Halimah Nakaayi ran a world-leading national indoor record to win the women&rsquo;s 800m, while Jarret Eaton triumphed in a competitive men&rsquo;s 60m hurdles final at the Meeting de l&rsquo;Eure &ndash; a World Athletics Indoor Tour Silver event &ndash; in Val-de-Reuil, France, on Monday (14).
After improving the Ugandan indoor record to 2:01.42 when winning in Lievin a week ago, Nakaayi dipped under two minutes for the first time, running 1:59.55 for a dominant victory in what was the sixth indoor race of her career.
The 2019 world champion was ahead at the bell and only increased her advantage over the final lap, striding down the back straight to eventually finish two seconds clear ahead of Ethiopia&rsquo;s Tigist Girma and her Ugandan compatriot Winnie Nanyondo, who respectively ran 2:01.68 and 2:02.14. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚀 Meilleur performance mondiale de l'ann&eacute;e sur le 800 m Femmes ! ⏱ Grosse perf pour Halimah Nakaayi, l'Ougandaise gagne en 1'59"55 au meeting de Val-de-Reuil. Suivez le <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cr%C3%A9ditMutuelAthl%C3%A9Tour?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cr&eacute;ditMutuelAthl&eacute;Tour</a> en 𝗗𝗜𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗧 sur <a href="https://t.co/63xdTVLhtA">https://t.co/63xdTVLhtA</a> et <a href="https://t.co/zloH2mldOJ">https://t.co/zloH2mldOJ</a> <a href="https://t.co/u5UWCdX84E">pic.twitter.com/u5UWCdX84E</a>
&mdash; FFAthl&eacute;tisme (@FFAthletisme) <a href="https://twitter.com/FFAthletisme/status/1493323008966070276?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 14, 2022</a></blockquote>
 It was a third win in as many races&nbsp;for Nakaayi&nbsp;this season, with the 27-year-old also having triumphed at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe last month.
While Nakaayi was a clear winner, there was a great battle between USA&rsquo;s Eaton and home favourite Pascal Martinot-Lagarde in the men&rsquo;s 60m hurdles final.
France&rsquo;s multiple world medallist Martinot-Lagarde had won his heat in 7.60 as Eaton placed second in his in 7.61, but the tables were turned in the final as world indoor silver medallist Eaton won by 0.01, dipping to cross the finish line in 7.50 &ndash; a season&rsquo;s best and the joint third-quickest time in the world so far this season.
Brazil&rsquo;s Rafael Pereira, who had won the second heat ahead of Eaton, was third in 7.58, equalling his own area indoor record. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🔥3&egrave;me meilleure perf mondiale de l'ann&eacute;e sur le 60 m haies ! 🇫🇷🇺🇸Le duel franco-am&eacute;ricain tourne &agrave; l'avantage de Jarret Eaton (7"50) devant <a href="https://twitter.com/PascalMartinot?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PascalMartinot</a> en 7"51. Suivez le <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cr%C3%A9ditMutuelAthl%C3%A9Tour?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cr&eacute;ditMutuelAthl&eacute;Tour</a> en 𝗗𝗜𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗧 sur <a href="https://t.co/63xdTVLhtA">https://t.co/63xdTVLhtA</a> et <a href="https://t.co/zloH2mldOJ">https://t.co/zloH2mldOJ</a> <a href="https://t.co/YA7HAAWqc6">pic.twitter.com/YA7HAAWqc6</a>
&mdash; FFAthl&eacute;tisme (@FFAthletisme) <a href="https://twitter.com/FFAthletisme/status/1493328027392086017?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 14, 2022</a></blockquote>
 The women&rsquo;s 60m hurdles final was won by Spain&rsquo;s Teresa Errandonea in 8.13 ahead of Poland&rsquo;s Klaudia Wojtunik in 8.19.
Ethiopia&rsquo;s Ayal Dagnachew made a successful indoor debut, winning the women&rsquo;s 3000m in 8:41.32 to hold off Nadia Battocletti, who broke the almost 15-year-old Italian indoor record by running 8:41.72 to finish second.
Battocletti, who won the European U23 cross country title in December, kicked to move alongside Ethiopia&rsquo;s Workua Getachew at the bell and was striding ahead, but Dagnachew &ndash; winner of the world U20 800m title in Nairobi last year &ndash; chased her down and moved past to claim victory, with Getachew finishing third in 8:41.95, also on her indoor debut. The top five went sub-8:45 and the top eight all dipped under 8:50.
Like Nakaayi, Britain&rsquo;s Elliot Giles was another to claim a third win from three competitions so far in 2022, the world indoor 800m fourth-place finisher running a tactical race to easily take the men&rsquo;s 1500m in 3:40.24, half a second ahead of Algeria&rsquo;s Salim Keddar and France&rsquo;s Jimmy Gressier.
Kenya&rsquo;s Collins Kipruto broke the meeting record to win the men&rsquo;s 800m, clocking 1:47.05 to hold off Morocco&rsquo;s Mostafa Smaili and Kenya&rsquo;s 17-year-old world U20 bronze medallist Noah Kibet, who both ran 1:47.27, with Smaili getting the nod for the runner-up spot.
On the day that he <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/news/news/adam-kszczot-poland-800m-retirement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced his retirement from competitive athletics</a>, Poland&rsquo;s world indoor 800m champion Adam Kszczot brought his career near to a close by racing the 1000m. He launched his attack at the bell, going wide and surging ahead, but he didn&rsquo;t have quite enough to move past Morocco&rsquo;s Abdelati El Guesse, who held on to win in 2:18.79 ahead of Kszczot&rsquo;s 2:19.14. Morocco&rsquo;s Oussama Nabil was third in 2:19.40.
Slovenia&rsquo;s Tina Sutej matched the height she achieved to win her European indoor silver medal in Torun last year, soaring over 4.70m to win the pole vault competition from Iryna Zhuk of Belarus with the same height. Cuba&rsquo;s 2015 world champion Yarisley Silva was third with a 4.65m clearance.
The women&rsquo;s 60m final saw USA&rsquo;s Kayla White blaze to a PB-equalling 7.13 to win ahead of Trinidad and Tobago&rsquo;s Michelle-Lee Ahye with 7.19. USA&rsquo;s Michael Rodgers won the men&rsquo;s 60m final in a photo finish ahead of Kenya&rsquo;s Ferdinand Omurwa, with both athletes recording 6.64.
High jump victory was claimed by Switzerland&rsquo;s Loic Gasch, thanks to a 2.25m clearance, while Enzo Hodebar&rsquo;s indoor PB leap of 16.68m secured him a triple jump win on home soil.
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/competition/calendar-results/results/7170994" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full results</a>

