DL Final Day 2 Men — Patient Lyles Finish Downs Tebogo

Noah Lyles outsprinted Paris 200 conqueror Letsile Tebogo for a second time this season. (TAKESHI NISHIMOTO)

ZÜRICH, SWITZERLAND, August 28 — The shuffling of the World Athletic calendar to move the Diamond League Final to a slot before the World Championships makes perfect sense to many, but perhaps left a packed audience at the 64th Weltklasse wondering what happened to their grand old track meet.

The sport’s biggest stars stayed away in droves and match-ups between top-flight performers on the track were few indeed. One event that came through was the final race of the night, the 200 meters, featuring another battle between Noah Lyles and his Olympic conqueror, Letsile Tebogo.

With temps dropping to the mid-60s on a nearly windless evening, Lyles readied himself in lane 6 with Tebogo in 7. The most notable absentee was Kenny Bednarek. In four lifetime meetings with Lyles, Tebogo had only triumphed once, when it counted most in Paris.

Tebogo got out best at the gun, blasting the turn and emerging on the straight ahead of his rival. Lyles pulled even with 70 to go but the Motswana did not fold. Tooth and nail they both fought, and it was only on the lean that fans could see Lyles gaining an inch or two. He took the win, 19.74–19.76 into a 0.6 wind. It was the closest result of any of their 5 races.

The American thus celebrated his sixth diamond trophy: “6—it is a big number. The most important is getting wins. I know if I panicked, I was not going to win. If you are tight you are done for. I saw Letsile lean on the finishline and I leaned on the finishline but I knew I won. I can always ask for more.”

Tebogo says he will have more in Tokyo. “This is not my true potential right now. I feel there is still a lot more in the tank that people need to see. I take this as a big motivation for my training and from tomorrow, until the last day of the 200m final, I have to give it all my best. I have to give all out.”

He added, “He wins today; tomorrow, he can lose it. I believe since Paris, he has been humble, he has not been talking so much… We are equally balanced at the moment.”

Another event that delivered star power was the 800, which featured all the usual suspects. Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi chased the rabbit (49.00) with a 49.5, ahead of Max Burgin and Marco Arop. American Josh Hoey, needing a win to make it to Tokyo, passed the pole in 6th (50.2).

Wanyonyi continued the torrid clip through 600 in 1:15.6, with Burgin and Arop still hanging on. The Kenyan finally felt the effects and slowed in the last 200 (26.7), but his lead was enough that he held on for the win, just barely edging Burgin, 1:42.37–1:42.42. Arop took 3rd in 1:42.57 and Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati closed well in 1:42.84. Hoey, in 5th with 100 to go, didn’t have the legs this time, and his 1:44.25 got him last, behind teammate Bryce Hoppel’s 1:43.78.

Wanyonyi seemed quite pleased: “This result is so good for me. I wanted to run 1:42 now.”

The 400 was the first DL running event of the night, presenting a more subdued contest with only 3 of the current top 10 list present. Jacory Patterson, the U.S. champion, took it out aggressively, putting himself in the lead immediately and withstanding the challenge of Chris Bailey throughout much of the lap. Patterson held on for the win in a PR 43.85, as Bailey faded and Bayapo Ndori closed for 2nd in 44.40 ahead of Vernon Norwood (44.45).

Norwood was one who had hoped to win to get a Tokyo ticket with a win. Now Patterson can take the DL Wild Card route, and that moves Norwood, 4th at USATF, onto the team. Said Patterson, “I am so happy. My hard work pays off. This victory gives me confidence for the World Championships for sure. Going to the Worlds knowing that you can win!”

Soufiane El Bakkali might have been missing, but fans were thrilled to see a stirring steeple in his absence. The Kenyan pacesetters delivered a 5:30.01 through 2K, helping give the lead to Edmund Serem, last year’s World Junior champion, an 8:04.00 performer who is still just 17. But German Frederik Ruppert jumped him on the next lap in a bold gambit, amping up the pace but not shaking the young Kenyan.

After the last waterjump, Serem pulled even. It looked as if it would be another African win, same as every other DL Final ever. This time, however, Ruppert gained a crucial lead with better form on the final hurdle, then threw down a sprint that Serem couldn’t match. His 8:09.02 made him the first European winner ever, much to the crowd’s delight. Serem finished in 8:09.96. The only American, Isaac Updike, was 6th in 8:19.47.

“This is mega, so cool!” said a stunned Ruppert. “I did not see this coming before the race. Winning a Diamond League Final — I do not have words to describe this. Running here in Zürich — for me this is better than the Olympic Games because the crowd pushed me so much, they cheered for me on the last lap so much.”

