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With about 90 seconds to go in the women&rsquo;s 3000m at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Doha on Friday (25), it looked as though Hellen Obiri would register a rare defeat in the Qatari capital.
Little more than 24 hours earlier, the world cross-country champion from Kenya had explained how Doha was one of her favourite cities to race in, having set her 3000m PB here in 2014 and retained her world 5000m title last year in the Khalifa Stadium.
But when world steeplechase champion Beatrice Chepkoech breezed into the lead with about 550 metres left in tonight&rsquo;s 3000m race, Obiri kept her cool for another 200 metres before she unleashed her trademark kick for home, eventually winning in a world-leading 8:22.54.
The field of 15 women, loaded with world and Olympic medallists, was paced through the first kilometre in 2:48.46. Obiri and Chepkoech were tucked behind the pacemaker with world 10,000m bronze medallist Agnes Tirop and world 5000m silver medallist Margaret Chelimo Kipkemboi also near the front of the tightly-bunched pack.
After the pacemaker dropped out at the 1600m point, Obiri led the pack and reached 2000m in 5:39.70, the pace having slowed slightly. Eight women were still in contention with two laps to go with Obiri, Chepkoech, Tirop and Kipkemboi still occupying the first four places.
Chepkoech made her move as she entered the home straight for the penultimate time, but Obiri responded with about 350 metres remaining, her head rocking and arms fighting, as is often her style at the end of races.
Tirop and Chepkoech made up some ground in the final stages, but Obiri held on to win in 8:22.54, the second-fastest time of her career behind the 8:20.68 African outdoor record she set on this track six years ago.
The next five women to cross the line were all rewarded with PBs. Tirop and Chepkoech finished second and third respectively, both timed at 8:22.92, while Kipkemboi (8:24.76) and 2015 world steeplechase champion Hyvin Kiyeng (8:25.13) were fourth and fifth. For the first time in history, seven women finished inside 8:27.
&ldquo;Doha has become like a second home to me as I've won so many races here, including the World Championships last year,&rdquo; said Obiri. "The season has not been the best for everyone but I am happy it is coming to an end."
<h3>Lifetime bests for McSweyn and Kipyegon</h3>
Stewart McSweyn has been one of the most prolific performers on the international circuit this year, racking up seven races within six weeks. Having finished sixth over 5000m in Monaco, third over 1500m in Stockholm and third over 3000m in Rome, the Australian capped his 2020 Diamond League campaign with a victory.
But on this occasion, winning was McSweyn&rsquo;s secondary goal. His main target was to break the Australian 1500m record of 3:31.06 that had stood to Ryan Gregson for 10 years. He had come close to that mark in Stockholm last month with 3:31.48, and backed it up with a 3:32.17 win in Zagreb 10 days ago.
Buoyed by the confidence of his Oceanian 3000m record of 7:28.02 in Rome last week, McSweyn was the only athlete to stick to the pacemaker, passing through 400m in a swift 54 seconds and going through 800m in 1:51.60. 
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Stewart McSweyn on his way to winning the 1500m at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Doha</div>
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Some way behind, Kenya&rsquo;s Bethwell Birgen led the chase pack for the first couple of laps before world steeplechase bronze medallist Soufiane El Bakkali moved to the front of the group. But out in front, McSweyn was away and clear, with his 1200m split of 2:49.14 suggesting that he was still on pace to break the national record.
McSweyn, showing some signs of fatigue but still comfortably ahead of the chasers, strode clear and crossed the line in 3:30.51, punching the air with delight as soon as he realised he&rsquo;d taken half a second off Gregson&rsquo;s record.
With a strong final kick, world 5000m silver medallist Selemon Barega came through to take second place in 3:32.97, followed by El Bakkali (3:33.45), world steeplechase silver medallist Lamecha Girma (3:33.77) and Britain&rsquo;s James West (3:34.07), all five men setting PBs.
"Obviously I'm very happy," said the Tasmanian.&nbsp;"I came here knowing I was in good shape.&nbsp;I've had a good European season so I just wanted to be competitive, I wanted to give it everything.
"That's why I got right on the pace because I like running and finding out how good I am and not worrying too much about other people.&nbsp;Any race you lead in such a high-quality field you know you're going to have guys hunting you.&nbsp;I just made sure I held it together because I knew if I slipped up just two per cent I was going to get caught by that whole second pack."
For the fourth time in as many races, Olympic 1500m champion Faith Kipyegon produced a dominant run to maintain her unbeaten streak this year.
Contesting the 800m for the first time in five years, the 26-year-old Kenyan was in the middle of the pack for the first lap as the pacemaker led the field through half way in 57.72. Spain&rsquo;s Esther Guerrero then took up the running as Kipyegon navigated her way through the pack, hitting the front with 200 metres to go.
She increased her pace all the way to the finish, charging through the line in a world-leading PB of 1:57.68. In second, Guerrero was rewarded with a PB of 1:59.22, the first sub-two-minute clocking of her career, while Adelle Tracey took third place in 1:59.87.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m so grateful and so happy to win here,&rdquo; said Kipyegon. &ldquo;Yesterday when I saw the pacemaker was aiming for 1:57 pace, I was so nervous. I was really surprised I had that kick.&rdquo; 
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Faith Kipyegon wins the 800m at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Doha</div>
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The men&rsquo;s 800m played out in similar fashion with world bronze medallist Ferguson Cheruiyot Rotich taking command on the back straight before striding ahead to victory. After a 50.83-second opening lap, Britain&rsquo;s Elliot Giles led until about 300 metres to go when Rotich hit the front.
The 30-year-old Kenyan eased away from the rest of the field and crossed the line in a season&rsquo;s best of 1:44.16, recording his fifth consecutive win. Giles was second in a PB of 1:44.56.
<h3>Thompson-Herah dominates, meeting record split three ways in pole vault</h3>
Replicating her performance in Rome last week &ndash; almost to the hundredth &ndash; double Olympic champion Elaine Thompson-Herah was a comfortable winner of the women&rsquo;s 100m.
The Jamaican started strongly and could simply not be caught, powering through the line in 10.87 (0.0m/s). Multiple world medallist Marie-Josee Ta Lou was second in 11.21, just 0.04 ahead of USA&rsquo;s Kayla White.
It ended up being the hardest-fought victory of his incredible 2020 season, but Mondo Duplantis emerged the winner of the pole vault.
A first-time clearance at 5.71m gave him a slight edge over arch-rivals Sam Kendricks and Renaud Lavillenie. The three men skipped 5.77m and went straight to 5.82m, which Duplantis cleared on his first try, while Kendricks and Lavillenie needed three attempts. It meant the trio equalled the meeting record that had been set by Konstantinos Filippidis back in 2013.
They were all unsuccessful at 5.92m; Duplantis saved his final effort for an attempt at 6.00m and brought the bar down again. But the 20-year-old Swede was certainly not down-hearted to come up short of another six-metre vault.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s been a fantastic season and I enjoyed sharing the moment tonight with the guys,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve not been able to see each other this season as we often do due to obvious reasons. Tonight's win is for my sister who is celebrating her 18th birthday.&rdquo;
The expected three-way clash in the men&rsquo;s 110m hurdles didn&rsquo;t quite materialise after USA&rsquo;s Freddie Crittenden was a non-starter and France&rsquo;s Wilhem Belocian was disqualified for a false start. But US indoor champion Aaron Mallet didn&rsquo;t appear to be hampered by the absence of his leading opponents and he put together the race of his life to win in a PB of 13.15 (0.3m/s). Swiss record-holder Jason Joseph was second in 13.40. 
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Aaron Mallet wins the 110m hurdles at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Doha</div>
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World silver medallist Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk saved her best for last in the long jump &ndash; which proved doubly beneficial as the event adopted the &lsquo;last round counts&rsquo; format. The Ukrainian leapt 6.91m (0.6m/s) to beat world bronze medallist Ese Brume and Khaddi Sagnia. Brume&rsquo;s superior final-round effort (6.68m) meant she finished ahead of Sagnia, even though the Swede had jumped farther (6.85m) earlier in the competition.
Ten days after winning at the Continental Tour Gold meeting in Zagreb, USA&rsquo;s Payton Chadwick notched up another victory in the women&rsquo;s 100m hurdles. Cindy Ofili started well but faded over the final few barriers, while Taliyah Brooks finished strongly, but Chadwick held on to win in 12.78. Brooks was second in a PB of 12.86.
Earlier in the evening, Arthur Cisse took almost half a second off his PB to win the 200m in an Ivorian record of 20.23 in his first race over the distance since May 2018. Since the start of 2019, Cisse has broken national records for 60m, 100m and 200m &ndash; all of which had previously been held by Ben Youssef Meite, the only other Ivorian man to win at a Diamond League meeting.
USA&rsquo;s Kahmari Montgomery finished strongly in the 400m, overtaking Asian champion Yousef Karam on the final bend before going on to win in 45.55. Karam was second in 45.72.
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

With about 90 seconds to go in the women’s 3000m at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Doha on Friday (25), it looked as though Hellen Obiri would register a rare defeat in the Qatari capital.