The World Athletics Indoor Tour series continued with the Meeting de l’Eure on Monday.

Nakaayi and Eaton win in Val-de-Reuil

In the latest in our mini-series, we look at world 800m champion Halimah Nakaayi&rsquo;s journey to the Tokyo Olympics.
&nbsp;
How has life changed for you since winning the world title in 2019?
Halimah Nakaayi: Life has changed a lot. I am so grateful that I am now a world champion and since winning in Doha I have managed to inspire many people. I am very motivated and I strongly believe that with hard work all things are possible in life. I am from a region in Uganda where many people believe that you cannot do athletics. But I have proved to people otherwise. This has been a long-held dream of mine.
 How often do you watch your World Championships victory?
HN: I&rsquo;ve watched it several times. What I can tell you is I&rsquo;ve looked at my medal far more times than the video &ndash; and this is what motivates me to work harder! 
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/C9cF2hsvAUg" width="100%" height="450" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zujxPTG54ZQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: full coverage of the women's 800m final at the World Athletics Championships Doha 2019</a>
&nbsp;
 You performed well indoors in 2020, setting a PB of 2:01.96, and then Covid-19 intervened. How did the pandemic impact on your training?
HN: Since Covid it has been difficult. We experienced lockdown in Uganda and I had no access to a training venue in Kampala. I normally train at the main stadium but this was turned into a Covid hospital. It was very hard, life has been so challenging.
We reached a situation where nobody could even go out on to the streets to jog, so in May/June I made the decision to move 30km away from Kampala to live with my grandparents at Mabira Forest. I went with a training partner but at least here I could do some road work.
 What were your emotions after hearing that the Tokyo Olympics were postponed until 2021?
HN: Of course, it was a decision beyond my control. I simply took it as another opportunity to put in a strong foundation to enable me to perform well in Tokyo. Previously, my weakness was my endurance, so I&rsquo;ve tried to work seriously on that. I feel I&rsquo;m now much stronger.
 Did you lose fitness during this period?
HN: Yes, of course. I had many big dreams in 2020 but so many things changed. Mentally, it was very hard. I was mainly doing long runs of up to 15km at a moderate pace &ndash; just carrying out general conditioning. But I knew I had to keep positive. As long as life was there, I had to keep as fit as possible and motivated for the future. In July I moved to Kapchorwa (the Global training camp in the Ugandan Highlands and training base of Joshua Cheptegei). Every year I head out to Kapchorwa for my endurance build up.
 How helpful was your coach Addy Ruiter throughout these challenging times?
HN: He has been so helpful. We were in regular communication. He explained to me that with Covid the situation was not normal. Sometimes we plan for races but they&rsquo;ll be cancelled or postponed. He was always there to guide me. 
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6011578a70704ea6d57e54c2.jpg" alt="" width="950" height="633" />
 In 2020 you competed just once; running a national 1000m record of 2:32.12 for fifth place at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Monaco. Why did you decide to compete just once?
HN: While in Mabira Forest I picked up a shin injury. It was a very deep shin pain. But the problem worsened after running in Monaco. Although I set a national record (in Monaco), I could have done much better because the injury did not allow me to sprint. The injury meant I did not do any other competitions in 2020.
 When did you return to full training again?
HN: I never stopped training altogether and I did some gym work, swimming and core stability sessions. My general endurance training for the 2021 season started in October.
 What kind of influence is Joshua Cheptegei as a training partner?
HN: What Joshua achieved in 2020 (three world records) has been a great motivation. Training with him and sharing the same coach has given me great belief that I can achieve a lot more in the future. Through hard training and determination he has showed us all that anything is possible. I have learned a lot from him. He is always there to guide me.
I was not always the most confident athlete but after I won at the Oslo Diamond League (in June 2019) he talked to me and gave me belief. Winning in Oslo opened my eyes to the future possibilities that one day I could become a world champion.
 2020 was tough for so many people around the world. Who did you lean on to help you get through this period?
HN: I would get most of my motivation from the other athletes. We tried to encourage one another to stay motivated for the future and not to give up and that in future a solution will be found. I not only spoke to other athletes from Uganda but all over the world. I am very good friends with Noelle Yarigo from Benin and regularly chat on WhatsApp or Instagram. 
<img src="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/media/Carousel2/5b79a37d-be2f-4ec4-8729-c4e602a7f0b0.jpg?cachebuster=7bee20e2-a440-48ad-93cb-af54d876fe64" alt="" width="950" height="570" />
 What is your current state of fitness?
HN: I am in great shape and my body is responding well, I am happy with where I am at.
 What are your aims and ambitions for 2021?
HN: I&rsquo;m focusing on training hard and listening to my coach. I&rsquo;d like to be a great champion and maintain my position on the podium (at the Olympics). I&rsquo;d love to be one of those athletes consistently at the top. For now, I&rsquo;m just concentrating on training and giving my best.
 What would you want your legacy to be?
HN: I would like to inspire the youth to say no matter where you come from; if you have a dream, please fight for it. I have proved this. I work on trying to empower women and children. Many parents stop their children from competing in sports because they think it will be detrimental to their studying. But I have a degree in computer science and computer technology and have proved I can balance sports with academic life.
I also like to target younger people who have given birth and they perhaps feel like this is the end of their life. I want to encourage them that this is not the case. There is more to life than just cooking and being at home. I would like to motivate them that they can do other activities and that this is not the end of their life.
 Steve Landells for World Athletics

In the latest in our mini-series, we look at world 800m champion Halimah Nakaayi’s journey to the Tokyo Olympics.