Next came the 110H, where Cordell Tinch continued his march to greatness. His start did not impress, but he had the lead by the first hurdle and continued pressing. Trey Cunningham followed close behind before losing the thread over the final barriers. With the wind at 0.3, Tinch tied the 12.92 meet standard that was a WR for Roger Kingdom when he won 36 years ago.

Unheralded Enrique Llopis of Spain came up for 2nd in 13.12 ahead of Jamal Britt’s 13.21. Cunningham faded to 6th in 13.32.

Tinch quelled WR speculation: “I have got to continue to run sub-13 before I start to think about the records or anything like that. I think all I have done this year has been a next big moment. Every time I get into something, it is another big moment. And I am ready for the next one. I am ready to go to Tokyo and be great.”

Yared Nuguse was another looking for a win to earn his Tokyo passage. Instead, the 1500 turned into another stunning display by fast-rising Niels Laros of the Netherlands. The 20-year-old phenom kept out of the way as Azeddine Habz and Phanuel Koech stayed close behind the 54.62/1:51.68 pace. At 1200, Habz led in 2:49.49, with Laros running off Koech’s shoulder and Nuguse in 4th. Koech and Laros moved past the Frenchman on the backstretch and by the time they rounded the last turn, the pack looked full of potential winners. But none of them had the impressive closing speed of Laros, who burned a 12.5 final 100 to set a Dutch Record 3:29.20 and take the win.

A phalanx of Kenyans followed: Reynold Cheruiyot dashing a 12.7 to take 2nd (3:29.91), Koech (3:30.02) and Timothy Cheruiyot (3:30.13). Nuguse crumbled to 7th on that final stretch, closing his 3:30.84 with a 13.8.

Laros said he is past some illnesses that have dogged him recently: “I know that I have a good kick and I relied on that. I am excited. I am going into Tokyo with a lot of confidence. The victory feels nice. I have been showing that I control the race. I am looking forward to the next step in Tokyo.”

The 100 felt wide open, with no Kishane Thompson, Oblique Seville or Lyles. No problem for Christian Coleman, who obliged by winning his third career title. Starting even out of the blocks with Trayvon Bromell, the 29-year-old Coleman took a narrow lead over Jamaica’s Ackeem Blake at halfway and stayed ahead of the late rush of Akani Simbine. It was a close one: Coleman 9.97, Simbine 9.98, Blake 9.99 into a slight headwind.

The Wild Card won’t help Coleman, who was 5th at nationals, as reigning world champion Lyles already has dibs. “For me it is pretty unfortunate with the Wild Card rule,” Coleman said. “In America we have 5–6 guys that should be in the final in Tokyo, so if I should get the opportunity, I want to come home with a medal.”

As per his normal script, Karsten Warholm took off hard in the 400H, hitting 20.3 at the fifth hurdle. This time, Abderrahmane Samba put up a good fight, but the WR holder displayed great strength over the final barriers to win in an MR 46.70. Samba finished 2nd in 47.45, ahead of Nathaniel Ezekiel’s 47.56. American CJ Allen took 4th in 48.00.

Explained Warholm, “I just decided I wanted to come here and break the meeting record, which was also mine from one of my most memorable races here — and of course to win the Wanda Diamond League Trophy, so I am really happy. For me, my motivation always is to get better. I don’t think I reached my limit yet.”

But for some tactical missteps on the final lap, Grant Fisher might have won his first DL Final. Briton George Mills did much of the leading after the pacers dropped, and with 600 to go Fisher shot to 2nd. Sweden’s Andreas Almgren jumped to the lead on the penultimate turn, with Ethiopian teen Biniam Mehary also getting in front of Fisher. The pack remained bunched with 200 left. While Fisher had traffic problems on the final turn, it was France’s Jimmy Gressier who bolted from 5th to the lead. Despite a solid effort from the American, Gressier took the win with an 0.03 margin in 7:36.78, ahead of Fisher (7:36.81) and Almgren (7:36.82).

“My coach told me that if it is going to be a tactical race: wait and push only on the last 100,” said Gressier, who added, “I will sleep with the trophy in my bed tonight. I want to enjoy it.”

The field events were limited to 6 competitors each (other than the javelin), which sped up the timeline but perhaps limited the action. The biggest performance came in the spear, where Julian Weber, so often unlucky in global championships, showed he is ready for Tokyo by launching the farthest throw of his life on his first attempt, a 299-9 (91.37).