Obiri and McSweyn victorious in Doha as Wanda Diamond League draws to a close

In the country where &lsquo;Mondo&rsquo; means &lsquo;world&rsquo;, Swedish wunderkind Armand &lsquo;Mondo&rsquo; Duplantis confirmed his status as the world&rsquo;s greatest pole vaulter, jumping higher than anyone ever has in an outdoor stadium, 6.15m, at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Rome on Thursday (17).
In February this year, Duplantis set world records of 6.17m and 6.18m on the World Indoor Tour. The latter remains the official world record* across both indoor and outdoor venues.
But no one had ever jumped higher than 6.14m in an outdoor stadium. Sergey Bubka&rsquo;s 6.14m monument from 1994 had stood inviolate for 26 years, but it has been under siege from Duplantis this season.
Such has been his form this year that he has made vaulting over six metres look like rolling out of bed. And he&rsquo;s only 20.
Before last night, he had taken 13 attempts at 6.15m after cutting a swathe through the world&rsquo;s best pole vaulters in this short, sharp competition season.
As has become his habit, he despatched the competition early, confirming victory with a second-attempt clearance of 5.85m.
He glided over 6.00m, then raised the bar to the ultimate target of 6.15m.
He appeared to have mastered the historic height at the first try, but just grazed the bar with his chest on the way down.
However, he adjusted his technique fractionally on his next attempt and the 15th was the charm. He sailed over the bar, celebrating already as he fell back to earth. It was enough to make you believe that a man can fly. 
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 &ldquo;I hit the mat but I haven&rsquo;t really fallen back to earth,&rdquo; a delighted Duplantis said later.
&ldquo;I think I&rsquo;m still up in the clouds right now. It&rsquo;s just one of those feelings where you are kind of dreaming a little bit&hellip; It&rsquo;s surreal, it&rsquo;s surreal, it&rsquo;s a super-crazy feeling when everything lines up like that and you do a really good performance.&rdquo;
Duplantis said he wanted to prove that he was the best vaulter in history both indoors and out.
&ldquo;I just wanted to be on top of the leaderboard,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;The 6.15m was really important to me, so I&rsquo;m happy to get over that.&rdquo;
&ldquo;There was kind of this confusion between the indoor and outdoor record &ndash; it&rsquo;s kind of merged. I already had the world record but I wanted to clear everything up and be the best outdoor.&rdquo;
He revealed that he took advice from former world record-holder Renaud Lavillenie on the history-making jump.
&ldquo;I asked Renaud if I should move in a little bit because I hit it on the way down (on the first attempt) so the typical thing to do would be to move in a little bit, but he thought I just didn&rsquo;t take off as well as I could so he said just to hit it with a little more force at the start of the jump.
&ldquo;Renaud was kind of the replacement coach today and it worked out. After that first attempt I knew what I had to do to do it, I just had to go out there and get it done.&rdquo;
Lavillenie was eliminated earlier after failing at 5.80m, leaving three men to fight out the podium places. Belgium&rsquo;s Ben Broeders posted a national record of 5.80m to take second on a countback from Ernest Obiena of the Philippines.
<h3>Kiplimo wins 3000m thriller</h3>
In the teen showdown of the night, Jacob (Kiplimo) triumphed from Jakob (Ingebrigtsen) in the 3000m as the first three men set national records, carving chunks off their personal best times over what is a less frequently contested distance these days.
A confident Ingebrigtsen took the lead just before the bell from Stewart McSweyn but fellow 19-year-old Kiplimo waited until the finishing straight to make his move. As it was over 5000m at the Continental Tour Gold meeting in Ostrava last week, Kiplimo&rsquo;s final kick proved irresistible over the final 50m. 
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Jacob Kiplimo on his way to winning the 3000m at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Rome</div>
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He crossed the finish line in 7:26.64, the fastest time in the world since 2007, and a Diamond League record. Ingebrigtsen set a Norwegian record of 7:27.05 in second and McSweyn held on gamely for an Australian and Oceania record of 7:28.02.
Kiplimo is now the fastest teenager in history at this distance. Both he and Ingebrigtsen bettered marathon world record-holder Eliud Kipchoge's benchmark of 7:27.72.
It was another youngster who triumphed in the women&rsquo;s 800m as Scotswoman Jemma Reekie kept her perfect record for the season in 1:59.77.
Norwegian world 400m hurdles champion Karsten Warholm extended his spectacular season with another commanding victory in the third fastest time of his career, 47.08.
That is his fourth entry into the all-time top 13 times in a month, and he now holds six of those times, but for now the 28-year-old world record of 46.78 remains elusive.
His consolation is that it was the fastest time ever on Italian soil, and he also now holds the Golden Gala&rsquo;s meet record (previously Abderrahman Samba&rsquo;s 47.48) and the Stadio Olimpico record (formerly Edwin Moses&rsquo; 47.37).
He said he was very satisfied with his accomplishments this year.
&ldquo;I ran really low 47s on a regular basis this year &ndash; I am very happy,&rdquo; Warholm said.
&ldquo;This season has been a good experience for me. It is good fun for me coming here to Rome with the warm weather and no winds &ndash; unlike back home in Norway where it is cold now and rainy. The world record? I am quite used to talking about it and I love it because it shows that I am in the right pace, that I am close.&rdquo;
Rising star Femke Bol of the Netherlands also extended her undefeated season over the 400m hurdles in 53.90, just a touch outside her world lead of 53.79, while her training partner Lieke Klaver became just the third woman to dip under 51 seconds for 400m this year, winning in a personal best of 50.98.
Adding to the Dutch delight, this season&rsquo;s pacesetter Nadine Visser claimed the 100m hurdles in 12.72. Italy-based Briton Andrew Pozzi took the men&rsquo;s 110m event in 13.15.
<h3>Thompson-Herah speeds to world lead</h3>
Jamaica&rsquo;s Olympic 100m and 200m champion Elaine Thompson-Herah returned to international competition in sizzling form, setting the fastest time of the year in the short sprint, with 10.85. That took her just above her compatriot, rival and fellow Olympic gold medallist Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who has a best of 10.86 this year
Thompson-Herah is delighted to have found her best form again after three years dogged by injury. She finished almost three metres clear of runner-up Aleia Hobbs (11.12) and Marie-Josee Ta Lou (11.14). 
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Elaine Thompson wins the 100m at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Rome</div>
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South Africa&rsquo;s Akani Simbine was similarly dominant in the men&rsquo;s 100m in 9.96.
In the field, 2017 world silver medallist Yuliya Levchenko took the Ukrainian bragging rights from her teenaged compatriot Yaroslava Mahuchikh in the high jump, courtesy of a clean sheet to 1.98m, but could go no higher.
Mahuchikh, who shares this year&rsquo;s world leading mark of 2.00m with Levchenko, struggled to find her rhythm and was eliminated after clearing 1.95m on her first attempt. She took second place from Australia&rsquo;s Nicola McDermott (1.95m) on a countback.
The Ukrainian dominance continued in the men&rsquo;s event as Andriy Protsenko triumphed with a best leap of 2.30m, denying hometown favourite Gianmarco Tamberi (2.24m).
In the only throwing event on the programme, USA&rsquo;s Nick Ponzio took the win in the shot put with a best of 21.09m.
Nicole Jeffery for World Athletics
*Note: In 1998, the IAAF decided to accept indoor world records as the official world records if they were better than the best outdoor mark.

In the country where ‘Mondo’ means ‘world’, Swedish wunderkind Armand ‘Mondo’ Duplantis confirmed his status as the world’s greatest pole vaulter, jumping higher than anyone ever has in an outdoor stadium, 6.15m, at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Rome on Thursday (17).

Duplantis scales 6.15m in Rome, world's highest ever outdoor vault

Daniel Stahl, Khaddi Sagnia, Daniel Rowden and Stewart McSweyn produced the standout performances at the Hanzekovic Memorial, the penultimate stop on the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold series, in the Croatian capital Zagreb in Tuesday (15).
With Croatia&rsquo;s current pandemic restrictions limiting attendance to just 700 spectators and fields impacted by travel restrictions, the meeting wasn&rsquo;t quite the 70th anniversary celebration organisers had planned, but several performances exceeded expectations to contribute to another memorable evening at the Sportpar Mladost.
<h3>Discus victories for Stahl and Perkovic</h3>
Stahl, the world discus champion, returned to his winning ways in fine style, throwing 68.87m in the second round to add 70cm to the meeting record set by Fedrick Dacres two years ago. The Swede also reached 67.55m in the third round and 67.16m in the fifth.
Andrius Gudzius, the 2017 world champion who ended Stahl's unbeaten streak at 15 in Berlin on Sunday, was second with 68.22m, his third best throw of the season.
"It was a great battle today," said Stahl, the world leader at 71.37m. "This has been a great season even though it was a complicated season - I competed even more this year than last. Next year is an Olympic year and I'm really looking forward to that one.&nbsp;
On the women's side, Sandra Perkovic made the most of her first competition since March, dominating the proceedings with a 64.67m effort to beat Frenchwoman Melina Robert-Michon (60.65m) by more than four metres.
<h3>Sagnia improves to 6.92m</h3>
Another Swede, long jumper Khaddi Sagnia, pieced together the finest performance of her career and even threatened the seven-metre barrier.
Opening with 6.61m leap, the 26-year-old equalled her 6.83m outdoor career best in the third round. With the victory secured, she sailed 6.92m on her final leap to equal the absolute best she set at the 2018 World Indoor Tour meeting in Glasgow.
Alina Rotaru of Romania was second at 6.69m with Serbia's Milica Gardasevic third at 6.60m, season's bests for both.
<h3>Rowden and McSweyn impress on the track</h3>
Rowden and McSweyn produced the most impressive performances on the track with commanding victories in the 800m and 1500m, respectively.
After a 50.39 opening lap, Swede Andreas Kramer took control of the 800m, pushing the tempo to take a two-metre lead as he entered the final turn. But Rowden ate up the gap quickly before making his decisive move just after Kramer entered the final straight. Rowden broke away to finish unchallenged in 1:44.09, a big personal best that fell a scant 0.01 shy of Nijel Amos's two-year-old meeting record.
"It was a great field, and it's great to come out on top," said Rowden, who arrived in Zagreb with a 1:44.74 lifetime best set just 18 days ago in Gothenburg. Ten days ago he raced to his first national title.
Running wide on the outside, Elliot Giles and Jake Wightman finished strong, gliding by US rising star Bryce Hoppel to finish second and third in 1:44.75 and 1:44.85 to round out a British 1-2-3.
McSweyn was even more convincing in the 1500m about 40 minutes earlier.
Running behind pacesetter Azzedine Habz from the outset, the Australian quickly gapped the field to take firm control when the Frenchman stepped aside with just over a lap and a half to go. He poured it on over the last lap, covering the final circuit in about 57 seconds en route to a 3:32.17 performance, the ninth fastest in the world this year, and the fourth fastest by the 25-year-old.
James West of Great Britain was second in 3:34.56, a lifetime best. Australian Matthew Ramsden was third in 3:34.83 with Elzan Bibic of Serbia fourth in 3:35.07, personal bests for both as well.
Wilhem Belocian took a narrow victory in the 110m hurdles, the meeting's signature event, edging Freddie Crittenden of the US in 13.32m. Belocian, who raced to the French title in Albi on Sunday, chiseled his way to a clear lead by the midway point and valiantly defended his ground to prevail by 0.02.
On the women's side, Payton Chadwick of the US closed well to take a come-from-behind 13.01 win in the 100m hurdles, reeling in Cindy Ofili of Great Britain, who was second in 13.10.
Elsewhere, Ukraine&rsquo;s Yuliya Levchenko won the high jump at 1.93m before topping out with three tries at 2.00m. Erika Kinsey of Sweden and Australia's Nicola McDermott produced identical score cards to tie for second at 1.90m.
In the men&rsquo;s 400m, Slovenian record holder Luka Janezic overtook Briton Rabah Yousif in the last five metres to steal the narrow win, 45.93 to 45.99.&nbsp;
Marko Ceko of Croatia won the long jump with a third round leap of 7.92m.&nbsp;
Bob Ramsak for World Athletics