Doha to Tokyo: Halimah Nakaayi

Some of the biggest names in the sport have cemented their legendary status by adding to their career medal haul at the World Athletics Championships Doha 2019.
But along with the established stars, several new names have emerged over the first five days of competition at the Khalifa International Stadium.
Having dominated the event on the international circuit over the past two years, USA&rsquo;s Noah Lyles became the youngest ever winner of the men&rsquo;s 200m at the World Championships, earning his maiden senior global title on Tuesday with a 19.83 run.
&ldquo;Don't say I'm the new Bolt,&rdquo; said Lyles. &ldquo;I'm me. If you like me, I'll happily entertain you. It's my time.&rdquo; 
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Earlier that evening, Lyles&rsquo; teammate and fellow 22-year-old Donavan Brazier broke the championship and North American records to win the 800m in 1:42.34.
&ldquo;I've said all season that my goal was to get the gold here and to break this record, and that's what I did,&rdquo; said Brazier, who had a winning margin of 1.13. &ldquo;It means the world to me. To be world champion at 22 years old, I can't believe it.&rdquo;
The women&rsquo;s 800m had a surprise winner in the form of Uganda&rsquo;s Halimah Nakaayi. The 24-year-old produced the performance of her life to pass the pre-race favourites on the home straight, winning in 1:58.04. Compatriot Winnie Nanyondo, the fourth-place finisher, joined Nakaayi on a lap of honour, stopping every now and again to perform a celebratory dance.
&ldquo;They will be very happy back home in Uganda, especially in the central part,&rdquo; said Nakaayi. &ldquo;They are dancing now. It is a historic day.&rdquo; 
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Nakaayi&rsquo;s gold medal was as much of a surprise as Tajay Gayle&rsquo;s victory in the men&rsquo;s long jump. The Jamaican had only just scraped through the first round as the 12th and last qualifier, but he dominated the final to win with 8.69m.
In the women&rsquo;s throws, USA&rsquo;s DeAnna Price and Australia&rsquo;s Kelsey-Lee Barber won maiden global titles, Price winning the hammer with 77.54m and Barber launching a last-round effort of 66.56m to take the javelin.
Other medallists have emerged as a future force, too. Ethiopia&rsquo;s 5000m silver medallist Selemon Barega and Ukraine&rsquo;s high jump runner-up Yaroslava Mahuchikh became the first athletes born this century to win senior global medals.
&ldquo;There's a really big difference between junior and senior global competitions,&rdquo; observed Mahuchikh, who set a world U20 record of 2.04m. &ldquo;I have competed with these girls all season, but to jump with them at the World Championships is a very special feeling.&rdquo;
It&rsquo;s not just the athletes breaking new ground; certain nations &ndash; such as Burkina Faso and The Gambia &ndash; have made it on to the medals and placings table for the first time in World Championships history. Already, with fewer than half of the finals having been contested, 28 nations have made it on to the medals table and 52 teams have had athletes achieve a top-eight finish.
The likes of Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Christian Taylor may have achieved all-time great status here in Doha, but with the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games just 10 months way, there appears to be many up-and-coming athletes also on the brink of super stardom.

Some of the biggest names in the sport have cemented their legendary status by adding to their career medal haul at the World Athletics Championships Doha 2019.

New stars emerge at World Athletics Championships Doha 2019

Despite the challenging circumstances, organisers of the Bauhuas Galan have managed to assemble a star-studded cast for the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Stockholm on 23 August.
The men&rsquo;s pole vault, featuring world record-holder Mondo Duplantis, will be one of the main attractions for Swedish fans. The young Swede will face the two men with whom he shared a podium at last year&rsquo;s World Championships in Doha: gold medallist Sam Kendricks and bronze medallist Piotr Lisek. Olympic champion Thiago Braz and 2013 world champion Raphael Holzdeppe have also been confirmed.
World discus champion Daniel Stahl will also want to put on a good show on home soil. He&rsquo;ll be up against 2017 world champion Andrius Gudzius, rising Slovenian talent Kristjan Ceh and Sweden&rsquo;s Simon Pettersson.
Olympic champion Katerina Stefanidi leads the women&rsquo;s pole vault entries. The 2017 world champion will take on European indoor silver medallist Holly Bradshaw, Commonwealth champion Alysha Newman, Swedish record-holder Michaela Meijer and Angelica Bengtsson.
Two-time world 400m hurdles champion Karsten Warholm won&rsquo;t have to worry about clearing any barriers in Stockholm as he&rsquo;s set to contest the 400m flat. If conditions are good, he may even try to crack the long-standing European record of 44.33.
All three medallists from the men&rsquo;s 800m at last year&rsquo;s World Championships &ndash; Donavan Brazier, Amel Tuka and Ferguson Rotich &ndash; will clash in Stockholm with Swedish record-holder Andreas Kramer also in the line-up.
Uganda&rsquo;s Halimah Nakaayi and USA&rsquo;s Raevyn Rogers, the top two finishers in the 800m at last year&rsquo;s World Championships, will renew their rivalry over two laps of the track. Britain&rsquo;s Jemma Reekie, whose indoor clocking of 1:57.91 remains the fastest time in the world this year, will also be in the field.
World Athletics

Despite the challenging circumstances, organisers of the Bauhuas Galan have managed to assemble a star-studded cast for the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Stockholm on 23 August.

