Josh Hoey wins the 1500m in Boston (© Dan Vernon)
Josh Hoey, Melissa Courtney-Bryant and Andrew Coscoran made their mark with exciting distance wins, while Olympic champions Julien Alfred, Rai Benjamin and Grant Holloway kick-started their seasons with victory at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in Boston on Sunday (2).
This season’s third World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting was a star-studded affair, with some of the sport’s biggest names starring in a series of sprint showdowns.
But the event’s distance duels also demanded the spotlight and the men’s 1500m was no exception.
Two weeks on from running a North American 1000m record of 2:14.48 that put him at No.2 on the world all-time list, Hoey looked a man on a mission.
The US 25-year-old took the form he showed in Philadelphia with him to Boston and ran the fastest 1500m in the world so far this year, clocking 3:33.66 to shave almost five seconds off his previous outright best and hold off double Olympic medallist Grant Fisher (3:33.99).
Those times put Hoey and Fisher respectively third and fourth on the North American indoor all-time list behind only Yared Nuguse and Hobbs Kessler, while Australia’s Oliver Hoare ran 3:34.91 to finish third.
“It feels really great. It’s validating for all of the training we’ve done the past couple of months,” said Hoey. “We’re going to look to keep pushing this momentum throughout the rest of indoors and outdoors, so I’m not trying to slow down anytime soon.”
Great Britain’s Courtney-Bryant got a world lead of her own in the 3000m. Running a PB of 8:28.69, the European indoor bronze medallist improved her previous best by more than nine seconds. Kicking past USA’s Elise Cranny down the back straight, Courtney-Bryant won by more than a second as Cranny followed her home in a PB of 8:29.87.
Parker Valby, making her professional debut, was third in 8:34.95, while Sarah Healy ran an Irish record of 8:35.19 in fourth.
Healy’s compatriot Coscoran also made a statement in the men’s 3000m. Timing his kick to perfection, he stormed past Azeddine Habz and was rewarded with a huge personal best, clocking 7:30.75 to improve the previous Irish indoor record by eight seconds.
Behind him, Habz ran a French indoor record of 7:31.50, while 18-year-old Cameron Myers followed his world U20 indoor mile record in New York last month with an Australian indoor record of 7:33.12 that puts him fourth on the world U20 all-time list.
World indoor champion Bryce Hoppel eased to victory in the 800m, winning by half a second in 1:46.04 ahead of Abraham Alvarado, while Heather MacLean improved her own meeting record by a tenth of a second to win the mile. Clocking 4:23.32, she pipped Olympic finalist Susan Ejore (4:23.55) and Sinclaire Johnson (4:23.58).
Alfred, Benjamin and Lyles star in sprints
Olympic 100m champion Alfred started her season by stepping up to the 300m and she did so in style, running a Saint Lucian record of 36.16 to win a head-to-head against her training partner Dina Asher-Smith, who finished second in 36.87.
The Olympic 400m hurdles champion starred in the men’s event and while Benjamin was challenged by Vernon Norwood off the final bend, the hurdles specialist had judged it perfectly and he eased to victory - 32.21 to 32.39.
The men’s 60m final featured the past two Olympic 100m champions in Noah Lyles and Marcell Jacobs but in the end it was Terrence Jones who proved the biggest challenger. After winning his heat in 6.55, Lyles returned to win the final in 6.52, with Jones second in 6.57 and Jacobs fourth in 6.63, one place behind PJ Austin (6.60).
Continuing his domination, Holloway secured his fourth successive 60m hurdles victory at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, clocking 7.42 to take his unbeaten streak in the discipline into an 11th year.
After winning his heat in 7.47, the Olympic and world 110m hurdles champion looked majestic in the final – breezing away from his rivals to finish clear ahead of Olympic finalist Freddie Crittenden, second in 7.54.
In a battle between the Olympic champion and world indoor champion, it was the Olympic champion who won in the women’s event – USA’s Masai Russell dipping to victory in 7.80. Her compatriot and fellow Olympic finalist Grace Stark secured second place just 0.01 back, with world indoor champion and world indoor record-holder Devynne Charlton of The Bahamas claiming third place in 7.85.
After leading the first round with a 7.15 heat win, USA’s Jacious Sears returned to win the women’s 60m final in 7.11 as she narrowly held off Liberia’s Destiny Smith-Barnett and USA’s Celera Barnes, who both ran 7.14. Oceanian record-holder Zoe Hobbs was just 0.01 back in fourth.
USA’s 17-year-old Quincy Wilson improved his own world U18 indoor best to win the 400m. Running wide around the final bend, he passed Trinidad and Tobago’s 2022 world indoor champion Jereem Richards and then South Africa’s race leader Zakithi Nene, surging to victory in 45.66. The performance takes a tenth of a second off Wilson's own previous world age-group best, set in Boston last March, and puts him eighth on the world U20 indoor all-time list. His compatriot Will Sumner also finished fast to clinch the runner-up spot in 46.27.
USA’s Tokyo Olympic 800m bronze medallist Raevyn Rogers won the 500m in 1:08.98, while just 5cm separated the top two in the women’s triple jump, USA’s double Olympic bronze medallist Jasmine Moore eventually securing the win ahead of Anne-Suzanna Fosther-Katta thanks to her fourth-round leap of 13.89m.
