A world or Olympic final is quite a common yardstick to use when measuring the quality of any field. But the women&rsquo;s 5000m line-up at the Meeting de Paris &ndash; the French stop on the Wanda Diamond League on Friday (9) &ndash; is arguably better than any global championships start list.
One week on from her record-breaking 1500m feat in Florence, Faith Kipyegon will move up to a distance she has not contested for eight years, and will take on three other world record-holders: Letesenbet Gidey, Beatrice Chepkoech and Ejgayehu Taye.
Kipyegon has only contested two 5000m races to date, both back in 2015, and the last of which was also in Paris. Her PB stands at 14:31.95, but that came in a season when she was in 3:59 form for 1500m, and before she won double world and Olympic golds. The 29-year-old Kenyan now has 3:49.11 1500m speed in her legs, as well as superb natural endurance &ndash; as shown by her 62-second winning margin over 10km at the Sirikwa Cross Country meeting in Eldoret earlier this year.
Put simply: if Kipyegon doesn&rsquo;t smash her personal best, it would be a huge surprise.
The victory, however, may be harder to come by. But in recent months Kipyegon has spoken about a potential move up in distance &ndash; and one that will eventually lead to the marathon &ndash; so Friday&rsquo;s race will be something of a stepping stone towards that goal.
World 10,000m champion Gidey hasn&rsquo;t raced since the World Cross Country Championships in Bathurst in February where she was leading up until the final 20 metres before her legs gave way. As the world record-holder over 5000m and 10,000m, the 25-year-old Ethiopian will be keen to put in a strong showing to show that her Bathurst performance was but a blip.
Taye holds the world record for the road 5km at 14:19, but is also an accomplished performer on the track. She set an African 3000m record of 8:19.52 in 2021, and last year she held the world-leading 5000m mark of 14:12.98.
Chepkoech is the fourth world record-holder in the field. The Kenyan holds the steeplechase world record and is the 2019 world champion at that distance, but she is internationally competitive in flat events too, having earned Commonwealth 1500m silver in 2018. She has a 5000m PB of 14:39.33 and previously held the world road 5km record.
But these four women are just the tip of an incredibly high-quality iceberg that is the 5000m in Paris.
The line-up also includes world indoor 3000m champion Lemlem Hailu of Ethiopia, Olympic 1500m silver medallist Laura Muir of Great Britain, 2019 world silver medallist Margaret Kipkemboi, world cross-country bronze medallist Agnes Ngetich, North American 10,000m record-holder Alicia Monson, and up-and-coming Kenyan Grace Loibach Nawowuna, who recently clocked 29:47.42 for 10,000m.
That&rsquo;s still not all. Ethiopian duo Diribe Welteji and Freweyni Hailu &ndash; both of whom are 800m and 1500m specialists &ndash; will be making their 5000m debut.
A clash of the titans with other sub-plots and storylines, this race has the potential to be one of the big talking points of the year.
Much has also been said of the women&rsquo;s 400m in Paris.
World and Olympic champion Sydney McLauhglin-Levrone will open her outdoor campaign with a lap of the Stade Charlety &ndash; sans barriers &ndash; and it is a highly anticipated appearance for many reasons.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/07ea9dcf-1904-4a4a-97d8-ddb7de2d80c1.jpg" alt="Sydney McLaughlin at the Diamond League meeting in Oslo" />
Sydney McLaughlin at the Diamond League meeting in Oslo (&copy; Deca Text &amp; Bild)
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The World Female Athlete of the Year last competed in a Diamond League race back in 2019. Since then, she has become a sporting superstar, winning Olympic gold and the 2022 world title in the 400m hurdles, both in world record times.
Her PB for that event, 50.68, is faster than the 400m flat season&rsquo;s bests of all but two of the entrants for the race in Paris. And while no one would expect her to replicate the 47.91 clocking she produced in the 4x400m at the 2022 World Championships, it gives an indication as to her foot speed on the flat. Either way, her 50.07 PB seems to be living on borrowed time.
A sub-50-second time will most likely be needed to win, as Marileidy Paulino from the Dominican Republic is in the field. The world and Olympic silver medallist is undefeated in nine races across a range of distances this year, and she recently reduced her 400m PB to 48.98 to win in LA. After that race, she told reporters she has &ldquo;no fear&rdquo; about taking on McLaughlin-Levrone.
Salwa Eid Naser, the 2019 world champion, is also in the field, as are Jamaica&rsquo;s Candice McLeod, Poland&rsquo;s European silver medallist Natalia Kaczmarek, world finalist Lieke Klaver, and recent Hypo Meeting heptathlon winner Anna Hall.
<h2>Girma takes on the barriers, Ingebrigtsen aims to beat one</h2>
Having temporarily shifted his focus to running on the flat &ndash; and to great effect &ndash; Lamecha Girma will return to the steeplechase in Paris.
The Ethiopian broke the long-standing world indoor 3000m record earlier this year, and last month he opened his outdoor campaign with a victory over that same distance in Doha. The world and Olympic silver medallist will now try to put some of his new-found speed to use over the barriers.
He&rsquo;ll face Kenyan duo Abraham Kibiwot and Benjamin Kigen, Japanese record-holder Ryuji Miura, Ethiopia&rsquo;s Hailemariyam Amare, France&rsquo;s Djilali Bedrani and Spain&rsquo;s Fernando Carro.
World and Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen will have certain times in mind when he takes to the start line for his first ever two-mile race. Mo Farah&rsquo;s European best of 8:07.85 seems ripe for the picking, while the eight-minute mark &ndash; a barrier that has been broken by just one man, Daniel Komen &ndash; is a tantalising goal. The world best of 7:58.61 could even be a stretch target for the Norwegian.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6473cad4163ac3413959fe59.jpg" alt="Jakob Ingebrigtsen leads the 1500m in Rabat" />
Jakob Ingebrigtsen leads the 1500m in Rabat (&copy; AFP / Getty Images)
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Others in the line-up include world U20 cross-country champion Ishmael Kipkirui, world and Olympic 5000m medallist Paul Chelimo, and multiple Oceanian record-holder Stewart McSweyn.
Both 800m races boast competitive fields.
In the women&rsquo;s event, European champion and Olympic silver medallist Keely Hodgkinson takes on world indoor champion Ajee Wilson, along with 2019 world champion Halima Nakaayi, Olympic bronze medallist Raevyn Rogers, Jamaica&rsquo;s Natoya Goule and Australia&rsquo;s in-form Catriona Bisset.
Algeria&rsquo;s Slimane Moula, who produced a stunning finish to win the men&rsquo;s 800m in Doha last month, will take on Olympic champion Emmanuel Korir, world leader Emmanuel Wanyonyi, and world silver medallist Djamel Sedjati.
<h2>Third time lucky for Jacobs</h2>
An injury niggle prevented Olympic 100m champion Marcell Jacobs from opening his season in Rabat and then Florence, but the Italian sprinter is hoping to get his 2023 campaign under way in Paris.
But if world 200m champion Noah Lyles can combine a solid start with his finishing speed from his recent outing in Bermuda, he will be tough to beat. African record-holder Ferdinand Omanyala, 2011 world champion Yohan Blake, 2018 world indoor bronze medallist Ronnie Baker and world U20 record-holder Letsile Tebogo are also in the line-up.
Marie Josee Ta Lou has started 2023 in superb form over 100m, but the Ivorian sprinter will test her speed over 200m in Paris. She&rsquo;ll take on 2019 world champion Dina Asher-Smith, Olympic bronze medallist Gabby Thomas, and sub-22-second performers Abby Steiner, Jenna Prandini and Tamara Clark.
Two-time world champion Grant Holloway will take on some of his strongest domestic opponents as well as France&rsquo;s finest in the 110m hurdles. Devon Allen, Daniel Roberts, Jamal Britt and Freddie Crittenden are among the leading US contenders, while home hopes rest with Wilhem Belocian and Just Kwaou-Mathey.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6432b9790960e605141b08b2.jpg" alt="US hurdler Grant Holloway" />
US hurdler Grant Holloway (&copy; Getty Images)
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In the men&rsquo;s 400m hurdles, the in-form CJ Allen lines up against Qatar&rsquo;s Abderrahman Samba, double Commonwealth champion Kyron McMaster, world bronze medallist Trevor Bassitt, and France&rsquo;s Wilfried Happio.
<h2>US stars out in force in field events</h2>
Numerous global champions &ndash; many from the US &ndash; will highlight the field events in Paris on Friday.
Brooke Andersen, a new addition to the event&rsquo;s 80-metre club, highlights the mixed hammer event. She&rsquo;ll be joined by world bronze medallist Janee Kassanavoid and all-round throws talent Maggie Ewen.
Straight after the hammer, Ewen will hop across to the shot put circle to contest the event in which she is the world leader. She&rsquo;ll face world champion Chase Ealey, world indoor champion Auriol Dongmo, 2019 world silver medallist Danniel Thomas-Dodd, Commonwealth champion Sarah Mitton and China&rsquo;s Song Jiayuan.
Olympic champion Valarie Allman renews her rivalry with Sandra Perkovic in the discus. Allman has five wins from five competitions this year, her best throw being a world-leading 70.25m. Perkovic, meanwhile, will be opening her season in Paris. Germany&rsquo;s Kristin Pudenz and the highly experienced Melina Robert-Michon of France are also in the field.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/62cc487cfd05497c9c987a3a.jpg" alt="Val Allman" />
Val Allman
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For the third time this year, the top six finishers from the World Championships will reunite in the women&rsquo;s pole vault. World and Olympic champion Katie Moon started her season well before failing to register a height in Los Angeles, but she bounced back with a victory in Florence, where Tina Sutej finished second on countback.
Before contesting the 400m, heptathlete Anna Hall will make her first appearance of the night in the high jump. Vashti Cunningham is undefeated this year and she&rsquo;ll aim to keep that record going when she faces Olympic silver medallist Nicola Olyslagers, rising talent Angelina Topic and world bronze medallist Elena Vallortigara.
For the first time since last year&rsquo;s World Championships, two-time world champion Kelsey-Lee Barber will clash with Olympic champion Liu Shiying in the javelin. World bronze medallist Haruka Kitaguchi, European champion Elina Tzengko and world leader Sigrid Borge are all in this wide-open field.
Elsewhere, Olympic champion Miltiadis Tentoglou takes on world bronze medallist Simon Ehammer and Olympic bronze medallist Maykel Masso in the men&rsquo;s long jump. In non-scoring action, decathlon world record-holder Kevin Mayer will contest a &lsquo;triathlon&rsquo;.
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

