Daniel Stahl set a new Diamond League Record in the Discus Throw. The tall Swede, a rival of our compatriot Philip Milanov, showed early form in throwing the implement to 70,56m. Lukas Weisshaidinger came in second with 66,90m, while Ehsan Hadadi from Iran took third place with 66,78m. In the Shot Put Ryan Crouser was the expected winner, ahead of Tom Walsh. Crouser who set a World Best of 22,74m a few weeks ago won the event with 22,13m.
In the Women’s 800m Caster Semenya impressively won her last competition before the newly approved and contested rules on testosterone levels become applicable. The Southafrican didn’t seem to be upset by the circumstances and won the 800m by a large margin in a new meeting record of 1:54.98. Francine Niyonsaba from Burundi who came in second (1:57.75) is also victimized by the new rules and will also need to reduce her testorone levels if she wants to continue competing in the women’s events. Danielle Williams sprinted to glory in the 100m Hurdles in 12”65. The Jamaican beat down Tobi Amusan and Sharika Nelvis.
In the Men’s 200m all eyes were set on Ramil Guliyev from Turkey. The World and European Champion edged out the field in 19”99. Conseslus Kipruto didn’t start in the Men’s 3000m Steeplechase and therefore Moroccon Soufiane El Bakkali was the high favourite in this race. Hillary Bor proved to be a very tough competitor, but El Bakkali was the strongest in the final straight to win in a World Leading performance of 8:07.22.
Timothy Cheruiyot was undefeated over 1500m ever since the Monaco Diamond League in 2017. And, as it was the case in 2017, Cheruiyot was again beaten by Elijah Manangoi. The Kenyan took the lead with one lap to go and held off all his contenders. Manangoi stopped the clock at 3:32.21, a few meters ahead of Cheruiyot.
YOUNGEST WINNER EVER
Yaroslava Mahuchikh is a name to remember. The Ukrainian High Jumper turns 18 in september but won her event in Doha with 1,96m. She equals the all time best performance for a 17 year old and she also becomes the youngest ever winner in the Diamond League history.
Caterine Ibarguen took victory in the Long Jump with 6,76m in a harsh duel with Australian Brooke Stratton who jumped 6,74m.
The second leg of the Diamond League will be held in Shanghai on May, 18th. The Memorial Van Damme is the closing leg of the circuit on Friday September, 6th.
03 May, 2019
