/217-5) and 2023 World Champion Lagi Tausaga-Collins of the U.S. (64.91 m/212-11).
South Africa’s Akani Simbine got to the front of fast-starting 2019 World Champion Christian Coleman of the U.S. by mid-race and won the men’s 100 m in 9.99 (+0.2), with Ferdinand Omanyala (KEN: 10.13) coming up for second and Coleman fourth (10.18).
A terrific men’s 400 m saw Olympic semifinalist Bayapo Ndori (BOT) edge World Indoor champ Chris Bailey of the U.S., 44.25 to 44.27, with Bailey getting a lifetime best! London 2012 Olympic champ Kirani James (GRN: 44.89) was fourth and American Vernon Norwood was sixth (45.03).
China’s Mingkun Chang won the long jump with a lifetime best of 8.18 m (26-10), just ahead of Liam Adcock (AUS: 8.15 m/26-9) and Marquis Dendy of the U.S. (8.10 m/26-7). Fellow American Isaac Grimes was fifth (7.96 m/26-1 1/2).
Jamaica’s Jordan Scott, fourth at the World Indoors, took the men’s triple jump at 17.27 m (56-8), a lifetime best, ahead of Tokyo Olympic silver winner Yaming Zhu (CHN: 17.03 m/.55-10 1/2) and Donald Scott of the U.S. (16.85 m/55-3 1/2). Olympic sixth-placer Salif Mane of the U.S. was seventh (16.44 m/53-11 1/4).
Jamaica scored again with two-time World Champion Danielle Williams in the 100 m hurdles, winning over Olympic fifth-placer Grace Stark of the U.S., 12.53 to 12.58 (-0.2). Americans Tonea Marshall (12.92) and 2019 World Champion Nia Ali (13.23) placed sixth and ninth.
Olympic champ Yaroslava Mahuchikh (UKR) won another showdown with Australian stars Eleanor Patterson and Nicola Olyslagers, clearing 1.97 m (6-5 1/2) to 1.94 m (6-4 1/4) for both. Greece’s Elina Tzenggo, the 2022 European champ, won the women’s javelin at 64.75 m (212-5).
The Diamond League remains in China, with the next meet on 3 May in Shanghai.
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