Faith Kipyegon and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone feature in two mouth-watering clashes

Kipyegon leads clash of world record-holders in Paris 5000m

On a day that pushed legs, lungs, hearts and minds to breaking point, Austria&rsquo;s Andrea Mayr and Kenya&rsquo;s Patrick Kipngeno proved the unbreakable, unstoppable duo, taking gold in the vertical uphill events on day one of the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Innsbruck-Stubai on Wednesday (7).&nbsp;
The vertical uphill may be the shortest of the elite races here this week, but it is surely the most sadistic &ndash; with more than 1000m of elevation gain across its 7.1km course, the gradient approaching the finish at Elferhutte hitting a truly gut-wrenching 40%.&nbsp;
As USA&rsquo;s Grayson Murphy, bronze medallist in the women&rsquo;s race, put it: &ldquo;It just lasts forever."
Funny how, in certain situations, 48 minutes and 14 seconds can feel like forever. That was exactly how long it took Mayr to reach the finish, the quickest of the 102 women who had lined up by 37 seconds. It meant the 43-year-old claimed her seventh individual world mountain running title, and her first since 2017.&nbsp;
This, she had not seen coming, despite the event being on home turf.
"Of course I wanted to be one of the first five, but I was dreaming of getting a medal," she said. "I would never try to say aloud that first place would be possible.&rdquo;
Mayr had played a patient game in the race, going through the first 900m trail section down in the valley in 13th place, but by halfway she had moved her way through to the front.
"On the flat, it's not for me as I'm not that fast anymore; this year I'm 44,&rdquo; said Mayr, who represented Austria at the 2005 and 2007 World Athletics Championships in the steeplechase and at the 2012 Olympics in the marathon. &ldquo;But I know that as soon as the steep part starts, my part starts, then I could overtake and overtake."
That she did, and she piled on the pressure when the course reached its middle section. Mayr had a 33-second advantage at the 3.9km checkpoint, but at 5.9km, she had company in the form of Kenya&rsquo;s Philaries Jeruto Kisang. But as they neared the finish, and that crippling final incline, Mayr leaned into the hill and broke the spirit and the legs of her rival, who had to walk a significant part of the final kilometre. That was when Mayr had the biggest helping hand from her supporters.
"The last three minutes, it was so loud, they were cheering so much," she said. "You couldn't hear yourself breathing anymore. That takes away the toughness of the race a little bit."
She was overcome with joy at the finish. Kisang, who finished fifth last year, was also delighted with her silver medal, while Murphy was content with bronze, given she will be much better suited to the mountain classic, which she will compete in on Saturday.
"My goal was to podium, so I'm glad to get a medal count started for the US," she said.&nbsp;
Kenya took the team event ahead of Germany and the United Kingdom.&nbsp;
The men&rsquo;s race, meanwhile, saw another former gold medallist reign supreme, though this time it was a more recent winner: 2022 champion Kipngeno. He shot to the front right from the start, running like a man with little to fear from the inclines ahead. When he got to them, it was clear why.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6480aa2a1f434757f79900fd.jpg" alt="Kenya&rsquo;s Patrick Kipngeno wins the vertical uphill title in Innsbruck" />
Kenya&rsquo;s Patrick Kipngeno wins the vertical uphill title in Innsbruck (&copy; Roast Media)
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Kipngeno, who spends much of the year based in Austria, was a class apart and built a considerable advantage, which had grown to 29 seconds at the 3.9km checkpoint, with Uganda&rsquo;s Levi Kiprotich and Kenya&rsquo;s Josphat Kiprotich giving chase.
But Kipngeno was running in splendid isolation and that was how it stayed. He built a 49-second advantage by 5.9km and by the time he approached the final incline, he had time to have a seat, grab a drink and admire the stunning Alpine views, not that Kipngeno did any such thing, continuing to churn his way to the finish, high-fiving supporters. He hit the line in 40:18, a whopping 1:33 clear of Uganda&rsquo;s Levi Kiprotich in second, and 1:46 clear of the bronze medallist, his Kenyan teammate Josphat Kiprotich.
&ldquo;I thank God because I have retained my title,&rdquo; said Kipngeno, who trains in Nakuru County when he&rsquo;s back home in Kenya. &ldquo;The course was very nice, very difficult. I started going hard at 5km. I did the course before so when I was running, I was very confident because I knew all of it. I used to train in Austria. I have a lot of friends in Europe, it&rsquo;s my second home. I trained very well so I knew I was going to win.&rdquo;
Kipngeno led Kenya to team gold and he predicted his nation will be continue to be a rising force in mountain running in the years ahead. If this performance was anything to go on, then future podiums could well be filled with the black, red and green kit.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Every year we are getting better,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;In Thailand we were three (on the Kenyan team), now we are coming with seven, and every year we are increasing the number of athletes.&rdquo;
But runner-up Levi Kiprotich&nbsp;of Uganda sent a warning shot to his East African rival. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m very happy to be winning a medal this year,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But next year I&rsquo;m going to be number one.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Cathal Dennehy for World Athletics
<h3>Leading results&nbsp;</h3>
Women 1 Andrea Mayr (AUT) 48:14 2 Philaries Jeruto Kisang (KEN) 48:51 3 Grayson Murphy (USA) 49:22 4 Laura Hottenrott (GER) 49:56 5 Valentine Jepkoech Rutto (KEN) 49:59 6 Christel Dewalle (FRA) 50:04 7 Domenika Mayer (GER) 51:21 8 Scout Adkin (GBR) 51:39 9 Karoline Holsen Kyte (NOR) 51:51 10 Joyce Muthoni (KEN) 52:09
Team 1 Kenya (17) 2 Germany (33) 3 Great Britain and Northern Ireland (51)
Men 1 Patrick Kipngeno (KEN) 40:18 2 Levi Kiprotich (UGA) 41:51 3 Josphat Kiprotich (KEN) 42:04 4 Eliud Cherop (UGA) 42:16 5 Joseph Gray (USA) 42:32 6 Daniel Osanz (ESP) 42:41 7 Philemon Ombogo Kiriago (KEN) 42:54 8 Joe Steward (GBR) 43:02 9 Filimon Abraham (GER) 43:08 10 Roberto Delorenzi (SUI) 43:31
Team 1 Kenya (11) 2 Uganda (21) 3 Switzerland (45)

Austria’s Andrea Mayr and Kenya’s Patrick Kipngeno take gold in the vertical uphill events on day one of the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships

Mayr and Kipngeno win vertical races at World Mountain and Trail Running Championships

