The Diamond League Kicks Off With A Bang
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Gateshead Diamond League Wash Out and Being In the Presence of Greatness
I think now a few days on, we’re just about drying out after what one could accurately describe as a total wash-out. It was a day full of wind and rain that was not at all conducive to elite athletics. Yet, with that said, it still managed to feel like a spectacle of the grandest kind. This feeling was perhaps enhanced as it’s the first major athletics event in the UK since fans started to tentatively and cautiously returning to sporting events across the country.
The women’s 100m was arguably the biggest event of the evening and after winning her heat in the fastest time, British athlete Dina Asher-Smith went into the final as favourite, despite US star Sha’Carri Richardson possessing a stunning 10.72 world lead from the Miramar Invitational in Miami last month. Dina didn’t disappoint and from lane 5, ran a superb 11.35 (-4.4 head wind), 0.11 seconds ahead of Richardson in a move which will increase her confidence for a medal in Tokyo. Left trailing in her wake were Olympic medal hopefuls Marie-Josee Ta Lou and Nigeria’s Blessing Okagbare. Afterwards, Asher-Smith said, “All in all today was just about the experience...the most important thing is to come away with a good result and a win and I was very happy to do that.”
It was a great day for the British women on the track, all round, with the inimitable Laura Muir cruising to a dominant victory in the 1500m in a time of 4:03.73, especially impressive in such dreadful conditions. “I’m really, really pleased”, she said after her first race on UK soil for some time.
Elsewhere, 20 year old European 1500m record holder and double European champion, Jakob Ingebrigsten, shifted up the gears in the final lap to hold off a late challenge from Australian Ollie Hoare to take the victory in 3:36.27. Impressive performances in the chasing pack came from Archie Davies (3:41.66) who was leading Brit, edging out British 1500m champion George Mills. Australian record holder, Stewy McSweyn despite looking like the only realistic challenger to Ingebrigsten was outpowered in the final 200m by compatriot Ollie Hoare, finishing third.
Lastly, the 5000m was another quick race, given the appalling wind and rain. Whilst we could be heard shouting loudly for Jake Smith in his Diamond League 5000m debut (13:38.01 PB), the eventual winner was a dominant Mohamed Katir of Spain (13:08.52) sporting the interesting looking new spikes from Asics that aren’t really spikes. He bettered his previous PB by a whopping 42 seconds! There were impressive performances from Morgan McDonald, who left it late to move through the field, finishing in 13:22.78. Andy Butchart, fresh from the news of his impending child, ran a swift 13:23.73 whilst Jimmy Gressier ran incredibly bravely; his futile efforts to close the gap with the chasing pack left him vulnerable to the rest of the field as he fell to 8th, finishing in 13:25.36.
Other notable results include: Hillary Bor winning the men’s 3k steeple (8:30.20) in the slowest time since the inception of the Diamond Leage, Sam Kendricks victory over Mondo Duplantis in the pole-vault and Cindy Sember beating her sister Tiffany Porter to take the win in the 100m hurdles. For the full results, click here.
A few words on our post-event experience. It would be hard to exaggerate just how cold and wet it was. We were both shivering with well over an hour to go and so once the event had finished and we were waiting outside to catch up with Jake Smith, our moment arrived. From a side-door, merely a few yards away, a slender figure emerged. Without a moment’s hesitation, we realised that about to walk within a few feet of us was Jakob Ingebrigsten. Regular followers of Trackstaa will know that we’re essentially his biggest fans. We immediately whispered to each other, “it’s Jakob” and like 2 shy little boys, we stared at him - lovingly - without uttering a single word as he walked past looking at us, probably a little scared. How could we have let this happen? We’ve both been replaying this moment over and over again the last few days, resolved to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
Colleen Quigley Signs for Lulu Lemon and takes swipe at Nike
Outside of the elite performances of some world-class athletes, perhaps the biggest news of the week was the announcement that Colleen Quigley has signed a professional contract with sportswear apparel brand, Lulu Lemon. In an explosive statement, Quigley said, “finally this runner will no longer work with brands or people who don’t accept and even celebrate every side of her both off and on the track...I want to use my voice when I see injustice in the world and help spread understanding, kindness, and love to those who need it most. I don’t want to feel scared to speak up and speak out because someone might disagree or because it might cause someone to feel uncomfortable.”
In what is a clear parting shot to her previous sponsors, Nike, Quigley pulled no punches in explaining why she switched, saying in a podcast that she just didn’t feel valued or treated like an adult by Nike. Could this be a sign of things to come? More athletes deciding to abandon the commercial powerhouse that is Nike. Whatever happens, I think we can all agree that for Lulu Lemon, Colleen Quigley is a real catch and will certainly raise their profile in the running world. For now, I just want them to lower their prices!
Keely Hodgkinson and Max Burgin dominate at the 60th Golden Spike in Ostrava
British teenagers Keely Hodgkinson and Max Burgin were the stand-out performers as this week saw the 60th iteration of the Golden Spike take place in Ostrava in the Czech Republic. Max, who also celebrated his 19th birthday this week - happy birthday, Max - set the fastest time in the world this year, a PB and a European U20 record 1:44.14 to win by a country mile from seasoned competitors such as Tony Van Diepen and Jake Wightman who finished second and third respectively.
Keely Hodginkson earlier in the same day won the women’s 800m with a stunning personal best of 1:58.89. Her first time under 2 minutes outdoors and a British U20 record.