On his second throw, he went even farther, a 300-2 (91.51) that made him the fifteenth member of the 300-foot club, a distinction that, to be fair, probably means very little to the German. He stuck two more out in the field that were farther than reigning world champion Neeraj Chopra could manage. The Indian settled for a final round 278-11 (85.01), as Keshorn Walcott threw 3rd at 278-8 (84.95).

“I knew that I was in good shape,” said Weber. “But I would not have thought that I would perform so well today, and already on my first throw. It is awesome, the technique was there, the timing. Now I am back where I need to be.”

In the discus, WR-holder Mykolas Alekna got off three fair throws, any one of which would have won. His best came in round 3, a 226-0 (68.89). Kristjan Čeh threw 220-5 (67.18) for 2nd ahead of Paris gold medalist Roje Stona’s 220-0 (67.06).

Olympic champion Hamish Kerr was pressed all the way in the high jump. He had the highest clearance at 7-7¼ (2.32), but Oleh Doroshchuk missed once at that height and passed to 7-8 (2.34). At that bar, neither were successful. When the Ukrainian ran out of attempts, Kerr called it a day and celebrated. American JuVaughn Harrison took 3rd at 7-4½ (2.25).

A great first round in the triple jump saw Yasser Triki take the lead at 57-2 (17.42) and Pedro Pichardo immediately pass him with a 57-3¾ (17.47). World leader Andy Díaz Hernández was stuck in 3rd, but in round 4 came up with a 57-7½ (17.56) that took the win.

“I did not expect this result but it helps assessing where I am at just before the World Championships,” said the winner, who on that final note, just might have been speaking for many of the competitors in the Stadion Letzigrund.

ZÜRICH MEN’S RESULTS, DAY 2

100(-0.4): 1. Christian Coleman (US) 9.97; 2. Akani Simbine (SA) 9.98; 3. Ackeem Blake (Jam) 9.99; 4. Jeremiah Azu (GB) 10.03; 5. Brandon Hicklin (US) 10.09; 6. Trayvon Bromell (US) 10.14; 7. Shaun Maswanganyi (SA) 10.19.

200(-0.6): 1. Noah Lyles (US) 19.74; 2. Letsile Tebogo (Bot) 19.76; 3. Alexander Ogando (DR) 20.14; 4. Robert Gregory (US) 20.20; 5. Reynier Mena (Cub) 20.26; 6. Kyree King (US) 20.43; 7. Joe Fahnbulleh (Lbr) 20.46; 8. Udodi Onwuzurike (Ngr) 20.54.

400: 1. Jacory Patterson (US) 43.85 PR; 2. Bayapo Ndori (Bot) 44.40; 3. Vernon Norwood (US) 44.45; 4. Muzala Samukonga (Zam) 44.49; 5. Chris Bailey (US) 44.75; 6. Daniel Segers (Bel) 45.01; 7. Collen Kebinatshipi (Bot) 45.40; 8. Alexander Doom (Bel) 45.61.

800: 1. Emmanuel Wanyonyi (Ken) 1:42.37; 2. Max Burgin (GB) 1:42.42; 3. Marco Arop (Can) 1:42.57; 4. Djamel Sedjati (Alg) 1:42.84; 5. Tshepiso Masalela (Bot) 1:43.16; 6. Mohamed Attaoui (Spa) 1:43.35; 7. Bryce Hoppel (US) 1:43.78; 8. Josh Hoey (US) 1:44.25;… rabbit—Patryk Sieradzki (Pol) (49.00).

1500: 1. Niels Laros (Neth) 3:29.20 NR; 2. Reynold Kipkorir (Ken) 3:29.91 PR; 3. Phanuel Koech (Ken) 3:30.02; 4. Timothy Cheruiyot (Ken) 3:30.13; 5. Azeddine Habz (Fra) 3:30.39 (2:49.49); 6. Anass Essayi (Mor) 3:30.67 PR; 7. Yared Nuguse (US) 3:30.84; 8. Samuel Pihlström (Swe) 3:31.15; 9. Robert Farken (Ger) 3:31.30;… rabbit—Zan Rudolf (Slo) (54.62, 57.06 [1:51.68]).

3000: 1. Jimmy Gressier (Fra) 7:36.78 PR; 2. Grant Fisher (US) 7:36.81; 3. Andreas Almgren (Swe) 7:36.82; 4. Mohamed Abdilaahi (Ger) 7:37.31 PR; 5. Biniam Mehary (Eth) 7:37.33 PR; 6. Graham Blanks (US) 7:38.15 PR; 7. George Mills (GB) 7:38.71 PR; 8. Samuel Tefera (Eth) 7:38.93 PR.