Brooke Andersen,&nbsp;Erriyon Knighton, Tom Walsh and Alaysha Johnson each made a statement with meeting record-breaking performances at the Irena Szewinska Memorial, this season&rsquo;s eighth World Athletics Continental Tour Gold event, in Bydgoszcz, Poland, on Tuesday (6).
Competing on a warm and sunny evening at the Zdzislaw Krzyszkowiak Stadium, USA's Andersen led a repeat of the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 podium in the women's hammer.
The 27-year-old launched herself to third on the world all-time list with 80.17m in Tucson last month and she achieved another impressive performance in Bydgoszcz, throwing 78.79m to improve a meeting record set by home star Anita Wlodarczyk in 2010.
The women&rsquo;s hammer was the first elite event on the programme and Andersen ensured it started on a high note, throwing 78.79m in the opening round to add 49cm to the meeting record that world record-holder and seven-time global gold medallist Wlodarczyk achieved 13 years ago. She backed it up with throws of 78.39m, 77.96m, 77.54m and 76.66m.
It meant that Andersen turned the tables on Canada&rsquo;s world silver medallist Camryn Rogers, who beat her US rival at the USATF Los Angeles Grand Prix at the end of last month with a Canadian record of 78.62m. This time Rogers threw 77.62m to finish second as USA&rsquo;s world bronze medallist Janee' Kassanavoid placed third with 75.10m.
Wlodarczyk continued her comeback by throwing 69.54m for seventh place.
"I feel really good about today," said Andersen. "I wasn&rsquo;t sure about my body state, coming off of such a big performance a few weeks ago. I&rsquo;ve been a little bit down in training, so I was just trying to feel it out today and go with the flow.
"It was kind of like a mini World Championships, in a way. There was such a stacked field today and it helped a lot with the atmosphere here."
On breaking a meeting record held by&nbsp;Wlodarczyk, Andersen added: "It&rsquo;s pretty special. To come and compete in Poland with her; I&rsquo;ve looked up to her since I started out throwing. It&rsquo;s fun throwing against her and all these other great competitors."
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Rudy Winkler of the US and Wojciech Nowicki of Poland went into the meeting as the leading two athletes on this season&rsquo;s men&rsquo;s hammer top list and that&rsquo;s the way the competition in Bydgoszcz went too, with Winkler &ndash; the world leader with 80.88m &ndash; throwing 79.70m to triumph ahead of Olympic champion Nowicki with 79.52m. Canada&rsquo;s Ethan Katzberg was third with 76.83m.
In the men&rsquo;s shot put, New Zealand&rsquo;s 2017 world champion Walsh surpassed 22 metres for the second time this year, improving his season&rsquo;s best and the meeting record to 22.22m following his victory in Chorzow on Sunday. That mark came in the fourth round, and he also threw 21.94m in the third. USA&rsquo;s Adrian Piperi improved his outdoor PB to 21.61m for second place, while Nigeria&rsquo;s Chuk Enekwechi was third with 21.32m.
USA&rsquo;s Olympic and world silver medallist Chris Nilsen won a battle with home favourite Piotr Lisek in the men&rsquo;s pole vault, clearing 5.92m before attempting a meeting record of 6.02m. Multiple world medallist Lisek had won in Chorzow but Nilsen got his revenge, as Lisek cleared a best of 5.82m to finish second. USA&rsquo;s two-time world champion Sam Kendricks and Philippines&rsquo; world bronze medallist Ernest John Obiena finished joint third on 5.72m.
There was a Ukrainian top two in the men&rsquo;s high jump, world bronze medallist Andrii Protsenko and 2013 world champion Bogdan Bondarenko both clearing a best of 2.21m but with Protsenko winning on countback.
Over on the track, USA&rsquo;s Knighton looked in cruise control in the men&rsquo;s 200m.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/647f8c29a40ab906e7787261.JPG" alt="Erriyon Knighton on his way to a 200m win in Bydgoszcz" />
Erriyon Knighton on his way to a 200m win in Bydgoszcz (&copy; Adam Nurkiewicz)
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The world bronze medallist didn&rsquo;t get the fastest start but he had the quickest finish, and after powering ahead in the second half of the race the 19-year-old was able to ease up at the end, still dipping under 20 seconds with a meeting record of 19.95 (0.7m/s).
Dominican Republic&rsquo;s world fifth-place finisher Alexander Ogando gave chase and finished second in 20.18, one place ahead of Poland&rsquo;s Albert Komanski in a PB of 20.49.
"It shows you that if I don't get a good start, I'm always going to make it up," said Knighton. "Today was about winning the race. Win the race and on to the next."
The women&rsquo;s 200m was also won in a meeting record, Britain&rsquo;s Daryll Neita taking her PB from 22.61 to 22.23 (0.8m/s) to win ahead of USA&rsquo;s Anavia Battle (22.47) and Cambrea Sturgis (22.99).
"I have not been known as a 200m specialist, but it is about to change," said Neita. "I felt this could be my best distance; this year me and my coach have worked on getting me ready for it."
Sturgis had earlier won the 100m in 11.24 (-0.8m/s), powering ahead in lane eight and dipping for victory ahead of Krystsina Tsimanouskaya (11.29) and Battle (11.34).
USA&rsquo;s Johnson might have been contesting her fourth race in two days but it didn&rsquo;t show as she blazed away in the women&rsquo;s 100m hurdles final to win in 12.41 (1.9m/s) &ndash; the joint third-fastest performance of her career.
The NACAC champion ran two races in Chorzow on Sunday, winning the B race and tying for victory in the A race. In Bydgoszcz she won her heat in 12.94 and returned an hour and a half later to complete a successful trip to Poland, taking the final ahead of Bahamian world indoor 60m hurdles silver medallist Devynne Charlton, who matched her season&rsquo;s best of 12.64. Ireland&rsquo;s Sarah Lavin was third in 12.86.
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"We don't get a lot of meets back-to-back in the US," said Johnson. "We had rounds in both (meetings in Poland) and it's the closest thing to replicate having three rounds at the World Championships. It was best for me to get somewhere, where I can see how my body reacts when the pressure is on the line.
"I knew I was always better with rounds, but it's different feeling like you can do it, versus actually going out there and putting it together."
It was close in the men&rsquo;s 110m hurdles. USA&rsquo;s Daniel Roberts, making his season debut in his specialist discipline, got a strong start but his compatriot Jamal Britt and Cuba&rsquo;s Roger Iribarne fought back in the closing stages. Although Roberts knocked a few barriers earlier on, Britt hit the last one and that seemed to make the difference as Roberts won in 13.24 (1.1m/s) to Britt&rsquo;s 13.31. Iribarne was third in 13.34.
Italy&rsquo;s Pietro Arese was understandably delighted with his 1500m win in 3:33.56 &ndash; a PB that puts him second on the Italian all-time list and took two seconds off the meeting record. Kicking down the back straight, the European Championships fourth-place finisher moved into the lead and couldn&rsquo;t be caught, leading Ireland&rsquo;s Andrew Coscoran to a PB of 3:33.87 for the runner-up spot. Britain&rsquo;s Matthew Stonier was third in 3:34.43.
A world lead was set in the first track event of the meeting as Kenya&rsquo;s Edinah Jebitok surged to victory in the women&rsquo;s mile in 4:22.85. Ahead at the bell, the 21-year-old eased away over the final lap to rebound after her ninth place in the Hengelo 1500m and triumph ahead of Ethiopia&rsquo;s Ksanet Alem (4:24.29) and Spain&rsquo;s Marta Perez (4:25.78).
&ldquo;I did not expect to run so fast today, but I fight in every race,&rdquo; said Jebitok, who placed eighth at the World Cross Country Championships in Bathurst in February. &ldquo;The conditions today are good, so it was possible to achieve a good performance.&rdquo;
Britain&rsquo;s Ben Pattison clinched a win in the men&rsquo;s 800m, running 1:45.80 to beat a fast-finishing Elias Ngeny of Kenya (1:45.99). Jamaica&rsquo;s Adelle Tracey took the women&rsquo;s race in 2:01.26 as she held off Poland&rsquo;s Adrianna Topolnicka (2:01.63) and Britain&rsquo;s Ellie Baker (2:01.64).
Jess Whittington for World Athletics

Brooke Andersen, Erriyon Knighton, Tom Walsh and Alaysha Johnson each made a statement with meeting record-breaking performances at the Irena Szewinska Memorial

Andersen and Knighton among meeting record-breakers in Bydgoszcz

More than 1100 of the world&rsquo;s top runners from 68 countries will gather in the Austrian Alps for the&nbsp;World Mountain and Trail Running Championships, which will be staged in the spectacular setting of Innsbruck and Stubai&nbsp;over the next five days (6-10).
The inaugural event was held last November in&nbsp;Chiang Mai, Thailand, and while that proved a success, the quality and quantity of competitors who have made their way to Tyrol this week suggests the second edition will be even better.&nbsp;
At the press conference on Monday afternoon, Alessio Punzi, Head of Running and Mass Participation at World Athletics, said: &ldquo;The World Championships are&nbsp;a dream come true that we started to dream in 2017. In the future, we want to attract more and more athletes and make it more and more difficult for everybody to ignore.&rdquo;
The&nbsp;elite races will play out across four challenging routes, with five events for each gender, ranging from the viciousness of the vertical uphill &ndash; which opens the elite programme on Wednesday (7) with a 7.3km event, featuring 1020m of elevation gain &ndash; to the concluding mountain classics on Saturday, featuring looped 15.5km races for senior men and women. Thursday&rsquo;s action will see competitors take on the short trail race over 44.6km, while Friday will bring a stern test with the long trail, an 85km event. 
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<h2>Watch live</h2>
 The event website <a href="https://www.innsbruck-stubai2023.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">innsbruck-stubai2023.com</a> will host live streams of the championships in six languages: English, French, Spanish, Chinese, German and Italian.
Fans can also follow the action by tuning in via the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Athletics Facebook page</a>. 
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 The planned route for the long trail had to be altered in recent weeks due to the cool spring temperatures. &ldquo;There is so much snow in places that the avalanche danger is simply too big,&rdquo; said&nbsp;Alexander Pittl, head of the organising committee. &ldquo;There is an alternative route for this case and we have already decided to switch to this.&rdquo;
Nonetheless, runners will be treated to one of the most spectacular courses on offer in the running world. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m amazed with the scenery and landscape, it is an amazing place for a runner,&rdquo; said Janet Ng, President of the International Trail Running Association. &ldquo;It is an organiser&rsquo;s dream to bring trail running in the middle of the old town and I&rsquo;m happy to be part of a historic week."
Sarah Roswell, council member of the World Mountain Running Association, said the region &ldquo;combines the infrastructure of a big city with the wilderness of the mountains,&rdquo; adding that she hopes to see mountain and trail running at the Olympics in the future.&nbsp;
To many in the off-road running world, this week will feel like an Olympics.&nbsp;
The vertical uphill races will see more than 130 men and 108 women take to the course. Some of the leading entrants in the men&rsquo;s race include Cesare Maestri of Italy, who has an International Trail Running Association performance index (ITRA PI) of 892, while Switzerland&rsquo;s Dominik Rolli is another likely to feature. However Patrick Kipngeno &ndash; who became the first Kenyan to win a mountain running world title last year &ndash; should prove tough to beat, and he will be backed up by his compatriot, and last year&rsquo;s silver medallist, Philemon Kiriago. Ireland&rsquo;s Zak Hanna could also contend for a medal, having finished fifth last year.&nbsp;
The women&rsquo;s race will see Scout Adkin of Britain, USA&rsquo;s Allie McLaughlin and Austrian great Andrea Mayr, among others, battle it out for the medals. McLaughlin beat Mayr to gold by 26 seconds at last year&rsquo;s edition in Thailand, while Switzerland&rsquo;s Maude Mathys, fourth last year, is also back and she will be hoping to reach the medal rostrum.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/647f0edc50273a7abf69d1e6.jpg" alt="Allie McLaughlin in action in Chiang Mai" />
Allie McLaughlin in action in Chiang Mai (&copy; Organisers)
</div>
The short trail fields will gather runners of exceptional quality, with 14 in the men&rsquo;s field boasting an ITRA PI of over 900. Great Britain&rsquo;s Jonathan Albon, a bronze medallist at the inaugural edition last year, will likely be favourite, topping the rankings with his ITRA PI of 938. Defending world champion Stian Angermund of Norway&nbsp;should also be a strong contender. Italy has four men ranked in the top 15, led by Davide Magnini, while France should also prove formidable with orienteering specialist Frederic Tranchand leading them on rankings. Sweden&rsquo;s Petter Engdahl is also likely to be in the mix.&nbsp;
The women&rsquo;s race will see South Africa&rsquo;s Toni McCann start as favourite, with her ITRA PI of 781, though there is a slew of strong contenders lining up alongside her, led by USA&rsquo;s Brittany Charboneau (771), Spain&rsquo;s Nuria Gil (770) and New Zealand&rsquo;s Caitlin Fielder (768). Mauritius has a decent medal chance in Marie Perrier, while Britain&rsquo;s Eleanor Davis should also be in contention.&nbsp;
The long trail will see a cluster of trail-running titans take each other on. Five men in the field have an ITRA PI of over 900, led by Germany&rsquo;s Hannes Namberger with 923. France&rsquo;s Thibaut Garrivier (912), Italy&rsquo;s Andreas Reiterer (911), Switzerland&rsquo;s Gian Schicktanz (904) and France&rsquo;s Nicolas Martin (901) will ensure it is a hard-fought battle to get on the podium.&nbsp;
On the women&rsquo;s side, reigning world champion Blandine L&rsquo;Hirondel of France tops the start lists with an ITRA PI of 812, while she will be backed up by teammates Manon Bohard Cailler (769) and Marion Delespierre (744). Spain will have a strong hand in Azara Garcia (771) and Gemma Arenas (762), while Germany&rsquo;s Rosanna Buchauer (762) should also be in the medal shake-up. Another strong contender is Nepal&rsquo;s Sunmaya Budha, who has the second highest ITRA PI in the field with 772. France will start favourites for gold in both team events.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6367978b4246a9645e99cfc9.jpg" alt="Blandine L'Hirondel celebrates her women&rsquo;s long trail win at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships" />
Blandine L'Hirondel celebrates her women&rsquo;s long trail win at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships (&copy; Marco Gulberti/Corsa in Montagna)
</div>
The classic mountain races on Saturday will begin with two U20 races, held over an up-and-down course of 7.5km, with the senior races to follow over 15.5km.&nbsp;
Kenya should again be to the fore in the senior men&rsquo;s race, with Kipngeno boasting an ITRA PI of 925 and his teammate Kiriago (903) also a strong medal candidate. Among the others in the 900 club are Spain&rsquo;s Andreu Blanes (912) and Austria&rsquo;s Manuel Innerhofer (910). Spain's Alejandro Garcia, together with Italy&rsquo;s Maestri and Alberto Vender, should also feature.&nbsp;
The women&rsquo;s race will see Sweden&rsquo;s Tove Alexandersson go in with an ITRA PI of 817, while US pair McLaughlin and Grayson Murphy, France&rsquo;s Christel Dewalle and Uganda&rsquo;s Rebecca Cheptegei should all prove strong contenders, along with Switzerland's Judith Wyder and Romania's Madalina Florea.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63655454fd6da3f95f4ec202.jpg" alt="Kenya's Patrick Kipngeno on his way to uphill victory at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships" />
Kenya's Patrick Kipngeno on his way to uphill victory at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships (&copy; Organisers)
</div>
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said the championships will &ldquo;provide an exciting opportunity to showcase a different racing challenge for distance runners and for them to come together to celebrate their shared passion for our sport.&rdquo;
He added: &ldquo;I offer my best wishes to all athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers, and of course our loyal fans for the most successful and enjoyable championships.&rdquo;
Cathal Dennehy for World Athletics