Strong cast of world and Olympic champions confirmed for Stockholm

When Halimah Nakaayi burst into an exuberant dance of delight alongside her fellow Ugandan Winnie Nanyondo moments after clinching a shock 800m gold medal, it provided one of the feelgood memories of the World Athletics Championships Doha 2019.
It was a moment of sheer ecstasy for the hitherto largely unknown gold medallist but perhaps it was the elation shown in equal measure by Nanyondo, who had just finished fourth and missed out on a medal by 0.34, which perhaps left an even stronger impression.
Both were acting on sheer impulse, expressing their unadulterated joy at Nakaayi&rsquo;s thrilling victory - a pair of close friends and training partners who had known each other for more than half a lifetime celebrating together in unison.
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Any personal disappointment Nanyondo may have felt instantly swept to one side as she euphorically celebrated Nakaayi&rsquo;s success in a Ugandan record of 1:58.04.
&ldquo;Halimah had started the year with an injury and had many problems, so it was a surprise to many people (that she won gold), but not to me,&rdquo; explains Nanyondo. &ldquo;I know how well Halimah can perform. We are one big family. We live together, train together and eat together. I know that if Halimah wins, then I too am a winner. This was Halimah&rsquo;s time, and I was happy for her.&rdquo;
<h3>Forming an early bond</h3>
Both born and raised in the Central region of Uganda near the capital city of Kampala, far from the country&rsquo;s traditional athletics stronghold in Eastern Uganda, they first met as promising athletes in inter-school competitions.
Back then Nakaayi ran the 200m, 400m and 800m while Nanyondo chiefly competed in the 1500m and 5000m but speaking the same language &ndash; Luganda &ndash; and hailing from the same area the pair formed an connection. A bond which strengthened after they started rooming together as teenagers attending training camps during the school holidays.&nbsp;
&ldquo;At first we were not close friends,&rdquo; explains Nanyondo. &ldquo;We used to talk occasionally and give each other advice. But after we started to know each other better from the training camps we became a lot closer.&rdquo;
<h3>Similar dreams, similar mindset</h3>
Nakaayi, 25, who last year also won an All Africa Games 800m bronze medallist, agrees with her long-time training partner&rsquo;s sentiments and says the pair also share a similar mindset.
&ldquo;We both have the same dreams (to succeed in athletics),&rdquo; she explains. &ldquo;We are both fighters, and no matter how hard the situation, we persist in order to meet our goals.&rdquo;
&nbsp;
<div id="5e60cfc61cf2c20c74cef43c" class="dropMedia">
<div style="background-image: url('https://media.aws.iaaf.org/media/Small/5b79a37d-be2f-4ec4-8729-c4e602a7f0b0.jpg');">&nbsp;</div>
All smiles - Halimah Nakaayi and Winnie Nanyondo celebrate after the women's 800m final in Doha</div>
&nbsp;
Forging a close friendship from their time attending training camps together the pair later decided to live together while attending Kampala University &ndash; and for the best part of ten years the pair have remained living under the same roof.
Today sharing a rented home five minutes from their training track in the Kampala suburb of Namboole, the pair typically live together five days a week before returning to spend time with their respective boyfriends on a weekend.
Yet despite hailing from the same region, sharing the same language, living in the same house and aspiring to the same track dreams, it would be wrong to view the twin Ugandan middle-distance talents as the same entity. They are quite different both on and off the track.
<h3>Feeding off of each others strengths</h3>
Nanyondo, an 800m and 1500m runner (she set a national record of 3:59.56 in Rabat this year), possesses the better endurance of the pair and Nakaayi, an 800m specialist, the superior natural speed but their complementary qualities has helped both athletes.
&nbsp;
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<div style="background-image: url('https://media.aws.iaaf.org/media/Small/296991e5-8b71-4744-9b26-c2399aaf04c9.jpg');">&nbsp;</div>
Ugandan middle distance star Winnie Nanyondo at the 2019 World Championships</div>
&nbsp;
Nakaayi can today complete the longer runs much more comfortably while Nanyondo&rsquo;s speed has markedly improved thanks to regular training with her good friend.
&ldquo;I used to be ten to 15 metres behind on the 200 metre repeats,&rdquo; explains Nanyondo. &ldquo;But Halimah always encouraged me to try to close the gap. Now it is often a two metre difference and sometimes we sprint together (at the same speed),&rdquo; she adds with a trademark laugh.
Their personalities also differ. Nanyondo admits she is &ldquo;always talking&rdquo; while Nakaayi is &ldquo;quiet&rdquo; (although throughout the interview it is Nakaayi who dominates the conversation). Meanwhile, Nakaayi describes her training partner as more emotional, a point the World 800m fourth-placer is prepared to concede.
Interestingly, the pair also have different religious beliefs with Nakaayi a devout Muslim and Nanyondo a practising Christian and both are fully accepting of their respective faiths.
&ldquo;I conduct my daily prayers (as a Muslim),&rdquo; says Nakaayi. &ldquo;But sometimes we hold our hands together in prayer. We believe that praying together works for us.&rdquo;
<h3>Another common denominator: coach Ruiter</h3>
Both are also in total agreement that their careers have been transformed since they started working with their current coach, Addy Ruiter, back in 2016.
The Dutchman, who shares his time between his homeland and Uganda, has overseen a consistent improvement in the performances of both athletes. However it was the pair&rsquo;s significant advance in 2019 &ndash; which elevated both to new national records &ndash; not to mention the former athlete&rsquo;s global success in Doha, which has propelled them to a higher level.
Training two to three times a day &ndash; the pair have also been hugely supportive of one another during the tough times.
&nbsp;
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Halimah Nakaayi takes the world 800m title in Doha</div>
&nbsp;
&ldquo;Training and living together has taught us the importance of teamwork,&rdquo; explains Nakaayi. &ldquo;At certain times you feel weak but when I see Winnie working hard, that encourages me to work harder. If the other athlete is feeling down we try to motivate each other. We just have to keep pushing to show that we can do it.&rdquo;
<h3>Supportive off the track</h3>
Away from the track the pair also hang out. They eat lunch at the same restaurant each day in Kampala and watch TV together. &ldquo;If our minds needs to be free we watch a love story on TV or a movie to rest,&rdquo; explains Nakaayi.
A former fashion and design student, the 26-year-old Nanyondo designs dresses, necklaces and anklets and is always happy to dish out fashion advice to her good friend and training partner.
&ldquo;Winnie is very creative and if I need a dress, I always ask her if it matches with my body shape,&rdquo; explains Nakaayi.
Not that the world 800m champion always agree with Nanyondo&rsquo;s viewpoint and like any good close friend she is prepared to offer an honest appraisal.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m supportive but sometimes I will tell her if the design will not work out,&rdquo; she adds with a laugh. &ldquo;Sometimes I will criticise her in order to make her re-think the design.&rdquo;
Their close friendship has also not been fractured by Nakaayi&rsquo;s gold medal success. The world champion has naturally garnered lots of attention in her homeland since becoming the first Ugandan to win a global 800m title, but she has resolutely stuck to the old routines
&ldquo;I may be a gold medallist but I live a simple life,&rdquo; she insists. &ldquo;I know there is much more hard work ahead of me. It is not like I&rsquo;m moving around with a convoy,&rdquo; she says with a laugh. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not a superstar. Before the World Championships we ate lunch at a small restaurant and even after winning gold we continue to eat there.&rdquo;
Both are targeting what would be a first Olympic medal for a Ugandan woman thus there is no lack of motivation in 2020.
But following Nakaayi&rsquo;s golden day in Doha, Nanyondo is adamant she too can match her younger training partner by 14 months.
&ldquo;I know this year is going to be my year and I&rsquo;m working hard to keep my mind strong,&rdquo; she says. &ldquo;We train together and live together there is no difference between Halmiah and I. If Halimah can do it, I can do it too.&rdquo;
Steve Landells for World Athletics