Daniel Stahl, Khaddi Sagnia, Daniel Rowden and Stewart McSweyn produced the standout performances at the Hanzekovic Memorial, the penultimate stop on the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold series, in the Croatian capital Zagreb in Tuesday (15).

Stahl, Sagnia, Rowden and McSweyn shine in Zagreb

Peres Jepchirchir smashed the women-only race world record in the half marathon in Prague on Saturday (5).
The 26-year-old Kenyan clocked 1:05:34* at the Prague 21.1KM, shattering the previous record of 1:06:11 set by Netsanet Gudeta of Ethiopia at the World Half Marathon Championships in 2018.
The small field of nine - two of them pacesetters - set out at 6:20, ensuring ideal early morning conditions over the 16.5-lap course in Prague's Letna Park. Pacers Brenda Jepleting and Lilian Jepkorir Chebii went out strong, covering the opening five kilometres in about 15:20, with Jepchirchir running close.
Impatient, Jepchirchir broke away from field just 20 minutes into the race, forging on alone at a ravaging pace, at one point knocking off successive 1280-metre laps in 3:51 before reaching 10 kilometres in 30:32.
Her pace slowed over the waning laps, most covered in just over four minutes, but she still finished well under the previous mark.
"I was thinking to run maybe 1:04:50, but I'm so happy," said Jepchirchir, who raced to the world half marathon title in 2016.
"The last five kilometres I was really tired," she said, but added that she did plan to run much of the race alone. "My plan was to run good, because I was well prepared."
This was Jepchirchir's second world record over the distance. She clocked 1:05:06 in a mixed gender race in Ras Al Khaimah in 2017, a record which stood for just under two months.
With her pacing duties over early, Jepleting went on to finish second in 1:07:07. Dorcas Kimeli was third in 1:07:14. Kimeli is expected to race next at the&nbsp;World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020.
<h3>Kandie sizzles 58:38</h3>
The men's race kicked off at 08:00, handing that field much hotter conditions to contend with. Similarly to the women&rsquo;s race, it was largely solo affair with Kibiwott Kandie breaking away to go it alone after 10 kilometres.
"It's difficult to run alone," he later said, but was rewarded for his efforts with a 58:38 run to become the fifth fastest man over the distance with the sixth fastest performance of all-time.
Kandie ran well early in the year, winning the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in late February with a world-leading 58:58, just six days after his triump at the fiercely competitive Kenyan cross-country championships. But then the Coronavirus pandemic forced a halt to that momentum.
"My wish is to run again when this pandemic is over," he said. "It will be a pleasure to continue competing."&nbsp;
In early March Kandie was also named to the Kenyan team for the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships.
Philemon Kiplimo Kimaiyo was second in 59:56 with Benson Kipruto third in 1:00:06.
* pending the usual ratification procedures
World Athletics

Peres Jepchirchir smashed the women-only race world record in the half marathon in Prague this morning.

Jepchirchir smashes women-only half marathon world record in Prague

Britain's Mo Farah and Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands set respective men&rsquo;s and women&rsquo;s world one-hour records* at the Wanda Diamond League exhibition meeting at the King Baudouin Stadium tonight.
Britain&rsquo;s multiple world and Olympic champion held off the challenge of his training partner, home athlete Bashir Abdi, to set a new mark of 21,330m &ndash; eclipsing the 2007 mark of 21,285m set by Haile Gebrselassie. Abdi finished eight metres behind.
Hassan&rsquo;s record also came after a titanic battle with Kenya&rsquo;s world marathon record-holder Brigid Kosgei, although it later transpired the latter had been disqualified for stepping on to the infield in the closing stages.
The Dutch world 1500m and 10,000m champion reached 18,930 metres as the hour elapsed, beating the existing mark of 18,517 metres set by Ethiopia&rsquo;s Dire Tune in 2008.
Moving into the final quarter of an hour, Tune&rsquo;s mark seemed certain to be bettered, given that both women were more than a minute ahead of world record pace. The only question remained &ndash; which champion would secure it?
As they shadowed each other, swapping the lead but never getting away from each other, it was impossible to predict who would triumph. Hassan said afterwards that she thought Kosgei would &ldquo;run away from her&rdquo;.
But when the gun went to mark the final minute with the pair halfway down the back straight, Hassan moved ahead once more, and this time it was decisive.
Looking once behind her, the Dutch athlete took off, pumping her arms, going for broke. Kosgei, baring her teeth, did everything in her power to stay in touch, but there was no catching up, and when the 60 minutes elapsed, Hassan slowed to a halt halfway down the back straight after a crazy sprint finish.
"I didn't feel good before the start of the race, I even puked," revealed Hassan. "After 30 minutes of racing, I finally felt better. It was in the final 20 minutes that I gained the confidence I needed. When there were only two minutes left on the clock, the fun began. I just gave everything I had left. I am so happy with the win and the world record. It wasn't easy."
As the men&rsquo;s race moved into the final quarter of an hour, the ghostly figure of the current world record holder, Gebrselassie, was shown in virtual shape, running at their side. They were bang on the pace.
With 10 minutes to go, they moved ahead of the world record schedule. They passed 18,000 metres in 50:43. 
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 Inside the final five minutes, the home runner, who the day before had confessed that he expected Farah to beat him, moved to the lead, but the multiple champion was shadowing him still.
As advertised, the Wavelight visual pace-guidance system employing differently coloured LED lights installed on the inside edge of the track made the pursuit of records on the night immediately intelligible.
With three minutes remaining, both men were 30 metres clear of the leading blue lights, showing the intended pace, and the green lights snaking behind them, showing the actual world record pace.
A second world record appeared in the offing &ndash; and the same question was being asked. Who would break it?
The gun went to mark one minute to go, then Farah made a significant break. He charged around the bend as the final seconds ticked away, and at the same spot where Hassan had earlier triumphed, Farah did too, taking a few seconds to realise it was all over.
&ldquo;The world record is yours, Mo!&rdquo; said the stadium MC.
Abdi had the consolation of lowering the world best for 20,000m from 56:26 to 56:20.2*, having led his friend through that mark.
"I was very excited to be back on the track," said Farah. "I knew I was in a great shape after the hard work I did in the last six weeks. At a certain point, with just 10 laps to go, it became tough so I was happy that Bashir took the lead, but I felt great with just one minute to go. A fast last lap is still my best tactic."
Kenya&rsquo;s Olympic 1500m champion Faith Kipyegon had to settle for another near miss as she attempted to beat the world 1000m record of 2:28.98 set on this track in 1996 by Russia&rsquo;s double Olympic champion Svetlana Masterkova.
Having finished just 17 hundredths of a second short at last month&rsquo;s opening Diamond League meeting in Monaco, Kipyegon seemed on track to achieve her ambition with 200 metres remaining, but faltered slightly over the final few metres to cross the line in 2:29.92. 
<img src="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/media/LargeL/c1237478-ed35-4da2-939b-d1bffb2f0c74.jpg?cachebuster=f6decfe4-7f84-4ee4-8817-8d3d226d9585" alt="Jakob Ingebrigtsen" width="600" height="400" />
 Norway&rsquo;s 19-year-old European 1500m champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who has already reduced the European record to 3:28.68, made a bold effort to improve on that but his honourable solo effort saw him finish in 3:30.69, with Jesus Gomez of Spain a distant second in 3:34.64.
In the pole vault, Sweden&rsquo;s 20-year-old world record-holder Mondo Duplantis saw the last challenger, home vaulter Ben Broeders, fall away with a best of 5.70m.
The European champion then went on to clear a meeting record of 6.00m at his first attempt before having another crack at 6.15m, a centimetre higher than the best outdoor clearance ever made, by Sergey Bubka in 1994. He didn&rsquo;t make it. But surely his time will come sooner rather than later. 
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 Twenty-year-old Rani Rosius, who had won the Belgian title in 11.39, needed 11.43 to earn another prestige victory in the women&rsquo;s 100m, with France&rsquo;s Carolle Zahl second in 11.56.
Britain&rsquo;s world heptathlon champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson had said the day before that this meeting &ndash; where she was competing in the 100m hurdles and the high jump &ndash; was effectively the highlight of her season, and she had a reasonably satisfactory result in the first of them, which was won by home champion Anne Zagre in 13.21.
Despite an uncertain start, Johnson-Thompson drew on her strength to take fourth place in 13.57 &ndash; inside her previous season&rsquo;s best of 13.73.
Zagre was chased home by Denmark&rsquo;s Mette Graversgaard, who clocked 13.26, and Belgian compatriot Sarah Missinne, who ran a season&rsquo;s best of 13.55. 
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 Johnson-Thompson went on to equal her season&rsquo;s best of 1.84m in a high jump won by Australia&rsquo;s Nicola McDermott with 1.91m.
Poland&rsquo;s Iga Baumgart-Witan won the women&rsquo;s 400m in 52.13, while the men&rsquo;s 200m went to Italy&rsquo;s Eseosa Desalu in 20.39.
Mike Rowbottom for World Athletics
 *Pending to the usual ratification process