St: 1. Frederik Ruppert (Ger) 8:09.02; 2. Edmund Serem (Ken) 8:09.96; 3. Salaheddine Ben Yazide (Mor) 8:14.10; 4. Daniel Arce (Spa) 8:14.36; 5. Nicolas Daru (Fra) 8:18.68; 6. Isaac Updike (US) 8:19.47; 7. Mohamed Amine Jihnaoui (Tun) 8:24.75; 8. Abraham Sime (Eth) 8:28.13.

110H(0.3): 1. Cordell Tinch (US) 12.92; 2. Enrique Llopis (Spa) 13.12; 3. Jamal Britt (US) 13.21; 4. Jason Joseph (Swi) 13.22; 5. Freddie Crittenden (US) 13.23; 6. Trey Cunningham (US) 13.32; 7. Orlando Bennett (Jam) 13.35; 8. Rachid Muratake (Jpn) 14.39.

400H: 1. Karsten Warholm (Nor) 46.70; 2. Abderrahmane Samba (Qat) 47.45; 3. Nathaniel Ezekiel (Ngr) 47.56; 4. CJ Allen (US) 48.00; 5. Matheus Lima (Bra) 48.21; 6. Trevor Bassitt (US) 48.29; 7. Alastair Chalmers (GB) 48.88.

Field Events

HJ: 1. Hamish Kerr (NZ) 7-7¼ (2.32) (7-1, 7-2¼, 7-3¼ [2], 7-4½, 7-5¾, 7-6½ [2], 7-7¼, 7-8 [xpp]) (2.16, 2.19, 2.22 [2], 2.25, 2.28, 2.30 [2], 2.32, 2.34 [xpp]); 2. Oleh Doroshchuk (Ukr) 7-6½ (2.30) (6-11¾, 7-1, 7-2¼, 7-3¼ [2], 7-4½, 7-5¾, 7-6½ [3], 7-7¼ [x], 7-8 [xx]) (2.13, 2.16, 2.19, 2.22 [2], 2.25, 2.28, 2.30 [3], 2.32 [x], 2.34 [xx]); 3. JuVaughn Harrison (US) 7-4½ (2.25); 4. Romaine Beckford (Jam) 7-3¼ (2.22); 5. Marco Fassinotti (Ita) 7-2¼ (2.19); 6. Shelby McEwen (US) 6-11¾ (2.13).

TJ: 1. Andy Díaz Hernández (Ita) 57-7½ (17.56) (56-9½, 55-7½, f, 57-7½, p, f) (17.31, 16.95, f, 17.56, p, f); 2. Pedro Pichardo (Por) 57-3¾ (17.47) (57-3¾, 56-3¾, p, p, 55-1½, p) (17.47, 17.16, p, p, 16.80, p); 3. Yasser Triki (Alg) 57-2 (17.42) (57-2, p, 45-5, 47-9, p, 55-10½) (17.42, p, 13.84, 14.55, p, 17.03); 4. Jordan Scott (Jam) 56-3¾ (17.16); 5. Almir dos Santos (Bra) 54-1¾ (16.50).

DT: 1. Mykolas Alekna (Lit) 226-0 (68.89) (224-0, f, 226-0, f, f, 220-7) (68.29, f, 68.89, f, f, 67.25); 2. Kristjan Čeh (Slo) 220-5 (67.18); 3. Roje Stona (Jam) 220-0 (67.06); 4. Matt Denny (Aus) 218-7 (66.62); 5. Daniel Ståhl (Swe) 218-1 (66.47); 6. Henrik Janssen (Ger) 217-9 (66.37).

JT: 1. Julian Weber (Ger) 300-2 (91.51) PR (WL) (14, x W) (299-9 PR [WL], 300-2, f, 274-6, 283-7, 290-10) (91.37, 91.51, f, 83.66, 86.45, 88.66);

2. Neeraj Chopra (Ind) 278-11 (85.01); 3. Keshorn Walcott (Tri) 278-8 (84.95); 4. Anderson Peters (Grn) 269-3 (82.06); 5. Julius Yego (Ken) 269-0 (82.01); 6. Andrian Mardare (Mol) 268-5 (81.81); 7. Simon Wieland (Swi) 266-8 (81.29) PR.

Jeff Hollobaugh is a writer and stat geek who has been associated with T&FN in various capacities since 1987. He is the author of How To Race The Mile. He lives in Michigan where he can often be found announcing track meets in bad weather.

Post navigation