Akani Simbine was the sole South African on the final programme at the Diamond League meeting in Silesia, Poland, where he lined up in a star-studded men’s 100m.
Marione Fourie also competed, in the women’s 100m hurdles heats, returning from an injury-enforced layoff, but she wasn’t able to move through to the final later in the programme.
With the World Championships fast approaching, the big names have started to quicken their times and Jamaican Kishane Thompson beat Noah Lyles in an Olympic 100m rematch, hitting the line in 9.87sec, with Lyles second in 9.90. Five men went under 10 seconds, with Simbine, who was the form sprinter in the world earlier in the season, seventh in 10.10.
A year on from their historic battle in the Olympic final in Paris, Thompson and Lyles were neck and neck on the line at the 12th Wanda Diamond League meeting of the season, but the Jamaican clocked 9.87 to beat Lyles by 0.03 seconds and equal the meeting record.
Karsten Warholm, Faith Kipyegon and Masai Russell all broke Diamond League records at the Kamila Skolimowska Memorial in Silesia.
South Africa’s Prudence Sekgodiso didn’t take part, but, like the men’s 100m, the women’s 800m was lit, with Keely Hodgkinson running a world-leading meeting record of 1:54.74 in her first race since winning Olympic gold.
In her comeback after injury, the two-time world silver medallist stormed to the ninth-fastest time in history and the second-fastest time of her career so far, behind her own British record of 1:54.61. Kenya’s Lilian Odira was second in a PB of 1:56.52 and the top nine all dipped under two minutes.