Britain's Mo Farah and Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands set respective men’s and women’s world one-hour records at the Wanda Diamond League exhibition meeting at the King Baudouin Stadium tonight.

Hassan and Farah break one-hour world records in Brussels

At one point during Athletissima&rsquo;s exhibition city centre pole vault competition, it seemed as though the duel between Mondo Duplantis and Sam Kendricks would never end. Both men simply went higher and higher, clearing each height with ease on their first attempts at the Wanda Diamond League meeting at Lausanne&rsquo;s Place de l&rsquo;Europe on Wednesday (2).
Eventually, though, the only obstacle standing in their way appeared to be the lack of light. The sun set on the Swiss city at about the time the bar moved up past six metres. And although Duplantis ultimately prevailed with a first-time clearance at 6.07m, having seen Kendricks bow out with a best of 6.02m, once the young Swede took an attempt at 6.15m, he knew it would be futile to continue.
After all, the 20-year-old &ndash; who cleared a world record of 6.18m earlier this year &ndash; has plenty of time in which to go higher.
Tonight&rsquo;s competition was less about records and more about a fascinating duel between the world&rsquo;s two best vaulters of their generation. 
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The exhibition city centre pole vault competition at Lausanne&rsquo;s Place de l&rsquo;Europe</div>
&nbsp;
Kendricks, the two-time world champion, opened at the lower height of 5.32m, while Duplantis entered at 5.62m &ndash; a height at which Kendricks registered a failure before clearing successfully. Duplantis passed the next two bars, but Kendricks started to churn out first-attempt clearances, one after the other.
Thiago Braz and Renaud Lavillenie, the 2016 and 2012 Olympic champions respectively, both got over 5.72m but exited the competition with three misses at 5.82m, leaving Duplantis and Kendricks as the sole competitors.
And so began their game of &lsquo;anything you can do&hellip;&rsquo; Just moments after Kendricks sailed over 5.87m on his first try, Duplantis did likewise, albeit with a seemingly larger margin. The same happened at 5.92m and 5.97m.
The bar then moved to 6.02m &ndash; a Swiss all-comers&rsquo; record &ndash; and, astonishingly, both men once again got over it with their first vault. Kendricks nudged the bar slightly but it stayed on, while Duplantis cleared it with room to spare. It&rsquo;s the first time in history that two men have cleared 6.02m in the same competition.
Following seven successive first-attempt clearances, Kendricks recorded just his second foul of the competition with the bar at 6.07m. Duplantis, however, was successful once more, breaking the Diamond League record and his own outdoor Swedish record in the process. 
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Mondo Duplantis in action at the Diamond League meeting in Lausanne</div>
&nbsp;
With darkness setting in, Kendricks registered two more misses to finally bow out of the contest. The bar was then raised to 6.15m while the competition organisers tried to find some makeshift method of getting more light on to the runway. They managed to light the end of the runway and Duplantis took one try but aborted it soon after planting his pole, his first failure of the evening.
Realising that tonight wasn&rsquo;t a night for world records, he stood up from the landing bed and bowed to the crowd. 
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 &ldquo;In the end it got too dark to go for 6.15m and I felt it was unsafe to continue any further,&rdquo; said the world silver medallist. &ldquo;I felt I was in the zone. But you have to be prudent.
&ldquo;It was a fantastic evening. The conditions, crowd, competition &ndash; it was all fabulous. Sam is a fabulous competitor, and I feel we bring the best out of each other. We kept pushing each other and you can see the result. It reminded me a bit of the Ultimate Garden Clash, we kept going after the next height. It was quick. I loved it.
&ldquo;You can see a lot of us are getting back to our best shape,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;Renaud was good, Thiago is getting back there. We could be looking at some great pole vaulting in what is left of this season.&rdquo;
<h3>Double success for Sweden</h3>
The women&rsquo;s event was similarly competitive and boiled down to a four-way contest, but Angelica Bengtsson&rsquo;s last-gasp 4.72m clearance gave the Swede the victory.
She sailed over 4.34m, 4.44m and 4.54m on her first attempts. Britain&rsquo;s Holly Bradshaw opened her series at the latter height, also clearing it on her first try, while France&rsquo;s Marion Lotout, Switzerland&rsquo;s Angelica Moser and Sweden&rsquo;s Michaela Meijer also went clear.
Bradshaw then got over 4.64m on her first attempt, as did Moser, setting a lifetime best in the process. Swedish duo Bengtsson and Meijer both got over it on their second tries, while Lotout exited the competition.
The bar moved up to 4.72m and after two rounds of failed attempts it appeared as though no one would be successful. Moser departed the competition with three misses, but was content with her evening&rsquo;s work. Bengtsson, however, was successful on her third try, setting a season&rsquo;s best in the process.
Having had the lead snatched away from her, Bradshaw was unable to gain it and missed for a third and final time at 4.72m, as did Meijer.
Bengtsson ended her evening with three attempts at a would-be Swedish record of 4.84m, but was unsuccessful.
&ldquo;This has been a beautiful experience, the energy from the fans has been amazing and the city is a great backdrop,&rdquo; said Bengtsson. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m happy to be able to come out and put on a show for the fans and hopefully help to lift their spirit as it&rsquo;s been a tough year for everyone. For us as athletes it&rsquo;s been tough as well. Personally it has been hard to find the motivation to train after the postponement of the Olympic Games because we focus on that for four years, but I have been able to tell myself summer 2021 will come soon.&rdquo;
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

At one point during Athletissima’s exhibition city centre pole vault competition, it seemed as though the duel between Mondo Duplantis and Sam Kendricks would never end. Both men simply went higher and higher, clearing each height with ease on their first attempts at the Wanda Diamond League meeting at Lausanne’s Place de l’Europe on Wednesday (2).