More than 1100 of the world’s top runners from 68 countries will gather in the Austrian Alps

Top off-road runners head to Innsbruck for World Mountain and Trail Running Championships

Beat plastic pollution. That's the theme for this year's World Environment Day, a global call to beat back our addiction to plastic &ndash; one that produces around 430 million tonnes of plastic each year. Of that, two-thirds are products designed for a short life, such as the 1.5 billion single-use plastic bottles used every day. Or the five trillion plastic bags used annually, a staggering 160,000 every second.
Our reliance on plastic is embedded into every aspect of modern life and while the focus on the waste that plastic produces is on bags and single-use bottles, most plastic pollution is not visible to the naked eye. Tiny fragments are polluting our soil, water and increasingly, our bodies.
But, according to the UNEP's World Environment Day 2023 Beat Plastic Pollution <a href="https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/42437/Plastic_Pollution_WED23EN.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">practical guide</a>, plastic pollution is preventable and taking action across all sectors of society can halt and reverse it. The guide provides advice on what individuals can do, the roles that non-governmental organisations, faith-based organisations and community groups can play, and the leadership and influence that science and educational organisations can use to push governments into creating stronger legislation to tackle the plastics crisis.
For runners, one solution is plogging: picking up plastic waste while out on a run. In the video below, Lucy Crookes &ndash; a graphic artist on the World Athletics communications team and an avid runner &ndash; illustrates how it is done.
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Two tools that World Athletics has developed to assist organisers to produce events in a more sustainable fashion &ndash; the <a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletics-better-world/news/iso-20121-certification-sustainable-event-management-system" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sustainable Events Management System</a>, a best practice guidance in sustainable event delivery for event organisers, and the Athletics for a Better World Standard, an evaluation system that scores events in how they deliver against the World Athletics Sustainability Strategy &ndash; both address the plastics waste crisis and provide suggestions and examples in how organisers can reduce the plastic pollution impact of their events.
Organisers of many events are already making the reduction of plastic standard operating practice. At the World Athletics Championships Oregon22, zero single-use plastic water bottles were sold or distributed by the event, which equates to approximately 325,000 single-use water bottles avoided.
The LOC also organised a &ldquo;Bring Your Own Water Bottle&rdquo; campaign, encouraging spectators, media, broadcasters and volunteers to use the 35 temporary drinking water stations installed for the event. Additionally, 8000 reusable water bottles were distributed.

How plogging can make a difference in the fight against plastic pollution

On World Environment Day, run to #BeatPlasticPollution

The World Athletics Continental Tour Gold series continues on Tuesday (6) with the <a href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-continental-tour/news/bydgoszcz-irena-szewinska-memorial-nowicki-wlodarczyk-andersen-knighton" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Irena Szewinska Memorial</a>.
There will again be some strong hammer clashes, while Erriyon Knighton will look to make another statement in the 200m, Alaysha Johnson, Devynne Charlton and Adrianna Sulek race the 100m hurdles, and Joe Kovacs and Tom Walsh go head-to-head in the shot put.
Here&rsquo;s how you can follow the action. 
<h2>Follow and watch</h2>
<a href="https://szewinska.domtel-sport.pl/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Schedule and live results</a> | <a href="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/document/647f5d40b866ae47a6849a21.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Media information sheets and athlete biographies</a>
A two-hour live stream of the meeting, on Tuesday 6 June, will be available in a number of territories via the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Athletics YouTube channel</a>. The live stream will start at 19:00 local time (17:00 GMT, 18:00 BST). 
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZMFDTFZh8t4" width="100%" height="475" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
 The YouTube stream will be geoblocked in the following territories: Albania, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua &amp; Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bolivia, Bosnia &amp; Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Caribbean Netherlands, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Comoros, Congo - Brazzaville, Congo - Kinshasa, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cura&ccedil;ao, Czechia, C&ocirc;te d&rsquo;Ivoire, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Finland, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Macao, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Martinique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozambique, Namibia, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Rwanda, Senegal, Serbia (&amp; Kosovo), Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, St. Barth&eacute;lemy, St. Kitts &amp; Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Martin, St. Vincent &amp; Grenadines, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, S&atilde;o Tom&eacute; &amp; Pr&iacute;ncipe, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Trinidad &amp; Tobago, Turks &amp; Caicos Islands, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela, Zambia, Zimbabwe
 Coverage of the meeting will be available in the territories listed below. Be sure to check local listings - some broadcasts may be live while others will consist of highlights.
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; border-color: #333333; border-style: solid; height: 971px; width: 80%;" border="1" width="80%" cellpadding="2">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">OverSport (OverSport 3)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Albania, Kosovo</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Super Sport (GSL1 / LIYU / SSM / VR3 / VR3A)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Congo DR, Ivory Coast, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 89px;">
<td style="height: 89px;" valign="top">Flow Sports</td>
<td style="height: 89px;" valign="top">Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadaloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Saint Barthelemy, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Saint Martin, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">DirecTV (VC 615/1615)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">T Sports</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Bangladesh</td>
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<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Arena Sport (AS2)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Bosnia Herzegovina</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">ESPN (STAR+)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Brazil, Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 44px;">
<td style="height: 44px;" valign="top">SPOTV (SPOTV2)</td>
<td style="height: 44px;" valign="top">Brunei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">CBC (digital channels)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Canada</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Arena Sport (AS1)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Croatia</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 44px;">
<td style="height: 44px;" valign="top">Czech TV (CT Sport and www.ceskatelevize.cz/sport)</td>
<td style="height: 44px;" valign="top">Czech Republic</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Viaplay</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Denmark</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">MTV (CMore Sport 1)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Finland</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 44px;">
<td style="height: 44px;" valign="top">Cosmote (COSMOTE Sport 6 HD)</td>
<td style="height: 44px;" valign="top">Greece</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">AMC (Sport2)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Hungary</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Viaplay</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Iceland</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Viacom 18 (Sports18 - 1 and JioCinema)&nbsp;</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">India</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Sport 5 (5 LIVE)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Israel</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Sky (Sky Sport Arena)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Italy</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Arena Sport (AP3)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Ziggo Sport (Ziggo Sport &amp; Select)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Netherlands</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Viaplay (V sport +)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Norway</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Polsat</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Poland</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">SPORT.TV (SPORT.TV2)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Portugal</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Match TV (ARENA)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Russia</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">JOJ TV (TV JOJ Sport)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Slovakia</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Arena Sport (AS3)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Slovenia</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">TVE (live on RTVE Play and delayed on Teledeporte)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Spain</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Viaplay (V Sport Extra)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Sweden</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Swiss Sport TV</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Switzerland</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">ELTA (ELTA SPORTS MAX 3)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Taiwan</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Poverkhnost (Sport 1)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Ukraine</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">Viaplay (Viaplay Sports 2)</td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">United Kingdom</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top"><a href="https://flosports.link/3MA9MpR" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FloSports</a></td>
<td style="height: 22px;" valign="top">USA</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
&nbsp;
<h2>Social media</h2>
- World Athletics: <a href="https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/worldathletics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>&nbsp;| <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TikTok</a> - Irena Szewinska Memorial: <a href="https://bydgoszczcup.pl/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/memorialirenyszewinskiej" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/memorial_ireny_szewinskiej" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>
&nbsp;

