Yavi threatens world steeplechase record in Rome as Tebogo startles over 100m

World and Olympic champion Winfred Yavi came within 0.07 of the world record to win the 3000m steeplechase at the Golden Gala in 9:44.39 on Friday (30).

Botswana’s Olympic 200m champion Letsile Tebogo brought the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Rome to a startling conclusion as he overhauled world indoor champion Christian Coleman and Olympic bronze medallist Fred Kerley to win the men’s 100m in 9.87.

Tebogo may deny he is the new face of sprinting but his actions speak differently. The 21-year-old, who finished sixth in the Olympic 100m final in a national record of 9.86, overhauled Coleman, the fast-starting 60m world record holder, and Kerley over the final 30 metres, turning to face them before crossing the line with a broad smile.

Coleman, who failed to qualify for this year’s Olympics, was second in 9.92, with Kerley third in 9.95. Jamaica’s Olympic silver medallist Kishane Thompson was a late withdrawal.

Yavi clocked a world-leading 8:44.39 – the second-fastest time in history – to set an Asian record in a race which proceeded at world record place over the first 2000m before slowing significantly on the penultimate lap.

But the Bahraini athlete re-awoke to the late possibility of challenging the 2018 world record mark of 8:44.32 set by Kenya’s Beatrice Chepkoech and had she not stuttered over the final hurdle she might have surpassed it.

Uganda’s 2021 Olympic champion Peruth Chemutai, who took silver behind Yavi in Paris, was second again in a national record of 8:48.03, moving from fifth to third on the world all-time list.

“I looked at the time after the race and I went ‘oh, no!´,” Yavi said. “Í was really expecting that record and I was going for it. I definitely feel I should break it and I believe it will happen.

“I need to work even harder. And I am planning to have another go at it before the end of the season. My biggest goal for next year is to become a double world champion.”

Erratic pacing in the opening three laps of the women’s 1500m was unhelpful to Faith Kipyegon’s attempt at bettering her own world record of 3:49.04, set earlier this year in Paris.

At the meeting where she set her first world 1500m record – although this year’s edition of the Golden Gala had returned from Florence to its traditional home in Rome – Kipyegon won in 3:52.89, followed home by Ethiopians Freweyni Hailu and Birke Haylom in 3:54.16 and 3:54.79 respectively.

“I am satisfied with the pace and with how the race went,” Kipyegon said. “It was all about qualifying for the Diamond League final, about getting the points. I enjoyed the race, but I did not see the time.”

Ackera Nugent, who crashed out of the Olympic 100m hurdles final, is finishing her season strong.

Having won at last Sunday’s Diamond League meeting in Silesia in a meeting record of 12.29, the Jamaican inflicted a second successive defeat on USA’s Olympic champion Masai Russell as she set a Jamaican record of 12.24 that was also a meeting record and an equal world lead. Russell was second in 12.31.

“This victory is not like a revenge for the Olympics for me,” said Nugent, who now moves to equal fourth on the world all-time list. “I am just in a really good shape. I was injured before and this is a new experience for me.”

In the Olympic stadium where he had kick-started an injury-troubled season by retaining his European high jump title, Italy’s world champion Gianmarco Tamberi produced a predictably emotive performance at the end of a month where he had qualified against all odds for the Paris 2024 final despite being hospitalised with kidney stones shortly beforehand.

The 32-year-old had the crowd wild, then silent as he remained combative up to 2.30m – but that proved too much for him. Not so for South Korea’s Woo Sanghyeok and Romaine Beckford of Jamaica, clearing a personal best, who finished respectively first and second.

Tamberi was joint third with Ukraine’s Oleh Doroshchuk.

Elsewhere in the penultimate chance for the world's top athletes to earn points as they bid to qualify for the Wanda Diamond League Final in Brussels on 13-14 September, the 110m hurdles was won in 13.18 by France’s Sasha Zhoya.

Olympic long jump champion Tara Davis-Woodhall of the United States was an exuberant winner with a best of 7.02m, while Olympic pole vault champion Nina Kennedy of Australia won on countback from USA’s Sandi Morris, after both had cleared 4.83m.

Triple Olympic shot put champion Ryan Crouser secured victory with a meeting record of 22.49m from Italy’s European champion Leonardo Fabbri, who threw 21.70m having had a first-round effort that looked better than 22.00m ruled out as it missed the quadrant.

Earlier, the Jamaican whom Crouser coached to a shock discus victory in Paris, Roje Stona – the first athlete in history to make their Diamond League debut after winning Olympic gold – had victory seized from him by a final-round effort of 68.61m from Slovenia’s 2022 world champion Kristjan Ceh.

Stona, 25, who set an Olympic record of 70.00m earlier this month, had looked set for the win with a second-round 67.85m. Lithuania’s world record holder and Olympic silver medallist Mykolas Alekna was third on 67.68m.

The men’s 5000m, which began as a world record attempt and ended as a scintillating race, saw victory go to Hagos Gebrhiwet in 12:51.07 from Ethiopian rivals Yomif Kejelcha, second in 12:51.25, and 2021 Olympic 10,000m champion Selemon Barega, third in 12:51.39.

Zambia’s Olympic bronze medallist Muzala Samukonga held off Grenada’s Kirani James to win the men’s 400m in 43.99, with the 2012 Olympic champion clocking 44.30 in second place.

Anna Cockrell, the Olympic silver medallist from the United States, finished comfortably clear to win the women’s 400m hurdles in 52.59.

Elsewhere, victory in the men’s triple jump went to Italy’s Olympic bronze medallist Andy Diaz with 17.32m, while Brittany Brown of the United States took the women’s 200m in 22.00.

Mike Rowbottom for World Athletics