Busang Collen Kebinatshipi’s stunning 43.40 and a dramatic 1500m victory for Cameron Myers helped Brussels deliver an opening night worthy of the Diamond League Final on Friday.
Six meeting records fell as the first 16 Diamond League champions were crowned at the King Baudouin Stadium. There was disappointment when Mondo Duplantis withdrew, but those who competed gave the crowd plenty to remember.
Kebinatshipi Saves Something Special for the Finish
The final track event brought one of the biggest performances of the evening.
Botswana’s Busang Collen Kebinatshipi won the men’s 400m in 43.40, setting Diamond League, meeting and national records to complete a season of six victories from six appearances on the circuit.
Behind him, Jereem Richards ran a Trinidad and Tobago record of 43.68, with Americans Jacory Patterson and Chris Bailey recording personal bests of 43.78 and 43.97.
Four men had broken 44 seconds. Even by the standards of an increasingly quick event, this was a remarkable race.
Myers Finds a Way Through
The men’s 1500m delivered the tight finish that the 400m’s winning margin did not.
Cameron Myers stayed patient in a crowded home straight before finding room on the inside and beating Kenya’s Phanuel Kipkosgei Koech by just four hundredths of a second.
The 20 year old Australian crossed in 3:30.14, with Koech recording 3:30.18.
Ethan Strand took third in 3:30.50, narrowly ahead of Jakob Ingebrigtsen’s 3:30.52. Olympic champion Cole Hocker finished seventh in 3:30.80.
Just 0.66 seconds separated the winner from seventh. Myers had judged the moment better than anyone.
Wanyonyi Runs Away With 800m Title
There was rather less doubt about the men’s 800m winner.
Emmanuel Wanyonyi powered to a fourth consecutive Diamond League title in 1:41.80, leaving Djamel Sedjati and Yanis Meziane to complete the podium.
The Kenyan’s performance was another reminder of how difficult he remains to beat when the biggest prizes are on offer.
His time removed Wilson Kipketer’s 1:42.20 meeting record, which had stood since 1997, and was only four hundredths slower than his winning run in Zurich eight days earlier.
Karalis Takes His Chance as Duplantis Withdraws
The anticipated pole vault contest between Mondo Duplantis and Emmanouil Karalis never materialised.
Duplantis withdrew after feeling irritation in his leg during the warm up. Afterwards, the Swede said the problem had returned in Zurich and left his participation in Budapest next week uncertain.
Karalis made the most of the opportunity, winning his first Diamond League Final with 6.12m, one centimetre above Duplantis’s meeting record.
The Greek athlete had wanted the contest as much as the spectators, but there was no reason to apologise for the trophy. He had still cleared a height that nobody had previously managed at this meeting.
Jackson Goes Beyond 21 Metres
Chase Jackson supplied another outstanding field performance in the women’s shot put.
The American threw 21.14m in the third round, setting a world lead and improving her national record.
Sarah Mitton finished second with 20.64m, ahead of Jessica Schilder’s 20.57m. It took a throw well beyond 20 metres simply to get onto the podium.
Alfred and Seville Take Sprint Honours
Julien Alfred won the women’s 200m in 21.79, finishing comfortably ahead of Kayla White’s 22.00.
Britain’s Amy Hunt completed the podium with a season’s best of 22.16.
The men’s 100m was closer. Jamaica’s Oblique Seville won in 9.90, with Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme second in 9.93 and Nigeria’s Kayinsola Ajayi third in 9.97. Lachlan Kennedy also broke ten seconds, finishing fourth in 9.99.
Cherotich Leads Another Fast Steeplechase
Faith Cherotich won the women’s 3000m steeplechase in a meeting record of 8:51.61.
Fellow Kenyan Doris Lemngole followed in a personal best of 8:52.86, with Olympic champion Winfred Yavi third in 8:53.54. Five women finished inside nine minutes.
Ethiopia occupied all three podium positions in the women’s 5000m, where Freweyni Hailu won in 14:35.20 ahead of Likina Amebaw and Senayet Getachew.
Cockrell Wins as Couckuyt Gives Home Crowd a Record
Anna Cockrell had to work for victory in the women’s 400m hurdles.
The American crossed in 53.01, just ahead of Slovakia’s Emma Zapletalová in 53.10.
Belgium’s Paulien Couckuyt finished third in 53.20, improving her own national record by eight hundredths and giving the home crowd a performance to celebrate.
Having finished fourth at the European Championships, Couckuyt now had a podium finish in the Diamond League Final and a lap of honour in front of her own supporters.
Brussels did not need another pair of world records to provide a compelling evening. A crowded finish, a dominant champion and four men under 44 seconds offered plenty of their own.
And there was still another night to come.
