BIRMINGHAM, United Kingdom, May 21 – Kenya’s Abel Kipsang went into the men’s 1500m as the world leader and he proved the best in Birmingham Diamond League too, running 3:35.15 to pick his second successive win.
Kipsang, who entered the race straight from winning the season opening Diamond League in Doha, cruised to victory ahead of Spain’s Mohamed Katir (3:35.62) and Australia’s Ollie Hoare (3:35.76).
It continues Kipsang’s unbeaten season, following his 3:31.01 win in Nairobi and victory in Doha.
In the corresponding women’s race, Kenya’s Winny Chebet finished third clocking 4:05.56 in a race won by home girl Laura Muir, who roared to a win on home soil in 4:02.81 to hold off the challenge of Australia’s Jessica Hull.
Hull, also making her season debut in the 1500m, ran 4:03.42 to finish two seconds ahead of Chebet .
In the men’s 800m, Commonwealth Games champion Wycliffe Kinyamal finished to a disappointing sixth place in a race dominated by Canadian Marco Arop who kicked to victory to defeat a field featuring two Tokyo Olympic medallists.
The world finalist had followed the pack through 400m in 50.49 and then made a move with 200m to go, surging ahead to win in 1:45.41.
Benjamin Robert of France won the fierce battle for the runner-up spot, clocking 1:46.22 just ahead of USA’s Bryce Hoppel (1:46.33), Britain’s Jake Wightman (1:46.39), Poland’s Olympic bronze medallist Patryk Dobek (1:46.63) and Kenya’s Olympic silver medallist Ferguson Rotich (1:46.64).
-Asher-Smith and Hodgkinson sparkle in Diamond League-
Britain’s leading athletes Dina Asher-Smith and Keely Hodgkinson powered to victory to delight a home crowd.
Asher-Smith clocked 11.11sec to beat Olympic bronze medallist Shericka Jackson of Jamaica by one hundredth of a second for her best result so far of a season in which she is aiming to retain her world 200m title in Oregon in July.
“There was a very strong field, I could have done a few things differently if I am being picky but I’m very happy to win in this temperature and against this field,” Asher-Smith said.
Hodgkinson controlled the women’s 800m to show that the surprise silver medallist at the Tokyo Olympics is in convincing form in her first outdoor race of the year.
The 20-year-old kicked hard in the home straight to open up a gap on the field and win in 1min 58.63sec from France’s Renelle Lamote.
“It’s a confidence-booster and I want to build on it with two months to go before the world championships,” Hodgkinson said.
Keely Hodgkinson showed she is in the right form to win world championships medals at 800m to add to her surprise Olympic silver © AFP / Paul ELLIS
She said she was looking forward to a “good test” when she runs against the Americans in the Oregon Diamond League meeting next weekend.
Olympic 200 metres champion Andre De Grasse was beaten into fourth place in a disappointing men’s 100m that was deprived of American Trayvon Bromell — the fastest man in the world last year — and Britain’s Zharnel Hughes by false starts.
In the stadium that will host the Commonwealth Games athletics later this year, De Grasse was outclassed by Canadian compatriot Aaron Brown who won in a modest 10.13sec, with 32-year-old Jamaican Yohan Blake second in 10.18.
De Grasse clocked a pedestrian 10.24 but showed better form when he anchored a Canadian quartet to victory in the men’s 4x100m relay in 38.31.
Andre De Grasse led Canada to victory in the 4x100m relay after a disappointing performance in the 100m © AFP / Ben Stansall
Britain’s first-choice relay quartet, who were stripped of their Olympic silver medal after Chijindu Ujah failed a doping test, made a bad start to the 2022 season when Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake dropped the baton in the final changeover.
Another home favourite, Laura Muir, showed she is building back strongly from a back injury she suffered in February when the Briton won a hard-fought women’s 1500m in 4min 02.81sec, holding off Australia’s Jessica Hull.
Hansle Parchment, who caused an upset to win the Olympic 110m hurdles title last year, set a world-leading 13.09sec to beat another Jamaican, 2016 Olympic champion Omar McLeod.
American Dalia Muhammad, the Olympic champion in 2016 and silver medallist last year, eased to victory in the women’s 400m hurdles in 54.54sec, ahead of two Ukrainians, Viktoriya Tkachuk and Anna Ryzhkova.
In the men’s discus, Slovenia’s Kristjan Ceh moved into the all-time world top 10 with a huge throw of 71.27 metres.
Italian high jumper Gianfranco Tamberi, who famously shared Olympic gold with Mutaz Essa Barshim in Tokyo, had to settle for second in a competition won by Canadian Django Lovett with 2.28m to 2.25m.
Germany’s Olympic gold medallist Malaika Mihomba leaped a world-leading 7.09m to dominate the women’s long jump.