Duplantis clears 6.07m in Lausanne, best outdoor vault in the world for 26 years

Karsten Warholm powered to the second fastest 400m hurdles performance of all time to highlight the Bauhaus Galan Wanda Diamond League meeting in Stockholm on Sunday (23).
Running in lane eight, Warholm went out in his typically rampaging style, building a visible lead by the third hurdle. He then added to it with each stride, powering off the final bend and into the home straight very much alone, showing no signs of slowing down. For some moments, Kevin Young&rsquo;s 46.78 world record, set at the Barcelona Olympic Games 28 years ago, looked to be under serious threat.&nbsp;
But it didn&rsquo;t come to pass after the 24-year-old Norwegian clipped the final barrier, costing him valuable ticks of the clock. He nonetheless did claw his way closer to Young&rsquo;s venerable performance, clocking 46.87 to break his own European record by 0.05 seconds and solidify his No.2 position on the world all-time list.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I hit that last hurdle because I went really hard for the first nine, and stuff like this happens,&rdquo; said Warholm, who sped to a 47.10 performance in his season&rsquo;s opener in Monaco just over one week ago.
&ldquo;But I think I was rewarded by just going all in at the end and I got a great time. It's a great lesson for me to always run until the finish line.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Frenchman Wilfried Happio was second in 49.14, just ahead of compatriot Ludvy Vaillant who clocked 49.18.&nbsp;
But he wasn&rsquo;t finished. Warholm chose to double back 94 minutes later in the 400m and won big there as well, clocking 45.05, well clear of Slovenia&rsquo;s Luka Janezic who clocked 45.85.&nbsp;
<h3>Muir impresses in 2020 1500m debut</h3>
Warholm&rsquo;s was one of four world leads on the day. Laura Muir produced another, obliterating a solid field in the 1500m in 3:57.86. 
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Laura Muir (centre) on her way to winning the 1500m at the Diamond League meeting in Stockholm</div>
&nbsp;
&ldquo;It went really well,&rdquo; Muir said. &ldquo;My strength is my endurance and I really wanted to run fast today.&rdquo;
After three outdoor races this season over shorter distances - including a 2:30.82 1000m national record in Monaco - Muir proved herself valiantly over her best.
Running near the front from the outset, the Scot moved up to third with two laps to go before taking the lead for good three strides before reaching the bell for the final time. From there, she quickly gapped the field as she entered the back straight, forging on with a 59.86 final lap.
Laura Weightman was second in 4:01.62, just ahead of compatriot Melissa Courtney-Bryant 4:01.81, a season&rsquo;s best for the former and personal best for the latter.
<h3>Cheruiyot unstoppable</h3>
In the men&rsquo;s race, which capped the meeting, Timothy Cheruiyot illustrated yet again that he&rsquo;s the finest 1500m runner on the planet. The world champion didn&rsquo;t run quite as quickly as he had hoped, but did show that at the moment, he&rsquo;s unstoppable. 
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Timothy Cheruiyot wins the 1500m at the Diamond League meeting in Stockholm</div>
&nbsp;
Taking command when the final pacesetter stepped aside with 500 metres to go, Cheruiyot ploughed on, with Stewart McSweyn and Jakob Ingebrigtsen in tow. The Norwegian teenager moved past the Australian over the final lap, but found no answer to Cheruiyot&rsquo;s finishing strength. Closing with a 55.55 final lap, Cheruiyot reached the finish line in 3:30.25, with Ingebrigtsen second in 3:30.74. McSweyn&rsquo;s persistence was rewarded with a 3:31.48 career best for third.
<h3>Duplantis tops 6.01m, Mahuchikh 2.00m</h3>
Armand Duplantis added a centimetre to his 2020 outdoor world lead with a big first-attempt clearance at 6.01m, to take down the 5.95m meeting record set by Rodion Gataullin in 1989. He then had the bar raised to 6.15m, aiming to supplant Sergei Bubka as history&rsquo;s highest vaulter outdoors. 
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Pole vault winner Mondo Duplantis at the Diamond League meeting in Stockholm</div>
&nbsp;
That quest began with a solid first attempt, but battling the swirling winds that affected most events throughout the afternoon, he couldn&rsquo;t pull off another attempt.&nbsp;
&ldquo;The meet record was really important to me,&rdquo; the young Swede said, but added that not going higher left some 2020 business unfinished.
&ldquo;I want to jump 6.15m. Nobody&rsquo;s jumped higher than that outdoors. I want to be in that shape again to jump those high bars. I think a lot people thought that I couldn&rsquo;t get back into world record shape this summer, and I want to show people that I can do it again.&rdquo;
Belgian Ben Broeders was second at 5.73m, a season&rsquo;s best.
In the women&rsquo;s high jump, Yaroslava Mahuchikh avenged her loss to compatriot Yuliya Levchenko from earlier in the week, taking the win with a third-attempt clearance at 2.00m to equal the world lead. The 18-year-old Ukrainian went on with a fine first-attempt clearance at 2.03m, a height ultimately out of her reach today.
Levchenko topped 1.98m for second.
Holly Bradshaw of Great Britain took the women's pole vault after a third-attempt clearance at 4.69m to collect the first Diamond League victory of her career. Angelica Bengtsson of Sweden was second at 4.62m.
World discus champion Daniel Stahl won his 12th straight competition of the season, courtesy of a 69.17m effort in the second round. 
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Discus winner Daniel Stahl at the Diamond League meeting in Stockholm</div>
&nbsp;
"I felt pretty powerful, and everything over 68 metres now for me is good, so I'm pretty satisfied with the results today," Stahl said. "The technique wasn't the best so I'm happy with it."
Swedish compatriot Simon Pettersson came closest to unseating Stahl, reaching a lifetime best of 67.72m in the fifth round. Andrius Gudzius, the 2017 world champion, was third with 66.80m.
<h3>Brazier and Reekie take 800m wins&nbsp;</h3>
Donavan Brazier and Jemma Reekie continued their successful, if abbreviated, 800m seasons with impressive wins.&nbsp; 
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Donavan Brazier on his way to winning the 800m at the Diamond League meeting in Stockholm</div>
&nbsp;
Running mid-pack over the first lap, Brazier took to the front at the top of the home straight to finish unchallenged in 1:43.76.
"Given the way I felt, I'd give myself a good grade," Brazier said, explaining that he simply felt a little listless all day. "But I don't know if my coach would."
Canada's Marco Arop was second, clocking 1:44.67.
Reekie's run was even more commanding. Entering the homestretch with a sizable lead, she added a couple more metres to it before crossing the line in 1:59.68. Raevyn Rogers of the US was next with a 2:01.02 season's best.
Meanwhile, Femke Bol keeps on rolling in the women&rsquo;s 400m hurdles.
Battling some shifting winds on the backstretch and final bend, the 20-year-old Dutchwoman cruised to a solid 54.68 victory, her fourth in as many races this season and her first Diamond League victory.
&ldquo;I really wanted to do a fast first 200, but I don&rsquo;t think it was very fast, so I&rsquo;m happy with the win,&rdquo; said Bol, who clocked her 53.78 world lead on 18 July.&nbsp;
Anna Ryzhkova of Ukraine was a distant second in 55.19.&nbsp;
<h3>Bekh-Romanchuk and Samaai take long jump show-downs</h3>
Victories in the long jump came down to the final jump - by design, thanks to an experiment with a jump-off style show-down dubbed the 'Final Three', with the top three jumpers after five rounds earning a sixth, decisive leap.
The competition did fuel Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk, who produced the best jump of the competition in the final round, reaching a season's best of 6.85m. Caterine Ibarguen was second with 6.61m, also her best leap of the day. Swede Khaddi Sagnia was third, reaching just 5.73m in the last round after a 6.83m leap in the second round secured her spot in the jump-off.
Ruswahl Samaai of South Africa took the men's with an 8.09m jump, defeating Sweden's Thobias Montler who reached 8.06m in the sixth round. The Swede, however, had the longest jump of the day, an 8.13m effort in the second round. Finn Kristian Pulli, the third jumper to earn a sixth jump, fouled on his final attempt.
Elsewhere, Wadeline Jonathas took her second 400m victory of the week, holding off fast-closing Briton Laviai Nielsen 51.94 to 52.16. Alja Del Ponte won the 100m for the second weekend in a row, clocking 11.20. Adam Gemili took the men&rsquo;s 200m in a wind-assisted 20.61 and Italy's Luminosa Boglioli won a national level 100m hurdles contest in 12.88.
Keeping in line with Sweden&rsquo;s restrictions on public gatherings due to the coronavirus pandemic, the meeting was held behind closed doors but broadcast or live streamed to more than 150 countries.
Bob Ramsak for World Athletics

Karsten Warholm powered to the second fastest 400m hurdles performance of all time to highlight the Bauhaus Galan Wanda Diamond League meeting in Stockholm on Sunday (23).

Warholm dazzles with 46.87 performance in Stockholm

It may not have been the competition that Tokyo&rsquo;s Olympic Stadium had originally been set to host in August 2020, but Japan&rsquo;s leading athletes got a taste of the big time at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix, a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting, on Sunday (23).
To help minimise risks, no spectators were present and the fields were entirely made up of domestic athletes. But thousands of fans were still able to tune in via TV coverage and the live stream to watch Japan&rsquo;s leading athletes in action.
They rose to the occasion, too, especially Nozomi Tanaka. The world U20 3000m champion stepped down in distance to the 1500m and front-ran her way to a national record. The 20-year-old had announced her intentions to break the mark ahead of the race, having come within a second of Yuriko Kobayashi&rsquo;s 14-year-old mark (4:07.86) with a 4:08.68 clocking in Shibetsu last month. 
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Nozomi Tanaka wins the 1500m at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix in Tokyo</div>
&nbsp;
With no pacemakers, Tanaka started conservatively and led the field through the first lap in 66.42. Japanese 800m and 1500m champion Ran Urabe, compatriot Kaede Hagitani and Kenya&rsquo;s Japan-based Hellen Lobun were the only ones capable of following the early pace.
At 800m, reached in 2:11.91, Urabe moved into second place as Lobun and Hagitani dropped behind. Tanaka continued to wind up the pace, and after hearing the bell ring with 3:02.37 on the clock, she kicked it up another gear and pulled away from Urabe.
Tanaka flew around the final lap in 63 seconds to cross the line in 4:05.27, smashing the national record by two seconds. Urabe finished six seconds in arrears, clocking 4:11.75.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
How about that!? Nozomi Tanaka breaks the Japanese 1500m record, winning at the <a href="https://twitter.com/goldengrandprix?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@goldengrandprix</a> in 4:05.27 💫. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ContinentalTourGold?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ContinentalTourGold</a> Stream 📺 <a href="https://t.co/1kzk4EAL6c">https://t.co/1kzk4EAL6c</a> <a href="https://t.co/hIr3RgsUPU">pic.twitter.com/hIr3RgsUPU</a>
&mdash; Continental Tour Gold (@ContiTourGold) <a href="https://twitter.com/ContiTourGold/status/1297429562243133441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 23, 2020</a></blockquote>

