NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 17 – Youngster Emmanuel Wanyonyi laid revenge on Canadian Marco Arop as he beat the World Champion in Eugene on Sunday to clinch the 800m Diamond Trophy.
Wanyonyi had finished second to lanky Canadian at the Worlds in Budapest last month, but he showed up with a superb final kick in Eugene to win in a meet record time of 1:42.80, which now also counts as his personal best and a world leading time.
Arop came second in the fast race, clocking 1:42.85, which is a Canadian national record.
Erstwhile Diamond League circuit leader Wycliffe Kinyamal finished a disappointing ninth.
At the bell, after the first 400m, Wanyonyi was in the coattails of Arop, who had followed the pacemaker through the first lap in 49.11.
Arop, with his lanky steps galloped away, but Wanyoonyi stuck on his shoulder like a flee. At the home stretch, it seemed the Canadian was running away with it.
In the last 50m, Algerian Djamel Sedjati started making inroads on the outside, and this seemed to have spurred Wanyonyi as he put on the afterburners, striding beyond Arop and dipping at the finish line to clinch the title and end his season in style.