When Halimah Nakaayi burst into an exuberant dance of delight alongside her fellow Ugandan Winnie Nanyondo moments after clinching a shock 800m gold medal, it provided one of the feelgood memories of the World Athletics Championships Doha 2019.

Sharing their successes, Nakaayi and Nanyondo help put Uganda on the athletics map

Organisers of the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais have confirmed that world indoor 1500m champion Samuel Tefera and world 800m champion Halimah Nakaayi will compete at the World Athletics Indoor Tour meeting in Lievin on 19 February.
Tefera won the 1500m convincingly in Lievin last year, finishing three seconds ahead of his nearest rival. Six days later, he broke the world indoor record for the distance in Birmingham, clocking 3:31.04 to break a record that had stood for 22 years.
Hicham El Guerrouj, who held the world indoor record before Tefera, still holds the Lievin meeting record at 3:32.01.
Nakaayi was a surprise winner of the 800m at last year&rsquo;s World Athletics Championships, taking gold in a Ugandan record of 1:58.04. The 25-year-old has never competed indoors before this year, but it&rsquo;s highly likely she will break the Ugandan indoor record of 2:04.57 during her indoor campaign.
Organisers for World Athletics

Organisers of the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais have confirmed that world indoor 1500m champion Samuel Tefera and world 800m champion Halima Nakaayi will compete at the World Athletics Indoor Tour meeting in Lievin on 19 February.