<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" async=""></script>

"I thought about all kinds of race plans, but I also knew that if I thought about it too much, I&rsquo;d get anxious," said Tanaka, whose mother, Chihiro, is a two-time Hokkaido Marathon champion. "So today I decided not to be too conscious of the time and to just run. I&rsquo;ve been confident with my finish in training, so I just gave everything I had. I realised in the final 100 metres that I was going to break the national record.
"I&rsquo;m very excited that I finally broke the national record that had been held by Yuriko Kobayashi, who is from my home town," added Tanaka, who is coached by her father, Katsutoshi. "With my performance today I was able to show my appreciation towards to the people who have supported me."
<h3>Dean back to his best</h3>
Since making the Olympic final in 2012 at the age of 20, Japanese javelin thrower Genki Dean has struggled to reproduce his best form. He set a national U20 record of 78.57m in 2010, a few months after earning world U20 silver, and set a lifetime best of 84.28m in 2012.
But in the past eight years, he has thrown beyond 80 metres on just one occasion. Keen to turn things around ahead of a home Olympics, Dean set up a crowd funding page at the end of last year to fund an extended training stint in Finland and South Africa. After reaching his funding target, Dean made a promise.
&ldquo;The number of supporters is 84,&rdquo; <a href="https://twitter.com/GenksRoderick/status/1207429941673037830" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he tweeted in December</a>. &ldquo;And the best way to repay you is to throw 84 metres.&rdquo;
Today he made good on that pledge. He opened his series with 79.88m &ndash; his best throw since 2013 &ndash; to take an early lead, but Ryohei Arai applied pressure in the second round with 79.28m. Arai then moved into the lead in the fifth round with 81.02m, but Dean kept his cool and responded in the final round with 84.05m &ndash; the best throw by a Japanese man for four years and just 23 centimetres shy of his PB. 
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Genki Dean, winner of the javelin at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix in Tokyo</div>
&nbsp;
"It feels as though I've finally returned to my workplace," said Dean. "During the winter I went to Finland and South Africa and I was able to train without being hampered by injuries, which was a big factor in my performance today.
"When I threw 84.05m, I was relieved and I realised that I haven't been wrong in what I've been doing," he added. "If I can keep this up, then I can aim for 87 or 88 metres and hit the national record (87.60m). I want to finish the season strong without getting hurt."
In the women&rsquo;s event, national record-holder Haruka Kitaguchi was slightly frustrated to come up short of the 60-metre barrier, but her 59.38m effort was enough to win from Marina Saito (58.64m).
<h3>Kiryu edges Cambridge &ndash; twice</h3>
There was a feeling of d&eacute;j&agrave; vu in the men&rsquo;s 100m as Yoshihide Kiryu pipped Aska Cambridge by 0.02 &ndash; on two separate occasions.
In the heats earlier in the afternoon, Kiryu sped to a 10.09 victory (0.7m/s) with Cambridge running a season&rsquo;s best of 10.11. The breeze had turned to a slight headwind of -0.2m/s by the time of the final 80 minutes later, but the outcome was essentially the same with Kiryu once again finishing marginally ahead of his 2016 Olympic 4x100m silver medal-winning teammate Cambridge, 10.14 to 10.16. 
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Yoshihide Kiryu and Aska Cambridge in the 100m at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix in Tokyo</div>
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National record-holder Asuka Terada &ndash; who took a break from the sport between 2014 and 2019 to start a family and then play rugby &ndash; enjoyed a promising start to her 2020 outdoor campaign, winning the 100m hurdles in 13.03 (0.3m/s), just 0.06 shy of her lifetime best. Masumi Aoki was second in a PB of 13.09.
Taio Kanai, the national indoor record-holder, won the men&rsquo;s sprint hurdles in a season&rsquo;s best of 13.45, the second-fastest time of his career. 18-year-old Rashiddo Muratake was second in 13.65, the fastest time in the world this year by an U20 athlete.
In his first competition of the year, Asian Games bronze medallist Takatoshi Abe won the men&rsquo;s 400m hurdles in 49.31. 2015 world U18 bronze medallist Masaki Toyoda was second in 49.82.
In other sprint events, Rikuya Ito won the men&rsquo;s 400m in 45.83 while Shota Iizuka took the 200m in 20.74.
<h3>Eto wins competitive high jump</h3>
Tomohiro Shinno pushed Asian silver medallist Takashi Eto all the way in the men&rsquo;s high jump in a competition that was eventually decided in a jump-off.
Both men went clear at 2.10m, 2.15m and 2.20m on their first tries. They then needed all three attempts to get over 2.24m and they were joined in doing so by Naoto Tobe. All three men then failed at 2.27m, but Shinno&rsquo;s and Eto&rsquo;s scorecards were still equal. The bar remained at 2.27m for one more attempt to break the tie and Eto succeeded, giving him the victory.
Elsewhere, world U20 champion Yuki Hashioka won the long jump by 20 centimetres with 7.96m, while Seito Yamamoto took the pole vault with 5.60m. Reimi Yoshimura, the national U20 record-holder, comfortably won the women&rsquo;s steeplechase with 9:54.50.
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

It may not have been the competition that Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium had originally been set to host in August 2020, but Japan’s leading athletes got a taste of the big time at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix, a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting, on Sunday (23).

Tanaka takes down Japanese 1500m record at Golden Grand Prix in Tokyo

&nbsp; Noah Lyles closed his abbreviated 2020 season with an impressive double dash victory to highlight the tenth edition of the Gyulai Memorial, a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting in Szekesfehervar, Hungary, on Wednesday (19).
In the 100m, it was no contest by the midway point, as Lyles, racing with a black glove on his right hand, found his rhythm en route to a 10.05 win. Sixty-five minutes later, he returned to the track for the 200m which he took with an equally graceful run, clocking 20.13.
&ldquo;I was just out here to have fun,&rdquo; Lyles said, explaining that he decided to double back after a training session last night left him energetic and feeling good. After his victory at the Monaco Diamond League meeting last week, Lyles said, &ldquo;this was just icing on the cake. I don&rsquo;t get to run two races very often so it was a lot of fun. Physically I feel healthy, which is the most important. Now it&rsquo;s time to go home and get ready for next year.&rdquo;&nbsp;
As he did in Monaco, Lyles raised his black-gloved fist into the air during his introduction before the 100m. He said he&rsquo;s going to keep wearing it.
&ldquo;The glove is a sign that we in the African-American community are struggling in America,&rdquo; he said. "I have a platform and I intend to use it.&rdquo;
Italy&rsquo;s Eseosa Desalu was second in the 200m in 20.35, a season&rsquo;s best. Adam Gemili, who was second in the 100m in 10.28, was third over the half lap in 20.56.
Lynna Irby, winner of the 400m in Monaco, fought off two-time world champion Dafne Schippers to win the women's 200m here, clocking 22.55.
<h3>Ortega out-leans Holloway</h3>
With the season&rsquo;s four fastest men in the field, the showdown in the 110m hurdles was to be of the evening&rsquo;s key attractions, and it lived up to expectations.
Grant Holloway got out well, building a clear lead by hurdle four and building on it over barriers five, six and seven. But then Orlando Ortega got to work, chipping away at the lead over hurdles eight and nine, running nearly even by the tenth before taking down the world champion on the lean by 0.01 in 13.21.&nbsp;
In the women&rsquo;s sprint hurdles, Nadine Visser won her fifth race in as many starts this year, clocking 12.68 to equal her world lead set in Turku&rsquo;s Continental Tour Gold stop last week. 
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Hungary&rsquo;s Luca Kozak and Nadine Visser in Szekesfehervar</div>
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She held off a strong challenge by Hungary&rsquo;s Luca Kozak who closed hard to clock 12.71 to break the national record in her country&rsquo;s biggest international invitational.
Further back, European champion Elvira Herman was third in 12.96.
<h3>Zango prevails in triple jump summit</h3>
African record-holder Hugues Fabrice Zango prevailed in the season&rsquo;s finest gathering of triple jumpers, sailing to a 17.43m effort in the fourth round for the day&rsquo;s only world lead. He was strong from the outset, reaching 17.40m in round two.
Christian Taylor reached 17.34m (twice) to finish second, just ahead of arch-rival Pedro Pablo Pichardo of Portugal who jumped 17.28m. Both were season's bests.
The women&rsquo;s long jump also featured a close contest, with Nastassia Mironchyk-Ivanova notching a minor upset over Ukraine&rsquo;s Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk by one centimetre with a 6.77m best. That jump came in the first round but she was consistent, reaching 6.72m in the second round and 6.73m in the sixth.
<h3>Stahl&rsquo;s momentum continues</h3>
Daniel Stahl continued his winning ways in the discus, edging Andrius Gudzius, the man he succeeded as world champion, by 23 centimetres with a 67.31m effort. Gudzius led early, if briefly, delivering his 67.08m best effort in the third round. But Stahl responded well, wrestling away the lead in the next round to seal his 11th straight victory. 
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Wojciech Nowicki spins to victory in Szekesfehervar</div>
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Wojciech Nowicki prevailed in what may end up being the finest gathering of hammer throwers on the planet this year. The three-time world bronze medallist took command in the fifth round with a 78.07m effort to take the lead from home favourite Bence Halasz who reached 78.00m in round four. Both fouled in the final round giving the Pole the win.
Teenager Mykhaylo Kokhan of Ukraine improved to 77.78m to finish third ahead of four-time world champion Pawel Fajdek who threw 76.08m.
The meeting kicked off in the early afternoon with the women's hammer, where French record-holder Alexandra Tavernier prevailed. The 26-year-old shook the rust out with a 71.73m effort in the second round, to trail Pole Malwina Kopron by a single centimetre. She took command in the third round with a 73.09m effort to secure the win. Kopron improved to 72.00m, also in the third round, to finish second with Hanna Malyshchyk, the world leader, finishing third with a 70.59m best.&nbsp; 
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Wesley Vasquez and Donavan Brazier in the Szekesfehervar 600m</div>
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<h3>Brazier holds off Vasquez in 600m</h3>
The evening-capping men&rsquo;s 600m turned out to be more of a race than an assault on Johnny Gray&rsquo;s 1:12.81 world best set 34 years ago. As world 800m champion Donavan Brazier predicted, he had a strong contest on his hands with World Championships finalist Wesley Vasquez lined up next to him. The Puerto Rican star went out hard, led into the homestretch and looked to be on his way to victory until Brazier finally reeled him in over the final 30 metres. Brazier clocked 1:15.07, Vasquez 1:15.31.
<h3>Afternoon wind and rains impact 400m races</h3>
The strong shifting winds in the mid-afternoon, coupled with steady fits of chilly pelting showers, impacted most of the one-lap races.
Wadeline Jonathas won the women&rsquo;s 400m in 52.09, edging Dutchwoman Lieke Klaver by a scant 0.02.
&ldquo;It was really, really windy,&rdquo; said Jonathas, the fourth-place finisher at last year&rsquo;s World Championships. &ldquo;And the rain was cool, like little pieces of ice."&nbsp;
Khamari Montgomery, last year&rsquo;s NCAA champion, won the men&rsquo;s race in 45.50, a season&rsquo;s best for his first career international invitational victory in his last race of the season. Josephus Lyles, the younger of the Lyles brothers in attendence tonight, was second in 46.08.
World leader Femke Bol was also battered by the winds, but still won the women&rsquo;s 400m hurdles by more than a second in 54.67. Ukraine&rsquo;s Anna Ryzhkova was second in 55.86.&nbsp;
And earlier, David Kendziera won the men's 400m hurdles in 50.00.
<h3>Local restrictions force meeting behind closed doors</h3>
A recent tightening of restrictions on public gatherings forced organisers to hold the meeting with no spectators.
&ldquo;Only two weeks before the meeting, we had to take the tough decision of staging the meet behind closed doors as we could only have allowed in a very small crowd based on local restrictions," meeting Managing Director Peter Deutsch said.
&ldquo;Yet along the way we never lost sight of our goal, which is to organise a true athletics meeting, and not a downscaled version with empty lanes or individual performances spanned across continents and the internet.&rdquo;
Deutsch said his team ensured that the safety of everyone involved in the meeting, especially the athletes, remained their primary objective.&nbsp;
&ldquo;We truly are in a lucky situation that all athletes who arrived here have tested negative for the virus and by keeping the required social distancing in every area of the organisation, during transport, dining, training and competing, we intend on maintaining this healthy atmosphere.&rdquo;
Bob Ramsak for World Athletics

