Cameron Myers wins the Wanamaker Mile (© World Athletics 
Dan Vernon)
Cameron Myers and Nikki Hiltz clinched the Wanamaker Mile trophies while Cole Hocker won a much-anticipated two-mile clash at the Millrose Games – the second World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting of the season – on Sunday (1).
Rivalries were renewed in New York, just one week on from the World Indoor Tour Gold season opener in Boston.
Australia’s 19-year-old Myers set an Oceanian record to win the 3000m at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix and he proved unbeatable in the mile in New York, too. Clocking a world-leading 3:47.57 for the third-fastest mile of his career so far – behind the 3:47.48 world U20 record he ran when finishing third in a race won by Yared Nuguse in New York last year – Myers won clear with the ninth-fastest short track mile time in history. His 1500m split was also a world lead of 3:32.78.
He denied Nuguse a fourth consecutive Wanamaker Mile victory, one year on from Nuguse’s then world short track record of 3:46.63 on the same track. Olympic 1500m bronze medallist Nuguse was runner-up this time in 3:48.31 and Hobbs Kessler, who set a world 2000m short track best in Boston, was third in 3:48.68.
Like Myers, Hiltz also judged their race to perfection to get a maiden Wanamaker Mile win. Sinclaire Johnson took over as the pacemaker stepped aside and Australia’s Olympic 1500m silver medallist Jessica Hull and Linden Hall, who recently teamed up to win the mixed relay at the World Cross Country Championships, followed. Hiltz then moved into third and kicked at the bell, in a battle with Hull. But Hiltz moved away in the closing stages and won in a world-leading PB of 4:19.64 to Hull’s 4:20.11. Klaudia Kazimierska came through for third place in a Polish record of 4:21.36.
USA’s Hocker clocked 8:07.31 in the two miles to deny Josh Kerr in a clash of global gold medallists.
Hocker, the Olympic 1500m and world 5000m champion, had kept enough back to stride past Parker Wolfe, who was running determined on the final lap. Kerr gave chase and while he also passed Wolfe down the home straight, the British 2023 world 1500m champion couldn’t catch Hocker and had to settle for second place, two years on from setting the world best of 8:00.67 at the same meeting.
Kerr clocked 8:07.68 this time, while Wolfe was third in 8:07.83 and world indoor 3000m bronze medallist Ky Robinson was fourth in an Australian short track best of 8:08.40.
After running a US U20 800m record of 1:45.23 one week earlier in New York, 17-year-old Cooper Lutkenhaus moved to fifth on the world 600m short track all-time list, winning the three-lap clash in a world U20 best of 1:14.15.
Jenoah McKiver led at 400m, reached in 47.89, and then Lutkenhaus attacked. His rivals had no response and he finished clear, McKiver securing second in a PB of 1:14.77. Isaiah Jewett was third in 1:15.48.
Another world lead was set in the field as Jamaica’s Olympic bronze medallist Rajindra Campbell threw 21.77m to win the shot put in style. After an opening throw of 20.96m and then three fouls, Campbell’s best came in the fifth round. USA’s two-time world shot put gold medallist Joe Kovacs moved closer with 21.21m with his penultimate throw but he couldn’t improve and so secured second place. Chuk Enekwechi was third with 20.63m.
Colin Sahlman took some big scalps to win the 800m in an almost three-second short track PB of 1:44.70. He surged off the final bend to catch Spain’s Olympic and world fifth-place finisher Mohamed Attaoui, who had to settle for second in 1:44.98. Britain’s 2023 world bronze medallist Ben Pattison was third in a short track PB of 1:45.53, while 2019 world champion Donavan Brazier finished fourth and 2024 world indoor champion Bryce Hoppel finished fifth.
Ethiopia’s 2024 world indoor 800m champion Tsige Duguma opened her season with a win, holding on to take the 1000m in 2:35.50 ahead of USA’s Addy Wiley in a PB of 2:35.77.
Duguma moved up from fourth to first during the penultimate lap and kicked at the bell. Wiley and Maggi Congdon wouldn’t let her get away, but Duguma remained strong through the line to clinch victory. Congdon was third in 2:35.91.
Kenya’s world 3000m steeplechase fifth-place finisher Doris Lemngole used a well-timed kick to win a tactical 3000m. She was happy to sit within a breakaway group of five and was third as Jane Hedengren kicked past leader Nozomi Tanaka with two laps remaining.
Lemngole waited until the bell to make her move and she eased away, improving her PB by 10 seconds to 8:31.39. Great Britain’s Hannah Nuttall also finished strongly to finish second in a PB of 8:32.94 and Hedengren held on to third in 8:34.98.
After setting a North American short track 800m record of 1:57.97 in Boston on Friday, USA’s Roisin Willis won the 600m in New York in a PB of 1:24.87. Juliette Whittaker was second in 1:25.64 and Olivia Baker third in a PB of 1:25.91 in a US top three.
The top three in the women’s 60m hurdles was a repeat of the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. As she did in Boston, Jamaica’s Danielle Williams had the edge – this time surging ahead in the closing stages after a storming finish. The two-time world 100m hurdles gold medallist ran 7.90 this time to again pip two-time world indoor 60m hurdles champion Devynne Charlton of The Bahamas, who ran the first of her two world records in New York two years ago. Christina Clemons was third, 0.01 behind Charlton – 7.96 to 7.97.
In the men’s event, USA’s world 110m hurdles champion Cordell Tinch rebounded after finishing fifth in Boston to get his first victory of the year in 7.52. Connor Schulman repeated his second-place finish from that Boston race, clocking 7.57, while Olympic silver medallist Daniel Roberts was third in 7.61.
Great Britain’s 2019 world 200m champion Dina Asher-Smith denied USA’s world 4x100m gold medallist Jacious Sears a second consecutive Millrose Games 60m win as she clinched back-to-back World Indoor Tour Gold victories. After winning in Boston in 7.08, Asher-Smith caught the fast-starting Sears and passed her in the closing stages – 7.10 to 7.12.
Jamaica’s Ackeem Blake was also a back-to-back winner in another repeat of the top three from Boston last weekend. He won in 6.55 ahead of Eloy Benitez (6.60) and Jordan Anthony (6.64).
USA’s 2024 NCAA champion Chloe Timberg won the pole vault with a 4.60m clearance.