Tefera and Nakaayi join Lievin cast

Our end-of-year reviews continue with renowned statisticians A. Lennart Julin and Mirko Jalava taking a look back at 2019&rsquo;s key action on the middle and long distance track events.
<h3>Men&rsquo;s 800m</h3>
During the Diamond League summer Nijel Amos made the strongest impression after winning in Doha, Rabat and Monaco and losing narrowly in Rome and Zurich. In Monaco and Zurich he really went all-in passing halfway in 48.9 and 48.4 respectively.
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In Monaco Amos &rdquo;survived&rdquo; winning in 1:41.89 &ndash; the first sub-1:42 in the world since the 2012 Olympic final. But in Zurich he crumbled in the last fifty meters and was caught on the line &ndash; 1:42.98 to 1:42.70 &ndash; by Donavan Brazier who had been two full seconds behind with just 100 metres to go.
Unfortunately the injury problems that have haunted Amos since his sensational Olympic silver at age 18 in 2012 persisted and he ended up a DNS in the World Championship heats. But losing the aggressive Amos didn&rsquo;t mean that the Doha final became a slow race. Instead Wesley V&aacute;zquez stepped in to still make it a &rdquo;survival of the fittest&rdquo; test.
V&aacute;zquez passed halfway at 49.0 with the field strung out behind him. But one athlete was still keeping contact &ndash; Brazier &ndash; and on the second backstrech he even passed V&aacute;zquez. Brazier kept going strong to win by more than a full second in a new championship (and US national) record of 1:42.34.
Silver and bronze went to Amel Tuka and Ferguson Rotich but V&aacute;zquez still held on well to finish fifth. The big surprise of the final was Bryce Hoppel of the US &ndash; a complete newcomer to the global scene off the back of a long collegiate season &ndash; who in his 24th 800m race of the year ran wisely to move up in the final 200 metres to finish fourth in a 1:44.25 PB.
<h3>Men&rsquo;s 1500m</h3>
With the current intensity in top level competition it is almost impossible in an event like the 1500m to get a perfect seasonal record of just wins. But Timothy Cheruiyot came really close in 2019 as his only loss was a narrow one to reigning world champion Elijah Manangoi in the Diamond League season opener in Doha in early May.
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While Manangoi had a summer of injury problems - eventuall he had to give up on a world title defence - Cheruiyot was &rdquo;simply the best&rdquo;. In his following seven 1500m/mile competitions &ndash; five Diamond Leagues, the Kenyan Trials and World Championships &ndash; his smallest winning margin was 0.50.
His widest margin of over two seconds actually came in the Doha final where he &ndash; in a brilliant display of truly tactical running &ndash; without hesitation immediately took the lead and went on to simply run the opposition into the ground. However, the others should be excused by the fact that only once before (1999) has there ever been a faster winning time in a championship setting than Cheruiyot&rsquo;s 3:29.26.
Generally this was a year of fast running in the Diamond League with not only Monaco (as always) but also Lausanne, Paris and Brussels producing a great mass of sub-3:32 performances. The best seasonal record besides Cheruiyot&rsquo;s belonged to teenager Jakob Ingebrigtsen who compiled five 3:30/3:31 marks. The last of these came in Doha where he, however, still found himself outsprinted in the medal rush by championship specialists Taoufik Makhloufi and Marcin Lewandowski.
The surprise of the year was the emergence of Ronald Musagala who came into 2019 with a 3:33.65 PB, his only sub-3:35 performance ever. But he ran three 3:30/3:31 races this season which included a win at the Paris Diamond League. In Doha, however, he was eliminated in a 3:36-ish semifinal. And he was not alone to fail: Out of the eight fastest on season&rsquo;s bests coming into Doha, six did not reach the final.
<h3>Men&rsquo;s 5000m</h3>
One of the most surprising trends in recent years is the diminishing Kenyan impact in this event. During the first half of the last decade Kenyans made up approximately half of the top-15 in the annual world lists, but in the last five years the number of Kenyans in top-15 has been 3, 3, 2, 1 and 1. This year Nicholas Kimeli, the seventh fastest, was their sole representative.
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At the same time arch rivals Ethiopia have strengthened their presence so that they now make up approximately half of the top-15. Even more conspicuous: in the last two years Ethiopians have claimed nine out of ten top-5 places.
So it was just logical that the Doha final ended in an exciting sprint decision for the gold between Ethiopians Muktar Edris and Selemon Barega. Edris had that little bit of extra speed needed to successfully defend, his title from London, when he became famous for defeating Mo Farah in the final sprint. Best of the Kenyans now is teenager Jacob Kiprop who finished sixth just behind another 18 year old, Norway&rsquo;s Jakob Ingebrigtsen.
The foremost race of the year time-wise was the Rome Diamond League which produced the top-5 times of the year lead by Telahun Haile&rsquo;s 12:52.98. He thereby signalled a big improvement since last year when he was fifth at the World U20s - he would go on to finish fourth in Doha.
The only significant break into the Ethiopian dominance of the event came at the Diamond League final in Zurich where their runners were content to stay at the back of the field for much too long. So when Joshua Cheptegei took off when he found himself alone when the pacemaker stepped off after 3000m, his challengers were too far back.
With one lap to go the Ethiopian chasers were still four seconds adrift, a gap they couldn&rsquo;t make up in just 400 metres on a runner of Cheptegei&rsquo;s calibre. So the Diamond League title went to Uganda.
<h3>Men&rsquo;s 10,000m</h3>
Two years ago in London Mo Farah won his fifth straight global gold at this distance but this year he had left the 10,000m throne vacant. Who would take advantage of this opportunity?
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The top end of the 2019 world list going into Doha was almost exclusively Ethiopian thanks to their World Championships trials race in Hengelo where Hagos Gebrhiwet won in 26:48.95 and where the eighth place finisher ran 27:02.26. The only non-Ethiopian with a comparable time was Kenya&rsquo;s 2018 world U20 champion Rhonex Kipruto who had run 26:50.16 when winning a tough encounter with Gebrhiwet at the Stockholm Diamond League in late May.
Thanks to the special air conditioning system the conditions in the Khalifa Stadium were quite suitable for long distance running. So the runners kept the pace honest from the get go and the splits all along the way were almost identical to those in London two years ago with the kilometers being ticked off at a 2:40 to 2:44 clip.
With 1000 metres to go there were still eight in the hunt for the medals. But then Joshua Cheptegei &ndash; who two years ago had lost by just 0.43 to Farah &ndash; shifted gears and started reeling off sub-31 second half laps. By the bell only Yomif Kejelcha and Kipruto were still in contention. Kejelcha tried an attack going into the last bend but Cheptegei responded and in the final straight he pulled away.
The winning time of 26:48.36 was the second best ever in a global championship behind only Kenenisa Bekele&rsquo;s 26:46.36 ten years ago in Berlin. It is also worth noting that Cheptegei&rsquo;s last kilometre was even faster (2:27.6 to 2:28.8) than that of Farah when the Briton won off of a similar pace two years ago.
<h3>Men&rsquo;s 3000m steeplechase</h3>
For many years this event was almost an internal Kenyan affair - only four years ago Kenya swept the top-4 places at the World Championships. But since then things have changed rapidly due both to &rdquo;the rest of the World&rdquo; raising its game and to Kenyan standards regressing somewhat.
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In 2016 six out of eight (75%) running sub-8:10 were Kenyans but this year the corresponding numbers were four out of 12 (33%). Kenya still won the gold in Doha due to Conseslus Kipruto&rsquo;s determination when he just staved off the challenge from Ethiopian teenager Lemecha Girma, winning a true photo-finish decision by just 0.01.
Also, overall as a nation Ethiopia in 2019 was just about on par with Kenya: 8:01-8:05-8:05-8:08 for Kenya&rsquo;s top-4 vs 8:01-8:05-8:06-8:09 for Ethiopia&rsquo;s. And the four Ethiopians were on average three years younger than their Kenyans counterparts.