Catch all the action from the Irena Szewinska Memorial

How to follow and watch the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting in Bydgoszcz

World Athletics is deeply saddened to hear that legendary US sprinter Jim Hines died on Saturday (3) at the age of 76.
Along with being the 1968 Olympic 100m champion, Hines is best known for being the first man to break the 10-second barrier for the 100m officially.
Hines was born in Dumas, Arkansas, in September 1946, but raised in Oakland, California. Baseball was one of his early sporting interests, but athletics coach Jim Coleman spotted his running ability. By the time Hines was 17, he already ranked among the top 20 in the world over 100 yards.
Coached by 1956 triple Olympic champion Bobby Morrow, Hines achieved his first US Championships podium finish in 1965, placing second in the 200m. In 1966 he won the national 200m title, and one year later he won his first national 100 yards title. Hines also set his first ratified world records in 1967, clocking 9.1 for 100m yards and 10.0 for 100m.
Hines was the fifth man to claim a share of the world 100m record with that mark. Another five men went on to tie it.
At the 1968 US Championships in Sacramento, Hines became the first man to officially break the 10-second barrier for 100m, doing so with 9.9 (and an electronically timed 10.03, though it wasn&rsquo;t until 1977 that electronic times were required for record ratification).
Having earned his spot on the US team, Hines went to the Olympic Games in Mexico City that year as the marginal favourite. He lived up to expectations and charged to victory in 9.9 (9.95 electronic), making him the first man officially to break 10 seconds with electronic timing.
Hines&rsquo; world record lasted 15 years &ndash; the longest of any men&rsquo;s 100m world record in the fully automatic era &ndash; before it was finally broken by Calvin Smith in 1983 with 9.93.
Hines went on to add another Olympic gold medal &ndash; and world record &ndash; to his collection when he anchored the USA to 4x100m victory in 38.24.
After retiring from athletics at the end of 1968, Hines went on to play in the NFL for the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs. He later worked with inner-city youth in Houston.
World Athletics

Jim Hines, 1946-2023

Hines, first man to break 10 seconds for 100m, dies

As great athletes approach their 30th birthday, their minds naturally turn towards their legacy.
That has clearly been the case for Faith Kipyegon, who completed her set of the highest accomplishments in her sport by breaking the world 1500m record (3:49.11) at the Golden Gala meeting in Florence on Friday (2).
She joked that she had rolled around the track like &ldquo;a crazy woman&rdquo; in a euphoric reaction when she saw her historic time pop up on the trackside clock at the Wanda Diamond League meeting. &ldquo;I really wanted that one,&rdquo; she said.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/12QuG1UXm-U" width="100%" height="475" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
With two Olympic gold medals and two senior world titles to her name, in a career that was temporarily interrupted when she gave birth to her daughter Alyn in 2018, Kipyegon was already one of the greats of her sport, but the world record has elevated her into rare air indeed.
She is now one of only five athletes who have dominated at every level in their track and field specialism &ndash; an individual world champion at U18, U20 and senior level &ndash; and set a senior world record.
This club includes only Usain Bolt, Mondo Duplantis, Yelena Isinbaeva, Kevin Mayer and now Kipyegon.
<div style="padding: 0px 20px 5px 20px; border: 2px solid #a5fa64;">
<h2>Grand slam</h2>
Athletes to have achieved an age group grand slam in individual outdoor track and field World Championships and broken a senior world record.
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%; border-color: #000000; border-style: solid;" border="1" cellpadding="3">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 20%; text-align: center;">Athlete</td>
<td style="width: 20%; text-align: center;">U18</td>
<td style="width: 20%; text-align: center;">U20</td>
<td style="width: 20%; text-align: center;">Senior</td>
<td style="width: 20%; text-align: center;">World record</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 20%;">Usain Bolt</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">100m, 200m</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">200m</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">100m, 200m</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">100m, 200m</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 20%;">Mondo Duplantis</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">pole vault</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">pole vault</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">pole vault</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">pole vault</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 20%;">Yelena Isinbaeva</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">pole vault</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">pole vault</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">pole vault</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">pole vault</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 20%;">Faith Kipyegon</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">1500m</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">1500m</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">1500m</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">1500m</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 20%;">Kevin Mayer</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">octathlon</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">decathlon</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">decathlon</td>
<td style="width: 20%;">decathlon</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
 Many already regard Kipyegon as the greatest female 1500m runner in history and she intends to continue to burnish her star by attacking her new best time at the Herculis meeting in Monaco next month, then attempting to win a third world title at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest in August. If she can then go on to win a third Olympic gold medal in Paris next year, she will truly stand alone in the middle-distance pantheon.
The reaction of her fellow athletes in Florence demonstrated just how much she is already revered in the sport. The other 1500m women surrounded her and enveloped her in a group hug soon after the race, a rare sight in the ultra-competitive world of elite sport.
Kipyegon will compete over 5000m in Paris next Friday to put further strength in her legs for the challenges ahead, then return to Eldoret in Kenya for another training block under master coach Patrick Sang, who has also plotted the career of the world&rsquo;s greatest marathon runner, Eliud Kipchoge.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63aefbb62660ebd28ce00685.jpg" alt="Faith Kipyegon wins the 1500m at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22" />
Faith Kipyegon wins the 1500m at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m training with marathoners and I normally say that one day I will run a marathon but now I have achieved what I wanted, what was in my heart and my mind today, and I&rsquo;m still heading towards Budapest and I still want to run faster than 3:49,&rdquo; she said.
&ldquo;I wanted to go gradually, slowly, slowly, to see what was possible this year, and the world record just came as a surprise, but I&rsquo;m still looking forward to the World Championships and I really thank my coach for giving me the tactics to run today and see what is possible.&rdquo;
Kipyegon is the odd athlete out in a large training group focused on the marathoners, since joining the group in 2019, but she said she enjoyed both the challenge and the camaraderie she found in the camp.
&ldquo;Since I joined Patrick and Eliud Kipchoge, I have done really, really different training, because with the marathoners there we come along and train together and enjoy sports together. They are doing long runs and fartlek and track sessions.&rdquo;
Kipchoge was among those who were delighted by Kipyegon&rsquo;s achievement in Florence.
"It was only a matter of time,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Faith has shown a great focus and determination to attack the world 1500 record since coming back from maternity.&rdquo;
The longer training has certainly not dulled her speed but it has given her new strength which she will apply again in Monaco, where she came so near to breaking the world record last year, falling just 0.3 short (3:50.37) of Genzebe Dibaba&rsquo;s 2015 standard, also set in the Stade Louis II, which has become a mecca for middle-distance runners in the past decade.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/61e30743a450a4c2543ae617.jpg" alt="Faith Kipyegon at the Kaptagat training camp" />
Faith Kipyegon at the Kaptagat training camp (&copy; Dan Vernon / NN Running)
</div>
&ldquo;(That) was really motivating me,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;I went back home knowing that everything was possible. I didn&rsquo;t lose hope, I still worked hard, waking up every morning knowing that everything is possible, breaking the world record, defending my world title in Budapest, and that is what I have started, so I&rsquo;m looking forward.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m hoping for the best as well in Monaco. I&rsquo;m going to run my race and focus myself towards the finish line.&rdquo;
The legacy she is creating is not only for herself, but also for her family, particularly her daughter, now almost five, and that is also driving her forward.
&ldquo;She understands what I do now,&rdquo; Kipyegon said.
Nicole Jeffery for World Athletics

As great athletes approach their 30th birthday, their minds naturally turn towards their legacy.