Noah Lyles closed his abbreviated 2020 season with an impressive double dash victory to highlight the tenth edition of the Gyulai Memorial, a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting in Szekesfehervar, Hungary, on Wednesday (19).

Lyles takes dash double in Szekesfehervar 

Johannes Vetter produced his best throw for more than two years to win the javelin at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku on Tuesday (11), providing the highlight of the first World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting of 2020.
In what was perhaps the highest quality outdoor meeting of the year so far &ndash; and, with about 6000 fans, certainly one of the best attended &ndash; Vetter&rsquo;s 91.49m was one of six meeting records set tonight in the Finnish city. The other standout performance came from world champion Daniel Stahl, who added almost three metres to the meeting record in the discus.
Since opening his season in late July, 2017 world champion Vetter has improved with each competition. The German recorded three fouls in his season opener in Zweibrucken but then found his rhythm in Kuortane on 1 August, winning with 86.94m. Eight days later, he won the German title with 87.36m.
It didn&rsquo;t take him long to settle into the competition in Turku as he sent his spear out to 91.49m in the opening round, adding 21 centimetres to the meeting record set by compatriot Thomas Rohler in 2016, the year in which he won the Olympic title. 
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 Vetter took three more throws, and although he didn&rsquo;t improve on his opening mark, any one of them would have been enough to win: 87.59m, 88.57m and 86.42m.
European silver medallist Andreas Hofmann, a 90-metre thrower at his best, unleashed a season&rsquo;s best of 85.24m in the fourth round to move into second place. Latvian champion Gatis Cakss was third with 82.65m, just ahead of Hungary&rsquo;s Norbert Rivasz-Toth (82.22m).
&ldquo;The big throw was a surprise,&rdquo; said Vetter, who took bronze at the World Championships last year. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t want to risk too much because I felt a little bit tired.&rdquo;
One day after throwing a world-leading 71.37m in Sollentuna, Stahl was close to the 70-metre line once again in Turku.
Understandably, given the tight turn around, he needed a couple of rounds to get into the groove in Turku, but after registering fouls in the first two rounds, he sent his discus out to 69.23m in round three to add almost three metres to the meeting record. 
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Daniel Stahl celebrates his discus victory at the World Athletics Continental Tour meeting in Turku</div>
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Lithuania&rsquo;s 2017 world champion Andrius Gudzius, who opened with 65.55m before throwing 66.39m in round three, was relegated to second place, marginally ahead of Slovenia&rsquo;s Kristjan Ceh, who threw 66.07m in round three.
Stahl&rsquo;s fifth-round throw was measured at 70.20m, but after the conclusion of the competition it was ruled a foul.
"I just heard it [about the disqualification of his 70.20m throw] when I came to the mixed zone," said Stahl. "If the judge says it's a foul, it's a foul. I didn't feel it in the circle, that I was fouling, but I'm pretty happy that I showed the people that I could throw 70m with a tailwind.
"It has been such a great evening," he added. "6000 people here, a Finnish crowd screaming at me because I'm half Finnish &ndash; it's such a great feeling. In Sweden there have only been like 50 people, because of the restrictions around the corona situation. So, yes, totally different here than back home and in other countries."
<h3>World leads from Visser and Pozzi</h3>
In a competitive 100m hurdles final, European indoor champion Nadine Visser emerged victorious in 12.68, her fastest time outside of the World Championships last year. 
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Nadine Visser wins the 100m hurdles at the World Athletics Continental Tour meeting in Turku</div>
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The Dutch hurdler finished a metre ahead of Italy&rsquo;s Luminosa Bogliolo (12.79) and Hungary&rsquo;s Luca Kozak, who set a PB of 12.83. Finnish record-holder Annimari Korte was fourth in 12.89.
"I'm really happy," said Visser. "It's my first really big competition. I've had quite a lot of time to train, of course, and it's going well, and I felt like I could do what I've shown in training, so now I'm looking forward to more competitions."
After impressing in the heats with 13.25, Britain&rsquo;s world indoor champion Andrew Pozzi was a clear winner of the 110m hurdles final with 13.17, the second-fastest time of his career. It also shaved 0.01 from the meeting record. France&rsquo;s Wilhem Belocian was second in 13.38. 
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Andrew Pozzi wins the 110m hurdles at the World Athletics Continental Tour meeting in Turku</div>
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Pozzi&rsquo;s compatriot Melissa Courtney-Bryant was even more dominant. The European indoor bronze medallist ran away from the field in the second half of the 1500m to win in 4:03.69, just a quarter of a second shy of the PB she set when taking bronze at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Belgium&rsquo;s Elisa Vanderelst finished more than five seconds adrift to take second place in 4:09.32.
Greece&rsquo;s Nikoleta Kiriakopoulou took victory in the pole vault on countback from Britain&rsquo;s Holly Bradshaw. Both women cleared a best of 4.63m to add a centimetre to the meeting record, but Kiriakopoulou&rsquo;s first-time clearances at the earlier heights gave her the edge.
The other jumping events were similarly close as just two centimetres separated Jazmin Sawyers from fellow Briton Abigail Irozuru in the long jump, 6.54m to 6.52m. Sawyers&rsquo; leap equalled the meeting record set 23 years ago by Hungary&rsquo;s Tunde Vaszi.
Kristiina Makela&rsquo;s 14.12m delighted the home crowd as the Finn won by four centimetres from Bulgaria&rsquo;s Gabriela Petrova.
Elsewhere, Italy&rsquo;s Lamont Marcell Jacobs held off CJ Ujah to win the 100m in 10.11 (1.3m/s), while Finland&rsquo;s Topi Raitanen took a comfortable victory in the 3000m steeplechase with 8:22.45.
At the start of the competition, <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/heritage-plaque/news/heritage-plaque-turku-paavo-nurmi-games" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Paavo Nurmi Games meeting organisers were presented with their Heritage Plaque</a>.
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

Johannes Vetter produced his best throw for more than two years to win the javelin at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku on Tuesday (11), providing the highlight of the first World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting of 2020.