During the Diamond League season Moroccan Soufiane EL Bakkali was the most successful with three wins and one second place. The loss came at the final in Brussels where he lost by just 0.17 to teenager Getnet Wale. But in Doha the Moroccan got his revenge taking the bronze just ahead of the Ethiopian. The Diamond League podiums were in general dominated by Ethiopia (2-2-4 at top-3) and Kenya (1-2-2).
The eight minute barrier was first surpassed in 1995 &ndash; almost a quarter of a century ago &ndash; but has remained exclusive. Only 12 runners have ever managed to venture into sub-8-territory and in the last four years only El Bakkali (7:58.15 in 2018) has managed the feat. However, with 2019 having eight runners at 8:05 or better things can change soon.
<h3>Women&rsquo;s 800m</h3>
The Diamond League season produced several winners, with nobody grabbing the favourite&rsquo;s status in the lead-in to the World Championships. American Ajee&rsquo; Wilson began strong, winning the Herculis meeting in Monaco in 1:57.73 and then cutting one hundredth of a second off that time on her way to the US title in Des Moines a couple of weeks later (1:57.72). Fellow American Hanna Green won in Paris in 1:58.39 and Briton Lynsey Sharp in London in 1:58.61.
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In Doha Ugandan Halimah Nakaayi emerged as a notable name in the heats and semifinals. In addition to running fast, her tactics were in the spotlight. In the final the 25-year-old was the strongest runner winning with a 1:58.04 national record, quite a surprise considering she only won two of her 10 international races in 2019 prior to the World Championships.
American Raevyn Rodgers won the silver, her first major medal, in a 1:58.18 season&rsquo;s best while Wilson took a second straight bronze. Green and Sharp, two Diamond League winners in 2019, did not even make it to the semifinals.
Caster Semenya, the 2017 world champion, was the fastest runner in the early season clocking a world lead 1:54.98 in Doha&rsquo;s Diamond League meeting then winning the Prefontaine Classic in June at Stanford in 1:55.70, but didn&rsquo;t contest the event since.
<h3>Women&rsquo;s 1500m</h3>
The world record holder and 2015 world champion Genzebe Dibaba was the fastest athlete of the early season. The 28-year-old dipped under four minutes in Sabadell in February in 3:59.08, the fastest of the indoor season. The Ethiopian then started her outdoor campaign well, winning with world leads at the Rome and Rabat Diamond League meetings in June in 3:56.28 and 3:55.47, respectively. She was then away from competition for two months before returning to Z&uuml;rich in August where she finished fourth in 4:00.86. But she suffered a heel injury there and could not continue her season and missed the World Championships.
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The reigning world champion Faith Kipyegon only ran one international meeting before Doha, a win in Stanford in June in 3:59.04. The 25-year-old Kenyan won in London 2017 in 4:02.59, but the final in Doha was different after Sifan Hassan began taking over the reins in the event from June.
Although she suffered a narrow loss to Dibaba in Rabat clocking a 3:55.93 national record, Hassan returned to break the 23-year-old world record in the mile in Monaco with a 4:12.33 run, clocking a national 1500m record of 3:55.30 en route. She then took the 1500m in Z&uuml;rich in 3:57.08.
In Doha Hassan made her own race by simply running away from the field early on. She won the gold in 3:51.95, a European and championships record and moved to No. 6 on the all-time world list.
Despite running just two finals before Doha, Kipyegon won the silver with a 3:54.22 national record with Gudaf Tsegay third in 3:54.38, a huge personal best cutting more than four seconds off her previous best. This was easily the best race in the history of the World Championships with nine athletes going under four minutes. Only once, at the 1987 championships, has a sub-four minute performance not been good enough for a medal. In this race, six sub-four runners would leave empty-handed. Shelby Houlihan was fourth in 3:54.99, a US record, Laura Muir of Great Britain fifth in 3:55.76 and Gabriela DeBues-Stafford of Canada sixth in 3:56.12, also a national record.
<h3>Women&rsquo;s 5000m</h3>
With Hassan opting for a unique 1500m/10,000m double, the role of favourite in the 5000m fell upon reigning champion Hellen Obiri. The Kenyan won the fastest race of the season clocking 14:20.36 in London, her second fastest of her career. The race was a close one, with Agnes Tirop clocking a 14:20.68 personal best right behind her compatriot and Hassan setting a 14:22.12 European record for third. The results for positions two and three are the fastest ever for those placings.
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Tirop opted for the 10,000m in Doha, leaving Germany&rsquo;s Konstanze Klosterhalfen as one of the top challengers in Doha. The 22-year-old produced an impressive solo effort at the German Championships in August setting a 14:26.76 national record. The Doha final was a quick one, but it wasn&rsquo;t decided until the final lap. Like so many times before, Obiri emerged as the winner in 14:26.72, a competition record. Kenyan Margaret Kipkemboi was second with a 14:27.49 personal best, her first podium finish at a major championships. Klosterhalfen grabbed the bronze in 14:28.43 with Ethiopian Tsehay Gemechu fourth in 14:29.60, the fastest non-medal winning performance at a World Championships.
<h3>Women&rsquo;s 10,000m</h3>
AS usual, there were only a handful of notable 10,000m races before Doha. The fastest was the Ethiopian Trials in Hengelo where Letesenbet Gidey won in 30:37.89 setting a personal best. Earlier, Emily Sisson of the US won the Stanford Invitational in March clocking 30:49.57. Kenyans did not run in the fast races and with the reigning champion, Ethiopia&rsquo;s world record holder Almaz Ayana not running, it was a bit of a mystery what would happen. In London 2017 Ayana won by more than 45 seconds, but in Doha it was a different story.&nbsp;
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Sifan Hassan had only one 10,000m race under her belt, a 31:18.12 victory in Stanford in May. But given her 1500m speed, she was always going to be a contender should she be able to stand the pace. Agnes Tirop lead the runners to 5000m in a slow 15:32.70 and it was clear there was going to be a big negative split for the second half. Hassan waited long enough before making her move and the race was decided in the last lap with the Dutchwoman winning in a fast 30:17.62 personal best and world lead, only one second slower than Ayana&rsquo;s 30:16.32 from London 2017. Hassan covered the second 5000m in 14:44.92.
Gidey won the silver for Ethiopia in 30:21.23, another personal best, her first major medal on track following a bronze at the World Cross Country Championships in March. Tirop was third in 30:25.20 to repeat her bronze position from London 2017. Kenya also took places four and five with Rosemary Wanjiru clocking 30:35.75 and Hellen Obiri 30:35.82, personal bests for both.
<h3>Women&rsquo;s 3000m steeplechase</h3>
Beatrice Chepkoech continued her reign of the 3000m steeplechase in 2019. The Kenyan was in good form already in 2017, but a critical error in the London final - she missed one of the water jumps and had to retrace her steps - costs her a medal, perhaps even gold.
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But she bounced back well, producing a huge 8:44.32 world record in Monaco in 2018, and was clearly the number one runner this season too. Chepkoech raced nine times winning eight. Her only loss was to compatriot Norah Tanui in Oslo, who didn&rsquo;t even make the Kenyan squad for Doha. The primary challenger in Doha was the reigning world champion Emma Coburn. The 29-year-old didn&rsquo;t win any big races, but had clocked a solid 9:04.90 prior to the World Championships.
But in the final, Chepkoech was simply too strong, easily dropping the field en route to an 8:57.84 championships record, the first sub-nine minute run at a World Championships. This was also her first major medal after fourth place finishes at the 2016 Olympics and 2017 World Championships.
Coburn won silver in a 9:02.35 personal best while Gesa-Felicitas Krause emerged as the surprise bronze medallist, setting a German record of 9:03.30 in the process. Bahrain&rsquo;s Winfred Yavi was fourth in 9:05.68, also a personal best, her best ever placing in a major championships.
Mirko Jalava (women&rsquo;s events) and A Lennart Julin (men&rsquo;s events) for World Athletics