With world 1500m record, Kipyegon adds to her already impressive legacy

Hammer head-to-heads will again demand the spotlight, while Erriyon Knighton will look to make another statement in the sprints when the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold series moves on to the Irena Szewinska Memorial in Bydgoszcz, Poland, on Tuesday (6).
Four of the top seven women on the world all-time list clash in the women&rsquo;s hammer, as home star Anita Wlodarczyk &ndash; the world record-holder and seven-time global gold medallist &ndash; continues her comeback.
Forced to miss much of the 2022 season due to the injury she sustained during an altercation with a criminal last year, Wlodarczyk made her return at the Continental Tour Gold event in Nairobi last month, finishing third in a competition won by world bronze medallist Janee' Kassanavoid of the US. Competing two days before the Bydgoszcz meeting, Wlodarczyk and Kassanavoid met again at the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial in Chorzow and on that ocassion they both finished behind Canada&rsquo;s world silver medallist Camryn Rogers.&nbsp;
There have been some significant revisions to the world all-time list already this season and both USA&rsquo;s Brooke Andersen and Rogers &ndash; respectively third and fifth on the list that is topped by Wlodarczyk&rsquo;s world record of 82.98m from 2016 &ndash; will be aiming to maintain their strong seasons. World champion Andersen became the third athlete in history to surpass 80 metres in the event last month, throwing 80.17m in Tucson, while world silver medallist Rogers improved her own national record to 78.62m in Los Angeles to win ahead of Anderson just over a week ago.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/647cf62a952b9ced43a04ce1.jpg" alt="Brooke Andersen" />
Brooke Andersen (&copy; Marton Kovacs)
</div>
It is the first time that the quartet of Wlodarczyk, Andersen, Rogers and Kassanavoid have all clashed in the same competition. Kassanavoid recorded the 78.00m that puts her seventh all time in May 2022 and she threw 76.60m to finish runner-up to Andersen in Tucson two weeks ago.
The field also features USA&rsquo;s Annette Echikunwoke and Romania&rsquo;s European champion Bianca Ghelber, plus Poland&rsquo;s Olympic bronze medallist Malwina Kopron and European silver medallist Ewa Rozanska.
Rivalries are also renewed in the men&rsquo;s event, where Rudy Winkler of the US and Wojciech Nowicki of Poland &ndash; the two athletes to have surpassed 80 metres so far this season &ndash; compete again in a field also boasting Poland&rsquo;s five-time world champion Pawel Fajdek and Hungary&rsquo;s 2019 world bronze medallist Bence Halasz.
Winkler, the world sixth-place finisher, threw 80.88m to win in Tucson, while Olympic champion Nowicki recorded 80.00m to beat Winkler in Chorzow a couple of days out from their rematch in Bydgoszcz. Fajdek was fourth on that occasion, on his 34th birthday, and has the chance to build on the 76.42m season&rsquo;s best he set at the end of May.
"It's only the beginning of June, so my form is not at its peak yet. We are getting ready for the World Championships in Budapest," said Nowicki. "Nevertheless, I am the European leader and the meeting in Bydgoszcz has a field that an Olympic final would not be ashamed of. This is certainly extra motivation for me to throw even farther."
Nowicki won ahead of Fajdek at last year&rsquo;s Irena Szewinska Memorial and another returning champion is New Zealand&rsquo;s Tom Walsh in the men&rsquo;s shot put. The 2017 world champion beat USA&rsquo;s two-time world gold medallist Joe Kovacs by just four centimetres in Bydgoszcz last year and they are both back, their head-to-head record now 31-27 in Kovacs&rsquo; favour but with Walsh getting the upper hand in their past two clashes in recent days, in Florence and Chorzow. It was Italy&rsquo;s Leonardo Fabbri who claimed a narrow win in Florence and he also competes on Tuesday, as do Poland&rsquo;s Michal Haratyk and USA&rsquo;s world bronze medallist Josh Awotunde.
Competition is high in the men&rsquo;s pole vault, too, as home favourite Piotr Lisek, the multiple world medallist, again goes up against Chris Nilsen and Sam Kendricks, two days after he beat his US rivals in Chorzow. They will also have to see off the challenge of Philippines&rsquo; Ernest John Obiena.
"Chris and I are itching to jump really high," said two-time world champion Kendricks, who saw his North American record broken by KC Lightfoot on Friday after the 23-year-old cleared 6.07m to improve his compatriot's previous mark by a centimetre. "Early season meets you go out there so you can knock the rust off and once you get a few meets into the season, that's when you expect to be able to jump high."
The men&rsquo;s high jump features Ukraine&rsquo;s world bronze medallist Andrii Protsenko against his compatriot Bohdan Bondarenko, the 2013 world champion, and Poland&rsquo;s Norbert Kobielski.
Over on the track, USA&rsquo;s world bronze medallist Knighton will be seeking another strong run after winning his 200m season opener in 19.89 in Florence on Friday. That is now the fourth-fastest 200m of the season following the world lead of 19.67 set by world champion Noah Lyles in Kingston on Saturday and 19-year-old Knighton has the opportunity to make his mark again as he races against athletes including Dominican Republic&rsquo;s world fifth-place finisher Alexander Ogando, South Africa&rsquo;s Luxolo Adams and Liberia&rsquo;s Emmanuel Matadi.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/647cf509952b9ced43a04cde.jpg" alt="Erriyon Knighton wins in Florence" />
Erriyon Knighton wins in Florence (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
At the fifth edition of the Irena Szewinska Memorial, named in tribute to the Polish sprint great, the women&rsquo;s 100m features USA&rsquo;s world and Olympic relay gold medallist Morolake Akinosun, who ran 10.95 in April and won the USATF Los Angeles Grand Prix in 10.97 at the end of May. She will be looking to dip under 11 seconds again after her 11.20 for fourth place in Florence. Britain&rsquo;s Imani Lansiquot was one place ahead of Akinosun in that Diamond League meeting and they race each other again, joined by&nbsp;USA&rsquo;s Kayla White and Germany&rsquo;s Lisa Mayer.
Lansiquot is also entered for the 200m, where her rivals include her compatriot Daryll Neita as well as USA&rsquo;s Anavia Battle and Cambrea Sturgis.
After a strong indoor season during which he took his 60m hurdles PB to 7.39, USA&rsquo;s Daniel Roberts takes on his first 110m hurdles competition of the year alongside his compatriot Jamal Britt, the NACAC silver medallist who won at the USATF Bermuda Grand Prix in a wind-assisted 12.99, plus Poland&rsquo;s 20-year-old European indoor 60m hurdles silver medallist Jakub Szymanski and Cuba&rsquo;s Roger Iribarne.
USA&rsquo;s Alaysha Johnson could contest four races in two days in Poland as after winning the B race and tying for victory in the A race in Chorzow, she travels to Bydgoszcz where the programme features heats before the final. The NACAC champion clocked 12.42 in Chorzow and was declared joint winner with Olympic champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn after they ran the same time, down to the thousandth. In Bydgoszcz the field also features Bahamian world indoor 60m hurdles silver medallist Devynne Charlton, USA&rsquo;s Sharika Nelvis, Ireland&rsquo;s Sarah Lavin and Poland&rsquo;s Adrianna Sulek, who recently finished third in the heptathlon at the Hypomeeting in Gotzis.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/647cf4da952b9ced43a04cdb.jpg" alt="Alaysha Johnson" />
Alaysha Johnson (&copy; Kevin Morris Photographer)
</div>
Kenya&rsquo;s Elias Ngeny and Collins Kipruto go in the men&rsquo;s 800m against Sweden&rsquo;s Andreas Kramer and Poland&rsquo;s Mateusz Borkowski, while the women&rsquo;s line-up features Germany&rsquo;s Katharina Trost, Jamaica&rsquo;s Adelle Tracey and Poland&rsquo;s Adrianna Topolnicka.
In the women&rsquo;s mile, Spain&rsquo;s Marta Perez is joined by Ethiopia&rsquo;s world U20 1500m fourth-place finisher Mebriht Mekonen and Kenya&rsquo;s Edinah Jebitok, who finished eighth in the senior women&rsquo;s race at the World Cross Country Championships in Bathurst in February.
In the men&rsquo;s 1500m, Ireland&rsquo;s Andrew Coscoran is back on the track two days after his win at the FBK Games in Hengelo. His competition includes South Africa&rsquo;s Tshepo Tshite, who ran a PB of 3:33.02 in April, and Australia&rsquo;s Matthew Ramsden.
Jess Whittington for World Athletics

Hammer head-to-heads will again demand the spotlight, while Erriyon Knighton will look to make another statement in the sprints when the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold series moves on to the Irena Szewinska Memorial