Vetter and Stahl break meeting records in Turku

Allyson Felix notched a pair of impressive victories to highlight the Inspiration Games, the Zurich Diamond League organisers' entertaining and innovative answer to the global coronavirus pandemic that brought together 30 athletes competing in seven venues across two continents on Thursday (9).
Felix, competing in Walnut, California, near Los Angeles, kicked off the meeting with a solid victory in the 150m and brought it to its conclusion with her anchor leg on the victorious squad in the closing 3x100m relay. All without another competitor on the track.
Felix&rsquo;s immediate reaction to this first in her storied career?
"Very strange,&rdquo; she said, with a wide smile. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s kind of like practice but not really, with no teammates.&rdquo;
Running alone, she said, &ldquo;It's hard to challenge yourself. But I love this sport so any chance to get out here and run. I'm all about that.&rdquo;
Action on the tracks kicked off with the women's 150m, with Swiss star Mujinga Kambundji competing in Zurich, Olympic 400m champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo in Bradenton, Florida, 8000 kilometres and six time zones west, and Felix, another 4000 kilometres to her west.
With track configurations and the camera angles on the synchronized stream varying slightly, it was difficult to follow who was leading until moments before the three approached the finish line. Felix crossed hers first in 16.81, well clear of Miller-Uibo who stopped the clock in 17.15. Kambundji clocked 17.28.
Oddly enough, even as they raced from tracks on opposite coasts of the United States, the winds in their respective races were nearly identical. Felix battled a 2.6 m/s headwind and Miller-Uibo a 2.5.
Felix returned to the track to team with Candace Hill and Tianna Bartoletta to collect another dominant victory in the meet-capping 3x100m relay, the trio clocking 32.25 ahead of a Swiss team that clocked 32.50 in Zurich and a Dutch squad that clocked 32.94 in Papendal.
"This is fun," Felix said. "I can't wait until we can do it in person."
Conversely, the men's 100yd was the day&rsquo;s only on-site face-off, with Jimmy Vicaut of France, Canadian Andre de Grasse and Olympic 110m hurdles champion Omar McLeod meeting on the Bradenton track where they faced a 3.4m/s headwind. For the first half, it was an evenly matched affair until de Grasse, running in the middle of the track, and Vicaut, running on the inside, broke away. De Grasse closed best to nab the narrow victory in 9.68, 0.04 ahead of Vicaut. McLeod was a distant third in 9.87.
<h3>Moline&rsquo;s victorious return</h3>
In the 300m hurdles, Georganne Moline made the most of her late hour call up, powering her way to an impressive win in 39.08 on the Walnut track.
"I promised I'd never take another race or opportunity for granted," said Moline, who'd been sideline with a foot injury for the past 18 months. From the gun, it was clear she&rsquo;d remain true to her word.
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Georganne Moline in the Inspiration Games</div>
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Clearly ahead by the first hurdle, she padded her lead over each of the next three before cruising through to the finish.
"We just tried to treat it as a practice, but there was lots of anxiety going into the race," she admitted. Moline, who was fifth in the 400m hurdles at the 2012 Olympics, stepped in to replace world 400m hurdles champion and world record holder Dalilah Muhammad at the beginning of the week.
Running in Zurich&rsquo;s Letzigrund Stadium, Lea Sprunger was second in 39.25. Czech Zuzana Hejnova, competing in cooler and wetter conditions in Papendal, Netherlands, was a distant third in 40.97.
<h3>Lyles foiled by start line snafu</h3>
But there was disappointment for Noah Lyles whose dominant performance in the 200m seemed too good to be true from the moment the clock stopped at a would-be world record of 18.90.
It was later learned that he was lined up in the wrong lane and ran just 185 metres. The mishap moved him from first to third, with the win - and the US$10,000 winner&rsquo;s cheque - going to Christophe Lemaitre who clocked 20.65 at Letzigrund. Churandy Martina clocked 20.81 in Papendal to finish second.
<h3>Pichardo takes triple jump showdown</h3>
Competing on his track in Lisbon, Pedro Pablo Pichardo prevailed in the triple jump with a 17.40m (+2.3) effort in the second round. World and Olympic champion Christian Taylor struggled in the early going but produced his best in the sixth round, reaching 17.27m (+4.2) in Bradenton to beat back Omar Craddock who leaped 17.04m in the second round in Walnut.
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Pedro Pablo Pichardo at the Inspiration Games in Lisbon</div>
&nbsp;
Sam Kendricks took a solid victory in the pole vault with a first attempt clearance at 5.81m. Competing in Bradenton, the two-time world champion jumped well, topping 5.36m, 5.46m, 5.56m and 5.66m with his first attempts. Shifting winds caused some problems at the next height, 5.76m, which he topped on his third go.
Piotr Lisek, jumping in Karlstad, Sweden, was second with 5.66m.
Sandi Morris, who was also jumping in Bradenton, took the women's event with 4.66m. Swede Angelica Bengtsson, in Karlstad, was second at 4.46m. Like Valentin Lavillenie in the men's competition, Katerina Stefanidi, who was jumping in Walnut, no-heighted at 4.46m.
Bob Ramsak for World Athletics

Allyson Felix notched a pair of impressive victories to highlight the Inspiration Games, the Zurich Diamond League organisers' entertaining and innovative answer to the global coronavirus pandemic that brought together 30 athletes competing in seven venues across two continents on Thursday (9).

Felix shines at Inspiration Games

In one of the highest quality weekends of the 2020 outdoor season so far, several world and Olympic medallists were in action across Europe, North America and Asia.
Following an unbeaten indoor campaign and a 5.86m victory in Oslo last month, world record-holder Mondo Duplantis maintained his winning streak in the pole vault. The 20-year-old Swede, competing at the Bauhaus Jump Challenge in Gothenburg on Saturday (4), sailed over his opening heights of 5.35m, 5.50m and 5.60m on his first attempts. He then needed two tries at 5.70m, the height at which he effectively won the competition as Norway&rsquo;s European U20 champion Pal Haugen Lillefosse topped out at 5.60m.
Duplantis then got over 5.85m on his first try and scaled a world-leading 5.94m on his third. That proved to be his best mark of the day as he ended his series with three unsuccessful attempts at 6.00m.
Compatriot Michaela Meijer won the women&rsquo;s contest with a first-time clearance of 4.60m and went on to have three attempts at 4.82m. Opponents Angelica Bengtsson and Lisa Gunnarsson failed to get over their opening heights.
<h3>Solid sprinting in Florida</h3>
European indoor silver medallist Thobias Montler won the men&rsquo;s long jump with a wind-assisted 8.13m, also landing a wind-legal 8.07m (1.5m/s). Khaddi Sagnia enjoyed a similarly comfortable victory in the women&rsquo;s long jump, leaping 6.64m (0.0m/s).
Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Noah Lyles were among the top sprinters opened their outdoor campaigns in Florida at the &lsquo;Showdown in Otown&rsquo; meeting in Montverde on Saturday.
Miller-Uibo kick-started her afternoon with a 50.52 win over 400m, beating 2014 world U20 200m champion Kaylin Whitney, who clocked a PB of 51.99.
Five hours later, the Olympic 400m champion was back on track, this time for the 200m, which she duly won in 22.61 (-1.1m/s). 2018 NCAA 400m champion Lynna Irby was second in 23.06.
Lyles, contesting his first race since anchoring the USA to victory in the 4x100m at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, sped to a 9.93 win in his 100m heat, helped by a following wind of 4.0m/s. 2017 world champion Justin Gatlin was second in that heat in 9.99 and neither man went on to contest the final.
USA&rsquo;s 2016 world indoor 60m champion Trayvon Bromell also impressed in the heats. The 2015 world 100m bronze medallist, who has been hampered by injury for the best part of three years, won his heat in 10.04 (1.6m/s), his fastest time since the 2016 Olympic final.
Kenny Bednarek, who won his heat in a PB of 10.23, went on to improve that by winning the final in 10.14. Less than two hours later, he won the 200m in a world-leading 20.06 (1.0m/s), finishing ahead of Josephus Lyles (20.41).
Double NCAA sprint champion Sha&rsquo;Carri Richardson also impressed in the 100m. After a wind-assisted 10.94 (2.8m/s) in the heats, she won the final in a world-leading 11.05 (0.5m/s), beating Hannah Cunliffe (11.14).
<h3>Sutej tops 4.75m world lead</h3>
Pole vaulter Tina Sutej topped 4.75m at the two-day Slovenia Cup competition in Ljubljana on Sunday (5), another world lead.
Competing for the first time this season, the 31-year-old 2016 Olympic finalist topped 4.25m, 4.45m, 4.65m and 4.75m to improve her own national record by two centimetres. She then bowed out with three tries at 4.80m.
Rising discus throw star Kristjan Ceh won his specialty with a 65.27m effort and Neja Filipic captured the horizontal jump double with leaps of 6.49m in the long jump and 14.32 m(+2.2) in the triple jump.
The &lsquo;Test Wedstrijd&rsquo; meeting in Arnhem was held in poor conditions on Saturday (4), but it didn&rsquo;t seem to affect European U20 champion Femke Bol.
The 20-year-old took almost a second from her PB in the 400m hurdles, clocking a Dutch record of 54.47. Elsewhere, Nadine Visser won the 100m hurdles in 12.90 (0.9m/s) after a 12.99 run in the heats.
World champion Daniel Stahl did just enough to win the discus in Hasselby on Saturday. The Swede recorded three valid throws just beyond 66 metres, the best landing at 66.55m. Compatriot Simon Pettersson improved throughout the competition and ended his series with 66.32m, just 23 centimetres shy of Stahl&rsquo;s winning mark.
With lockdown restrictions having now eased in Japan, several of the country&rsquo;s top distance stars returned to action in Shibetsu on Saturday.
World U20 3000m champion Nozomi Tanaka sped to a PB of 4:08.68 in the 1500m, holding off Keny&rsquo;'s Helen Lobun (4:10.00). World finalist Ronald Kwemoi won the men&rsquo;s event in a world-leading 3:38.33, beating fellow Kenyan Justus Soget (3:39.23).
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

In one of the highest quality weekends of the 2020 outdoor season so far, several world and Olympic medallists were in action across Europe, North America and Asia.

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Murphy, Purrier St Pierre and Nilsen among the winners on day of surprises in Eugene

Hall leaps from sub-two to sub-four in Melbourne

Kiplimo makes history for Uganda at World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020

Jepchirchir breaks women-only world record at World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020

Kitata conquers Kipchoge while Kosgei retains title at London Marathon

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