Nuguse's Possible Route To World Championships Gains Footing With Victory In Poland; Keely Hodgkinson Runs World Lead; Masai Russell And Karsten Warholm Breaks Diamond League Hurdles Records; Faith Kipyegon Nearly Breaks 3000 WR

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Photos courtesy Diamond League AG

INTERVIEWS

Yared Nuguse beat a star-studded field in the men's 1,500 meters on Saturday at the Kamila Skolimowska Memorial, running 3:33.19. 

The Olympic bronze medalist finished fourth at the USATF Outdoor Championships and needs to win the Diamond League final to earn a wild card berth to Tokyo next month. 

"I don't want to get ahead of myself," Nuguse said. "Once I do make it (Tokyo) I feel very confident that of my chances of winning there. I've had a lot of setbacks this year. I haven't won as many races as I'd like, until now, but I'm feeling really, really good about my chances."

With 15 points, Nuguse is probably now assured of a spot on the starting line at the Diamond League final in Zurich. 

On Saturday he held off Kenya's Timothy Cheruiyot (3:33.35) and Noway's Narve Gilje Nordas (3:33.41).

Masai Russell and Karsten Warholm both broke Diamond League records in hurdles events. 

Russell, the Olympic champion, ran 12.19 seconds for the third-fastest performance in history. Fellow American Tonea Marshall ran a personal best 12.24 for second place, tying her No. 7 on the all-time world list. 

Warholm ran a world-leading time of 46.28 to win the 400-meter hurdles. 

Faith Kipyegon of Kenya nearly broke another world record, this time in the 3,000 meters where she won in a time of 8:07.04. That's an African record and also a Diamond League record, just one second short of Wang Junxia's dubious world record of 8:06.11 from 1993. Kipyegon won by 27 seconds. 

Great Britain's Keely Hodgkinson made her highly anticipated season debut in the women's 800 meters and won with a meet record and world leading time of 1:54.74.

Gudaf Tsegay of Ethiopia ran 3:50.62 for a meet record in the women's 1,500 meters. She crushed a field that included second-place finisher Beatrice Chebet of Kenya (3:54.73) by four seconds. 

Femke Bol of The Netherlands ran a world-leading time of 51.91 seconds to win the women's 400-meter hurdles. 

In the men's 100 meters, Jamaica's Kishane Thompson beat Americans Noah Lyles and Kenny Bednarek in a possible preview of Tokyo. Thompson ran 9.87 seconds with Lyles second (9.90) and Bednarek and Christian Coleman both running 9.96.

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden maintained her dominance of the women's 100 meters and won in 10.66 seconds. 

Jamaica's Shericka Jackson won the 200 in 22.17 seconds. 

Just a couple of days after breaking the world record for the 13th time in the men's pole vault, Mondo Duplantis of Sweden won with 6.10m after missing three times at 6.20m.

Jasmine Moore, who made the U.S. team in the triple jump but not the long jump, came back strong in the latter and broke the meet record with a 6.85m jump. 

Cordell Tinch upset Olympic champion Grant Holloway in the men's 110-meter hurdles, 13.03 to 13.15, and a third American, Eric Edwards was next in 13.20. 

Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic won the women's 400 meters in 49.18 seconds, edging rival Salwa Eid Naser of Qatar (49.27). 

Hamish Kerr of New Zealand cleared 2.33m to beat American JuVaughn Harrison (2.28m) in the men's high jump. 

Payton Otterdahl won the men's shot put with 22.28m. 

Julius Yego of Kenya won his first Diamond League title in the men's javelin since 2016 wtih a mark of 83.60m.