Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim, pictured in action in Doha on May 10, 2013, posted the best outdoor high jump since 2000 on Saturday with a winning leap of 2.40m at the Prefontaine Classic Diamond League meeting. -AFP photo
EUGENE, Oregon: Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim posted the best outdoor high jump since 2000 on Saturday with a winning leap of 2.40m at the Prefontaine Classic Diamond League meeting.
The Qatari’s performance was the most impressive in a spate of season-leading efforts produced in the fourth of 14 stops in the IAAF’s elite Diamond League series.
The 2012 Olympic bronze medallist is now tied with four other athletes as the fourth-best performers all-time outdoors in the discipline and his clearance was the highest indoors or out since the 2.40 of Russian Ivan Ukhov indoors in February of 2009.
He improved on the Asian continental record of 2.39 that he shared with China’s Zhu Jianhua, Zhu setting the mark in 1984 and Barshim matching it in Lausanne in 2012.
Olympic gold medallist Renaud Lavillenie was also impressive, winning the men’s pole vault in a season-leading 5.95m.
As at the London Games last year and the European Championships, the Frenchman finished ahead of Germans Bjorn Otto (5.90) and Raphael Holzdeppe (5.84).
Tirunesh Dibaba won the women’s 5,000 in a world-leading 14min 42.01sec, Francine Miyonsaba of Burundi clocked a season’s best of 1:57.72 in winning the 800m and the women’s triple jump saw winner Caterine Ibarguen of Colombia with a leap of 14.93 and Ukraine’s Olga Saladukha with a runner-up clearance of 14.85 both improve on the previous best this year.
Czech Zuzana Hejnova, bronze medallist in London, notched the world’s fastest 400m hurdles time of 2013 with a victory in 53.70sec — a comfortable 1.05sec faster than runner-up Georganne Moline of the United States. Jamaica’s Kaliese Spencer was third.
Reigning world champion Lashinda Demus was fifth while 2012 Olympic gold medallist Natalya Antyukh of Russia was last.
Season’s bests on the men’s side also included German Robert Hartwig’s winning discus throw of 69.75m, Kenyan Silas Kiplagat’s mile triumph in 3:49.48 and Kenyan Edwin Soi’s victory in the 5,000m in 13:04.75
Soi finished ahead of Britain’s double Olympic champion Mo Farah, who switched from the 10,000 to the 5,000 this weekend after battling a virus but didn’t quite have enough even at the shorter distance. Farah settled for second in 13:05.88.
The men’s 400m didn’t produce a season-leading time, but it offered another glimpse of the exciting rivalry between US veteran LaShawn Merritt, the 2008 Olympic champion, and 2012 Olympic gold medallist Kirani James.
James, who became Grenada’s first Olympic medallist in any sport with his triumph in London, beat 2008 Olympic champ Merritt at the Diamond League meeting in Shanghai on May 18 — notching the fastest time in the world this year.
Merritt couldn’t improve on that, but his 44.32sec was enough to hold off the late-charging James at the wire, the Grenadian finishing second in 44.39.
“I love lining up (against James) because I know he’s going to bring the best out of me, and I have to run a smart race.”
American Justin Gatlin remained unbeaten in the 100m this year, triumphing in a wind-aided 9.88sec.
Gatlin, the 2008 Olympic champion who has notched victories in Doha and Beijing this season, edged compatriot Michael Rodgers (9.94), with American Ryan Bailey third in 10.00 to squeeze Jamaican Nesta Carter off the podium.
Jamaica’s two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won the women’s 100m in a wind-aided 10.71sec. Nigeria’s Blessing Akagbare was second in 10.75 and Jamaican Veronica Campbell-Brown third in 10.78.
“This is my last race until our national championships, so I was just working on the start, working on the finish,” Fraser-Pryce said. “I just wanted to come out and have a good run regardless of what the outcome was.”
Olympic champion Sanya Richards-Ross finished last in the 400m — her first race since her Olympic triumph in London.
In September the American had surgery on her right big toe. She had planned to return last week in the Diamond League meeting in New York but was a late scratch, saying she wasn’t quite ready.
“I have a lot of work to do,” Richards-Ross acknowledged, although she added she was confident she could be back in top form in time for the World Championships in Moscow August 10-18.
“I just don’t have my speed,” she said. “I’m happy I was back on the track today. I will be ready in August.”
World champion Amantle Montsho of Botswana followed up her New York victory a week ago with another triumph.
She won in 50.01sec, ahead of American Francena McCorory (50.37) and Jamaica’s Novlene Williams (51.14). -AFP