Strong sprints in store and hammer stars resume battle in Bydgoszcz

With a jump as precise as it was perfect, as powerful as it was peerless, Mondo Duplantis did what he does best at the FBK Games in Hengelo on Sunday evening (4), soaring into the sky and over a meeting record of 6.11m. Despite all the Dutch stars on show, it was the moment that drew the biggest roar from the packed stands at the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting.
Duplantis was well known, and loved, by the Hengelo crowd before this, having competed at the Fanny Blankers-Koen Stadium for the past two years, going beyond six metres on both occasions, the meeting record before today his 6.10m from 2021.
With Kurtis Marschall of Australia and Menno Vloon of the Netherlands maxing out with bests of 5.81m, Duplantis put the competition to bed with his first-time clearance at 5.91m. After that, he put the bar up to 6.11m, clearing it with room to spare. As the wind swirled, he then put the bar up to a world record of 6.23m, though none of his three attempts ever looked like succeeding.
Still, it was a great day&rsquo;s work for Duplantis, who has long been a student of the sport, and rest assured he took note of KC Lightfoot&rsquo;s recent North American record of 6.07m.
&ldquo;It didn't hurt the motivation, of course,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;When you see a great jump like his, it's super awesome for the sport. For me, it's just a little bit of extra motivation to try to push it up just a little bit higher because it is competition, and we're out here competing with each other, whether or not we're on the same track.&rdquo;
Duplantis&rsquo;s goal on the road to the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23?
&ldquo;I'm just trying to focus on that gold medal and right now, I&rsquo;m just going to go meet by meet, try to get a little bit better every time to make sure I'm nice and sharp for the big dance.&rdquo;
On the track, Femke Bol was her typical world-class self in the women&rsquo;s 400m, though the stiff headwind down the back straight meant any outlandish times were off the table today. Nonetheless Bol asserted her superiority, utilising a storming last 100m to hit the line in 50.11 and smash the meeting record. Next in was USA&rsquo;s Wadeline Jonathas in 51.74, with Germany&rsquo;s Laura Muller third in 52.08.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/647ce07c0075e7a3132a2627.jpg" alt="Femke Bol on her way to winning the 400m in Hengelo" />
Femke Bol on her way to winning the 400m in Hengelo (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
&ldquo;I did not really have a time in mind, I was focused on winning,&rdquo; said Bol. &ldquo;For the coming outdoor season, I am focused on the hurdles, and these are going great. That is the most important.&rdquo;
<h2>Hassan does back-to-back 10,000m and 1500m double</h2>
The women&rsquo;s 1500m saw fellow Dutch star Sifan Hassan return to the track just 20 hours after winning the 10,000m in a world lead of 29:37.80, and six weeks after winning the London Marathon in dramatic fashion. But the double Olympic champion showed all that marathon training did little to blunt her speed.
After 800m was reached in 2:09.06, and 1200m in 3:13.51, the 2019 world 1500m champion seized command, though she had company in Kenya&rsquo;s Nelly Chepchirchir as she kicked for home, who gave strong &ndash; but ultimately futile &ndash; chase as Hassan went for broke up the home straight, hitting the line in 3:58.12 to Chepchirchir&rsquo;s 3:58.96. Uganda&rsquo;s Janat Chemusto took third with 4:01.98.
&ldquo;I was so scared before the race as I hadn&rsquo;t run it in like two years so I was like, &lsquo;Oh my God, what is going to happen?&rsquo;&rdquo; said Hassan. &ldquo;But I felt very easy in the competition. I followed and the last 200 metres, I finished strong. I didn&rsquo;t push myself and I still finished very well in the sprint.&rdquo;
Hassan said she now &ldquo;has to make a racing plan&rdquo; for the summer, adding that her outings in Hengelo helped her gauge where her fitness is at as she transitions back to the track.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/647b93014542d4d912c84780.jpg" alt="Sifan Hassan races the 10,000m at the FBK Games in Hengelo" />
Sifan Hassan races the 10,000m at the FBK Games in Hengelo (&copy; FBK Games)
</div>
On a mild, windy Saturday evening at the Fanny Blankers-Koen Stadium, it was clear from early in the race that Hassan was not keen to chase the world 10,000m record, settling in behind the pacemakers as they towed the field along at 2:57 per kilometre. Shortly after 3000m &ndash; reached in 8:51.00 &ndash; Hassan was left in front, ahead of Ethiopia&rsquo;s Tsigie Gebreselama and Kenya&rsquo;s Grace Loibach Nawowuna.
Gebreselama moved to the front in the fifth kilometre, but it wasn&rsquo;t long before Hassan resumed control, passing 5000m in 14:46.01. Then the pace slowed, from 70 seconds a lap to 71, and then to 72, and soon it was down to two, with Hassan leading Nawowuna through 7000m in 20:41.67 and 8000m in 23:43.23.
Nawowuna, the world cross country fourth-place finisher, led through 9000m in 26:47.08, with Hassan biding her time until the last lap &ndash; her domain &ndash; and she duly swept to the front and blasted a 60.86 final 400m to delight the Dutch crowd and win in 29:37.80.
Nawowuna, at just 19 years of age, took second on her 10,000m debut with 29:47.42 &ndash; a time that puts her eighth on the world all-time list &ndash; while Gebreselama finished third in a PB of 30:04.42. Next in was Kenya&rsquo;s Selah Busienei in 30:26.40, with her compatriot Betty Chelangat just behind in 30:27.94.
Grant Holloway was one of the poster boys of the meeting and he showed why in the 110m hurdles, the two-time world champion displaying another crisp exhibition to clock a meeting record of 13.03, with fellow US athletes Devon Allen (13.12) and Eric Edwards (13.29) just behind.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m pleased with what I need to do, and I continue just to work at it,&rdquo; said Holloway. &ldquo;We can expect the world record to be broken this year, and if not this year, next year.&rdquo;
USA&rsquo;s Nia Ali claimed victory in the 100m hurdles, the 2019 world champion clocking 12.61 (0.2m/s) to beat local favourite Nadine Visser (12.71), with Switzerland&rsquo;s Ditaji Kambundji third in 12.78.
&ldquo;I wanted to focus on not wiping out on the first hurdle, since I&rsquo;ve been hitting it really bad. I was able to keep my composure,&rdquo; said Ali. &ldquo;I have a lot to improve on, which I am excited about.&rdquo;
CJ Allen continued his winning ways in the men&rsquo;s 400m hurdles, the US athlete a class apart when winning in 48.24, with Dutch athlete Nick Smidt second in 49.17 and Germany&rsquo;s Joshua Abuaku third with 49.23. &ldquo;Right now I am not really consistent, and I am running fast, so no complaints for me,&rdquo; said Allen.
Britain&rsquo;s Reece Prescod finished strongly to claim the men&rsquo;s 100m, dipping under 10 seconds for the first time this season with 9.99 (0.4m/s). Jamaica&rsquo;s Yohan Blake took second with 10.05 while Dutch athlete Raphael Bouju clocked a PB of 10.09 in third. &ldquo;Qualifying for the World Championships is done now, so I&rsquo;ve just got to keep working, but so far, so good,&rdquo; said Prescod.
Britain&rsquo;s Daryll Neita was a commanding winner of the women&rsquo;s 100m, clocking 11.05 (-0.1m/s) ahead of Egypt&rsquo;s Bassant Hemida (11.16) and Brazil&rsquo;s Vitoria Cristina Rosa (11.18). &ldquo;I came here to win, I would have loved to get the meet record (10.92), maybe next time,&rdquo; said Neita.
The women&rsquo;s 200m went to Hemida, who clocked an Egyptian record of 22.41 (1.4m/s) to edge the fast-finishing Lieke Klaver, who set a PB of 22.51. Early leader Kayla White of USA had to settle for third in 22.56.
Botswana&rsquo;s Busang Collen Kebinatshipi edged a close race in the men&rsquo;s 400m, his 45.01 just in front of Vernon Norwood (45.05), with South Africa&rsquo;s Zakhiti Nene third in 45.17.
Ireland&rsquo;s Andrew Coscoran won a cagey men&rsquo;s 1500m, in which 800m was reached in a pedestrian 1:58.46. The wheels began to turn then, and Coscoran struck for home on the final turn, only for Britain&rsquo;s Elliot Giles to kick by in the home straight. But Coscoran held his form admirably to edge past again near the line, winning in 3:37.97 to Giles&rsquo; 3:38.00, with Australia&rsquo;s Jye Edwards third in 3:38.24.
<h2>Mahuchikh and Furlani leap to victory</h2>
Ukraine&rsquo;s Yaroslava Mahuchikh claimed victory in the women&rsquo;s high jump with a perfect series up to 2.00m, which she cleared at the first attempt. She recorded three failures at 2.05m, but by then it was immaterial, given her closest pursuer was compatriot Iryna Gerashchenko, who bowed out with a best of 1.93m. Germany&rsquo;s Johanna Goring was third with 1.90m, edging Yuliia Levchenko on countback.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/647ce0450075e7a3132a2624.jpg" alt="Yaroslava Mahuchikh, winner of the high jump in Hengelo" />
Yaroslava Mahuchikh, winner of the high jump in Hengelo (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
Mahuchikh said she was happy to clear 2.00m at the first attempt, and revealed that when she was competing recently in Rabat, there was &ldquo;a rocket attack 10 meters from the house&rdquo; of her parents back in Ukraine, with Mahuchikh adding: &ldquo;Please remember that in my country the war is not finished.&rdquo;
Italy&rsquo;s Mattia Furlani underlined his star quality with a PB of 8.24m to win the long jump. The 18-year-old had jumped a wind-assisted 8.44m in Savona, Italy, last month and in Hengelo, he was a cut above his rivals, with runner-up Cheswill Johnson jumping 8.08m and JuVaughn Harrison third with 8.07m.
Germany&rsquo;s Julian Weber was an impressive winner in the men&rsquo;s javelin, his final-round effort of 87.14m giving him a wide-margin win over Trinidad and Tobago&rsquo;s Keshorn Walcott (83.56m) and Finland&rsquo;s Oliver Helander (80.50m). Germany&rsquo;s Andreas Hofmann got injured during his final warm-up throws and was stretchered from the track.
USA&rsquo;s Maggie Ewen continued her fine form with a win in the women&rsquo;s shot put, her 19.61m the best of her two recorded efforts, with Jamaica&rsquo;s Danniel Thomas-Dodd next best with 19.21m. Portugal&rsquo;s Auriol Dongmo took third with 18.89m.
&ldquo;You take what you can get sometimes when the other girls are not quite on their game,&rdquo; said Ewen. &ldquo;I am really happy with how I threw. I threw a huge PB last week so I was really trying to come into this meet to throw something that I could be proud of.&rdquo;
World champion Chase Ealey had an experimental competition that ultimately backfired, with two fouls and a throw of 17.09m seeing her eliminated, but she had a good reason. &ldquo;I was doing a new technical thing,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;I got a little too excited because the warm-up was good and then I added a bit too much, I went a bit too crazy. I think I will be fine in my next competitions. I am working on something new and I know I am going to throw far.&rdquo;
Cathal Dennehy for World Athletics

With a jump as precise as it was perfect, as powerful as it was peerless, Mondo Duplantis did what he does best at the FBK Games