Americans Sha’Carri Richardson (22.35) and Fred Kerley (9.96) took the sprint victories in the 200m and 100m respectively with Kenny Bednarek cruising to 200m victory in 19.93. Kerley beating US athlete Justin Gatlin into second place in the process.
Joshua Cheptegei cemented his dominance over male distance running with a comfortable and powerful victory in the 3000m. His victory was always assured but his main goal had been to beat the incredible 3000m world record of 7:20.67 set by Daniel Kamen back in September 1996 and to be only the third man to hold the 3000, 5000m and 10000m all at the same time. With the help of pacemakers and wave light technology, he gave it a real scare but ultimately faltered to miss it by around 13 seconds. He finished in a blisteringly quick time of 7:33.24; a PB.
Rainy Gateshead to sunny Doha
After a brilliant event in Gateshead, the Diamond League shifts focus to Doha in the Kingdom of Qatar for some hugely anticipated match-ups, particularly over the shorter distances. US athletes Michael Norman and Fred Kerley look set to do battle in the 400m, with Sha’Carri Ricahrdson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce lining up once again in the 100m whilst Emma Coburn will be attempting to stifle the dominance of Beatrice Chepkoech in the 3000m steeple. The men’s 200m includes some of the fastest men around with Kenny Bednarek looking to go 2 from 2. Trying to upset the party will be Justin Gatlin, Canadian, Andre De Grasse and British athlete Adam Gemili who will be aiming to re-find his form from previous years.
After watching Jakob Ingebrigsten ease through the gears to victory in Gateshead, his nemesis in the 1500m, Timothy Cheruiyot runs as favourite in the 1500m. He’ll be chased by Australian Stewy McSweyn and his compatriot, Matt Ramsden. The strongest challenge however is likely to come from either, Ethiopian, Sam Tefera (3:31.39) or Ugandan, Ronald Musagala (3:30.58).
The 800m has 2 of the quickest British athletes around, including 2020 British Champion, Dan Rowden and European indoor silver medallist, Jamie Webb. Whilst the burgeoning talent, Keely Hodgkinson, already in possession of the quickest time in the world this year runs in the 800m against seasoned competitors like Faith Kipyegon and, Jamiacan, Natoya Goule.
For the full schedule and entry lists, click here.
Click here for our full event preview.
U23 European Championships update
After news broke earlier this week stating that the European U23 Championships had been postponed after the hosts, Norway, could no longer support the event, reports today suggest that the previous dates will remain largely intact but the competitors will instead be flying to the Estonian capital, Tallinn.
Adidas Boost Boston Games
Despite all the hype, for most fans the adidas Boost Boston Games wasn’t quite the spectacle we had all hoped. It wasn’t helped by a sub-standard YouTube stream with sketchy commentary, to say the least. That said, it still produced some impressive results. Grant Holloway the indoor world record holder and 2019 World Champion demolished a field which included the outdoor world record holder Aries Merritt to take the win in a meeting record 13.20.
Shaunae Miller-Uibo, the Olympic 400m champion, cruised to victory in 22.08 in the 200m, crediting the straight track as the key reason for better performance. It wasn’t quite the same for men’s 200m with Olympic champion and world record holder Wayde van Niekerk pulling up a few metres before the finish. You could almost hear the entire South African nation gasp in fear that their superstar might have seriously injured himself. Thankfully he popped up onto Twitter later in the day to confirm that it was nothing serious.
In the mile, both an out and back race, the women’s race was run comfortably by Nikki Hiltz, returning to winning ways after her previous victory in the 2019 iteration of these games. The men’s was far more competitive if not particularly quick, with Clayton Murphy 2016 Olympic bronze medallist in the 800m winning in a time of 4:01 after a late kick. He won by the smallest of margins, finishing 2 tenths of a second ahead of Sam Prakel and Eric Avila. British athlete Josh Lay didn’t quite run the race he wanted coming off the back of an extended training camp in the US, finishing 10th in a time of 4:05.
British Running Legend, Ron Hill, Dies Aged 82
In sadder news this week, particularly for British fans, is the passing of marathon legend and sportswear pioneer, Ron Hill.
Best remembered for being the second man in history to break the 2:10 barrier for the marathon and achieving gold at the 1969 European Athletics Championships, his honours also include victory in the 74th Boston Marathon and Commonwealth Gold. He also claimed to have never missed a day’s training in 52 years and 39 days from 1964 to 2017.
Adidas upping its Super Shoe game
Images were leaked this week of some more super shoes from Adidas. The shoe that got most people’s attention was the Adidas Adizero Prime X (why are their names so long!). It looks like something from Mars, with a frankly insane stack-height, it boasts a triple layer of Adidas’ signature foam, ‘Lightstrike Pro’. If you’ve not seen it, magine that the Adios Pro 1 went to Gold’s Gym and got seriously swole. The early reports also suggest that it has not only the carbon rods seen in the Adios Pro but a carbon plate in the heel as well. In a further nod to its position as a training shoe, the sole contains a substantial amount of rubber and it’s unlikely to be conducive to racing (in fact it’s contrary to World Athletics rules on road racing compliance in any case).
Fear not, however, as images were also leaked of the second edition of the popular Adios Pro which has seen many world records broken. The 2nd Adios Pro has a 39.5 mm outsole, a return of the trademark carbon rods, an updated upper and actual grip on the outsole, which is great, call me old-fashioned.