European javelin champion Julian Weber made it into the top three at least in the World Cup revenge. Four days after his bitter fourth place in Budapest, the man from Mainz came third on Thursday evening at the Diamond League meeting of track and field athletes in Zurich.
Two days after his 29th birthday, Weber had to admit defeat with 85.04 m to the Czech Jakub Vadlejch (85.86) and the Indian world champion Neeraj Chopra (85.71). Vadlejch had snatched bronze from Weber, who had thrown 85.79 m in Hungary, at the World Championships. Pakistani Arshad Nadeem, who was second behind Chopra in Budapest, was absent in Zurich.
The German record holder Joshua Hartmann (Cologne), who finished seventh in a solid 20.43 seconds, made up for his messed up World Championships over 200 m. Three-time world champion Noah Lyles of the USA won in a light headwind in 19.80.
In the women’s sprints, the world champions from Budapest were also unbeatable in Zurich. The American Sha’Carri Richardson won the 100 m in 10.88 seconds, while the Jamaican Shericka Jackson won the 200 m in 21.82, also in light headwinds.
Pole vault world champion Armand Duplantis (Sweden) won with a smooth six meters, he failed three times at the world record height of 6.23 m. 400m hurdles world champion Karsten Warholm (Norway) had to accept a rare defeat against World Cup runner-up Kyron McMaster (British Virgin Islands/47.27) in 47.30 seconds.
Olivia Gürth finished eighth over the 3,000 m steeplechase and, in 9:21.82 minutes, was just over her best time from the World Championship final (9:20.08). In the high jump, Tobias Potye (Munich), who came fifth at the World Championships, did not get past a weak 2.20 m and ninth place.