Duplantis vaults world-leading meeting record of 6.11m in Hengelo

The Racers Grand Prix, a World Athletics Continental Tour Silver meeting, made a successful return on Saturday (3) after a three-year hiatus with world champions Noah Lyles and Shericka Jackson speeding to season&rsquo;s bests in Kingston.
Two-time world 200m champion Lyles saved the best for last as he brought the curtains down with a world-leading 19.67 (0.3 m/s) to win the men&rsquo;s 200m, breaking the meeting record in the process. Running out of his favourite lane seven, Lyles shrugged off a brief challenge from Great Britain&rsquo;s Zharnel Hughes (20.14) around the bend before opening up a sizeable lead to win comfortably in front of the fair size appreciative crowd.
&ldquo;The crowd was electrifying and I didn&rsquo;t know what kind of reception I would receive based on the social media comments,&rdquo; said Lyles. &ldquo;Tonight, the first 20 metres of my race was great, however, there&rsquo;s room for improvement in other areas but things are coming together and I feel great to get the meeting record. Bolt (Usain) came over and congratulated me and gave me words of encouragement to become the new face of the sport and take it forward.&rdquo;
Jackson, the world champion over 200m, stepped down to the 100m and registered a commanding win in a season&rsquo;s best of 10.78 (1.6 m/s), also breaking the meeting record. Bahamian sprinter Anthonique Strachan&rsquo;s upward trajectory continued as she finished second in a season&rsquo;s best of 10.99.
&ldquo;I think it was a solid run tonight,&rdquo; said Jackson. &ldquo;My start has improved tremendously and I know my coach is smiling and definitely I&rsquo;m taking it one step at a time and looking forward to greater things this season.&rdquo;
World record-holder and two-time world champion Wayde Van Niekerk demonstrated he&rsquo;s getting back to his best form when winning the men&rsquo;s 400m &lsquo;A&rsquo; final in a meeting record of 44.21. The South African dragged Jamaica&rsquo;s Zandrion Barnes, the runner-up, to a huge lifetime best of 44.90.
&ldquo;I was excited to perform in front of this crowd and used their energy to my advantage, &ldquo;said Van Niekerk. &ldquo;Running fast times in two different conditions, one at altitude and the other in wet weather, shows some consistency and I&rsquo;m using it as a positive moving forward as I make gradual progress.&rdquo;
A heavy downpour at the start of the evening didn&rsquo;t dampen the spirits of 2017 world U18 champion Antonio Watson, who sped to a lifetime best of 44.75 to win the men&rsquo;s 400m &lsquo;B&rsquo; final.
World champion and world record-holder Tobi Amusan of Nigeria won the women&rsquo;s 100m hurdles in a season&rsquo;s best of 12.57 (-0.4 m/s) with USA&rsquo;s Tia Jones finishing second in 12.72.
&ldquo;The love and hospitality from the people here are just massive,&rdquo; said Amusan. &ldquo;Tonight&rsquo;s not my best-executed race but I&rsquo;m happy I came out of it injury free.&rdquo;
In a windy men&rsquo;s 110m hurdles (2.3 m/s), a fierce battle played out among three former world U20 medallists. Tyler Mason (13.14), the 2014 world U20 silver medallist, prevailed ahead of the fast-finishing 2018 silver medallist Orlando Bennett (13.18) with 2018 gold medallist Damion Thomas (13.29) third.&nbsp;De'jour Russell, the winner of the world U18 title in 2017, was fourth in 13.53.
USA&rsquo;s 2019 world 100m champion Christian Coleman won his first race on Jamaican soil, winning the men&rsquo;s 100m in 10.03 (-0.3 m/s).
Elsewhere, Fedrick Dacres (62.85m) suffered a rare defeat on home soil after placing fourth in the men&rsquo;s discus won by Samoa&rsquo;s Alex Rose, who sent his disc out to 65.86m. Traves Smikle claimed the runner-up spot with 65.15m. Shanieka Ricketts won the women&rsquo;s triple jump, bounding out to 14.32m (-1.5 m/s).
Noel Francis for World Athletics

Lyles speeds to world-leading meeting record of 19.67

Lyles, Jackson and Van Niekerk impress in Kingston

Peru's Kimberly Garcia and Brazil's Caio Bonfim captured 20km race walk victories at the 36th Gran Premio Cantones de La Coruna, a World Athletics Race Walking Tour Gold event, held on Saturday (3) in Spain's northwest coastal city.
Taking advantage of a quick circuit and ideal weather conditions, both winners set respective career bests of 1:26:40 and 1:18:29 to also break their own national records. In a contest featuring great depth, a total of seven men ducked under the 1:20 barrier.
<h2>Garcia is ready for double world title defence</h2>
Right from the start, the reigning double (20km and 35km) world champion Garcia injected a brisk rhythm into the women's race, which could only be followed by Mexico&rsquo;s Alegna Gonzalez, the pair opening a five-second gap over the first 1000m covered in 4:23. A large chasing group, headed by Spain&rsquo;s Maria Perez, Ecuador's Glenda Morejon and China&rsquo;s Yang Jiayu, followed in 4:28. 
The Spaniard led the pack to join the leaders midway through the second circuit and by the fifth kilometre the front group featured nine athletes, always with Garcia at the helm walking at a steady 4:23 pace as they reached that point in 21:58. The lead pack included all the favourites, with the exception of the former world record-holder Liu Hong.
Just after passing the eighth kilometre some 36 minutes into the race, local star Perez unleashed a devastating kick to break away from the rest of the group with incredible ease to cover the ninth kilometre in a blistering 4:09 and build an 11-second gap over 800m. She left behind a six-strong group, featuring Qieyang Shijie, Yang, Wu Quanming, Garcia, Gonzalez and the surprise Peruvian Evelyn Inga. Morejon had lost ground and travelled 15 seconds in arrears by halfway, which was reached by Perez in 43:25 to elevate her advantage to 18 seconds over the quality chasing group.
With the newly-minted world 35km record-holder Perez flying on the streets of La Coruna in front of her home crowd, few could have predicted the outcome of the event. While Perez slowed &ndash; to 4:18 for the 11th kilometre and 4:21 for the 12th &ndash; Gonzalez accelerated and managed to catch Perez exactly four kilometres after the Spaniard&rsquo;s break.
The 15km checkpoint was reached in 1:05:15 by the quartet of Garcia, Gonzalez, Qieyang and Wu. The first withdrawal was the defending champion Qieyang, who began to falter in the 16th kilometre. Just before the 18th kilometre, Gonzalez also lost contact with Garcia and Wu. Garcia&rsquo;s relentless pace finally paid off inside the closing kilometre when she finally managed to get rid of Wu to romp home in 1:26:40 with an 18-second improvement on her previous PB, while Wu (1:26:48) and Gonzalez (1:26:59) also achieved respective lifetime bests.
"I&rsquo;ve been working very hard in my base of Ecuador and I was confident of doing a fine race today," said the 29-year-old winner. "This win is extremely important for me as the standard was as high as at a World Championships, so I&rsquo;ll be aiming to defend my world titles in Budapest. 
"I&rsquo;ll now go to Peru to see my relatives but will soon return to Ecuador to continue my build-up for the World Championships. I won&rsquo;t compete any more before Budapest," added Garcia, who is coached by Ecuador&rsquo;s Andres Chocho, the 2015 world 50km race walk eighth-place finisher. Interestingly, the now 39-year-old finished the men&rsquo;s race in La Coruna on Saturday in 1:26:44 - a similar time to his athlete.&nbsp;
Inga also impressed, improving her previous best of 1:33:21 to 1:27:32. Perez had to stop due to sickness with six laps remaining, but she didn&rsquo;t give up and crossed the finish line in fifth place in 1:27:19.&nbsp;
<h2>Ninth time lucky for Bonfim</h2>
Brazil&rsquo;s 2017 world bronze medallist Bonfim started like a bullet and went through the opening 1000m in 3:51. Despite the star-studded line-up, only five athletes managed to stay close to the Brazilian: Ecuador's Brian Pintado and David Hurtado, Spain&rsquo;s Alvaro Martin, China's Zhang Jun and Japan&rsquo;s Yuta Koga.
Bonfim maintained 3:55 pace over the following kilometres and the 5km mark was reached in 19:38. Both Koga and Hurtado began to receive warnings from the judges and they were forced to slow, the lead pack whittled down to four by halfway, which was reached in 39:15 after another 19:37 five-lap split.
World leader Zhang then took command of the race but was always followed in crocodile file by Bonfim, Pintado and Martin as the Chinese athlete clocked 3:52 for the 11th kilometre. The following kilometres were fascinating as Bonfim regained the lead and Pintado also moved to the front to keep the rhythm alive, while the double European champion Martin preferred to remain tucked behind throughout.&nbsp;
With the clock reading one hour, it seemed clear that Bonfim, Zhang and Martin would take the three podium spots as Pintado began to falter. The speed remained in the 3:55/3:57 range and shortly after covering the 16th kilometre, Zhang lost ground and the race became a two-horse battle between Bonfim and Martin. 
The key move came some 1:04:30 into the race with 3600m remaining, when the 28-year-old Spaniard just couldn&rsquo;t follow in Bonfim&rsquo;s footsteps. Over the closing laps the leader maintained his steady and powerful pace to gradually extend his advantage.
At the tape Bonfim &ndash; who was making his ninth appearance in La Coruna after two third places (2014 and 2022) already to his credit &ndash; was rewarded with an 18-second lifetime best of 1:18:29, while Martin dipped under the 1:19 barrier for the first time with a 1:18:49 performance. Surprisingly, the final place on the podium went to Diego Garcia. The 27-year-old Spaniard never featured at the helm, being a distant seventh at halfway, but powerful closing laps led him to third place in a season&rsquo;s best of 1:19:25 ahead of the also fast-finishing German Christopher Linke in 1:19:43.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/647bb9d1382efb4019c8f129.jpg" alt="Diego Garc&iacute;a, Caio Bonfim and Alvaro Martin in La Coruna" />
Diego Garc&iacute;a, Caio Bonfim and Alvaro Martin in La Coruna (&copy; Almudena Miguez (FGA))
</div>
"I&rsquo;m super happy. I&rsquo;ve won for the first time here and have also improved my PB, I can&rsquo;t ask for more," declared a delighted Bonfim. "I went off very determined but the level of the field was awesome, winning has not been an easy task. I now return home and I&rsquo;ll do the Brazil championships over 20km before doubling in Budapest as there&rsquo;s a six-day gap between the 20km and the 35km and I think it will be enough."&nbsp;
Emeterio Valiente for World Athletics
<h3>Leading results</h3>
Women 1 Kimberly Garcia (PER) 1:26:40 2 Quanming Wu (CHN) 1:26:48 3 Alegna Gonzalez (MEX) 1:26:59 4&nbsp;Shijie Qieyang (CHN) 1:27:15 5 Maria Perez (ESP) 1:27:19 6 Evelyn Inga (PER) 1:27:32 7 Erica Sena (BRA) 1:28:53 8 Glenda Morejon (ECU) 1:29:04 9 Li Ma (CHN) 1:30:02 10 Raquel Gonzalez (ESP) 1:30:15
Men 1 Caio Bonfim (BRA) 1:18:29 2 Alvaro Martin (ESP) 1:18:49 3 Diego Garcia (ESP) 1:19:25 4 Christopher Linke (GER) 1:19:27 5 Jun Zhang (CHN) 1:19:36 6 Jose Luis Doctor (MEX) 1:19:41 7 Jose Alejandro Barrondo (GUA) 1:19:42 8 Gabriel Bordier (FRA) 1:20:09 9 Andres Olivas (MEX) 1:20:14 10 Noel Chama (MEX) 1:20:40

Peru's Kimberly Garcia and Brazil's Caio Bonfim captured 20km race walk victories at the 36th Gran Premio Cantones de La Coruna