Our end-of-year reviews continue with renowned statisticians A. Lennart Julin and Mirko Jalava taking a look back at 2019’s key action on the middle and long distance track events.

2019 review: middle and long distances

Propelled by a perfectly-timed homestretch kick, Halimah Nakaayi of Uganda pulled off an upset victory in the 800m, thus far the biggest surprise of the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019.&nbsp;
Uganda never had a World Championships finalist in the women's 800m. Tonight they had two and Nakaayi was the lesser known of the pair, but she didn't play the part at what has been the most energised session of these championships at Khalifa Stadium.
Pre-race favourite Ajee Wilson took command after the break, with Jamaican Natoya Goule closely in tow. About 250 metres into the race Nakaayi tucked in behind the pair and lodged herself comfortably.&nbsp;
Wilson kept the pace fast and forged on, passing the bell in 57.94, maintaining her lead down the back straight. But Nakaayi kept the pressure on, shadowing the American through the bend, seemingly waiting for the opportunity to pounce. Wilson began to labour at the top of the home straight, giving Nakaayi an opening. She took it with about 30 metres to go, chugged by and held on to reach the line in 1:58.04, a national record.
On the outside, Raevyn Rogers blew by the field to finish second in 1:58.18, while Ajee held on for third to secure a 1-2 finish for the US. She clocked 1:58.84
"I was feeling so good, I knew something special was going to happen tonight," said Nakaayi, whose only previous big meet medal came at the All Africa Games in August, where she took bronze. "So I just kept pushing and pushing. I was feeling strong and in the end I got it.&rdquo;
Rogers, a three-time NCAA champion and now 23, signaled solid late season form with a runner-up finish at the Diamond League final in Brussels. She was pleased to carry some of that momentum to Doha.
&ldquo;Silver means a lot to me,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;It's been a hard year with lots of ups and downs mentally and in other ways so this is a great way to end.&rdquo;
I've got to feel good," said Wilson, who raced to silver at the last two editions of the World Indoor Championships and bronze in London two years ago. "I wanted to win of course and went off hard, but in the last part of the race I saw it was hard. At least I got a medal.&rdquo;
Winnie Nanyondo, the second Ugandan, was fourth in 1:59.18. A few minutes later she joined her teammate for a celebratory dance in front of a swarming pool of photographers. She returns to action on Wednesday in the heats of the 1500m, arguably her stronger event.
Further back, former world champion Eunice Sum was fifth in 1:59.71 with Goule sixth clocking 2:00.11.
Bob Ramsak for the IAAF

Propelled by a perfectly-timed homestretch kick, Halimah Nakaayi of Uganda pulled off an upset victory in the 800m, thus far the biggest surprise of the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019.