An expert analyzes the events and talking points of last night’s Diamond League Finals in Eugene.
Norway’s prodigy by Jakob Ingebrigtsen and the Ethiopian men’s endurance running team have a heated situation.
– Jakob had once again irritated the Ethiopian brothers, sums up Iltalehti’s expert Arto Bryggare.
The Norwegian is a Nike athlete and the American brand was a significant partner in Eugene’s Diamond League final.
– Jakob had hoped that instead of the men’s 5,000 meter race, 3,000 meters would be run in Eugene. He must have said that let’s run third, then I’ll set a world record, Bryggare reflects.
3,000 meters were run. It was not to the Ethiopians’ liking.
– The Ethiopian brothers were full of holy anger. There was hardly any deep love in it when Yomif Kejelcha and Ingebrigtsen shook hands after the race.
The Norwegian won with a new European record of 7:23.63. The world record for the trip is held by Kenya by Daniel Komen 7.20.67 from 1996.
– When the second ton went loose, I wondered how Jakob would handle the job. Then he noticed the situation and charged a long kiri, where he found a gear for the last 50 meters. A great race from Jakob once again.
The man from Vuonoma ran the last lap to 54.06 seconds and beat Kejelcha by a hundredth.
Huge records
Armand Duplantis was smiling with the Diamond League trophy in hand on Sunday in Eugene. EPA / AOP
The final event of the Diamond League was a cheeky spectacle: two world records, four continental records and seven world top results this season.
Armand Duplantis recorded the pole vault as a new ME reading of 623 cents.
– Duplantis’ clear goal and desire, as a half-American born in the United States, was to show specifically in this race. The wind was difficult at the beginning when it came from the side. As the race progressed, the situation improved and everything fell into place.
Four runs and four crossings: 562, 582, 602 and 623 centimeters. That’s the protocol of the young man representing Sweden.
– It was powder to jump even higher. The climbs were high.
Duplantis, of course, left the race inside when ME was in the pocket.
– How the stick hits the ground, slides into the hole and then the effort comes – others can’t do that. Duplantis technology will dominate the industry in the future, Bryggare analyzed.
Coach Dad Greg Duplantis was lounging contentedly in the groves of Hayward Field.
– None of today’s jumpers can jump as many times as Armand, who has been pole vaulting since he was 3 years old. At the age of 15, he had already jumped as much as the Finnish national team.
The superstar, who turns 24 in November, has already achieved everything in his sport: Olympic gold, two World Championship golds, two European Championship golds, world records, three Diamond League final victories and a total of 26 Diamond League competition victories.
– There will probably be problems in the future when there are injuries. If he stays healthy, it’s a long way from him losing a big race.
In the 2022–23 season, the pole vaulter has competed 29 times. There are 27 wins.
Face on a stick
The lanky Gudaf Tsegay wore a yellow-green outfit in Eugene, like all the athletes in the Nike team. EPA / AOP
Finland time, the second ME result of the diamond series, which was contested on the night before Monday, was made by Ethiopia Gudaf Tsegay in the women’s 5,000 meters (14.00, 21.00). He improved his own record by about 12 seconds.
– A special woman. Feeling a little irritable in every race. It seems that everything is wrong. But he’s always been a fierce endurance runner, even though he’s left Dibaba and in the shadow of partners. He hasn’t won a super title, and probably still won’t, when dozens of Olympic golds are missing, Bryggare smiles.
In Budapest, Tsegay won the 10,000 meters, but got sick afterwards and was 5,000 meters away from the top.
– In terms of pace, it was an exciting race in Eugene: it didn’t seem like we were going to do ME. The presence of the Kenyan for a long time forced Tsegay to think that samperi, if I don’t pick up the pace, I will lose the race.
Beatrice Chebet clocked the third best result in history with 14:05.92.
The old ME had come to Kenya in June By Faith Kipyegon 14.05, 20.
What would have happened in Eugene if Kipyegon had been involved?
– An amateurish guess that it would have been less than 14 minutes and Kipyegon would have won, Bryggare answers.
In yellow and green
Athing Mu won the women’s 800 meters in the Diamond League final. Stock photo. ZumaWire / MVPHOTOS
A special detail in Eugene was when the Nike athletes wore the same color competition jerseys.
– Nike requested that the athletes compete in yellow and green. They are the colors of the University of Oregon.
Hayward Field is the field of the University of Oregon. The stadium is located in the campus area.
– I thought it was silly when everyone had the same outfits. It made it difficult to follow the competition in some sports.
One woman who ran 800 meters in yellow and green was from the USA Athing Mu. If he were, say, an Adidas, Puma or Asics athlete, the season would have been wrapped up before Eugene.
Maybe it’s better that the woman appeared on the starting line as required by the sponsorship contract, because she set the world’s top time this season in 1:54.97. The result is a US record and the eighth best time of all time in the world.
– Mu was not tactically mature enough to run three races at the World Championships. Now he succeeded really well.
Jamaica’s passion rumbled
Hansle Parchment edged out Grant Holloway (left) and Freddie Crittenden in the 110m hurdles final of the Diamond League on Sunday in Oregon, USA. EPA / AOP
Bryggare’s bread category saw the world’s top result, while Jamaica’s Hansle Parchment dashed the hurdles in 12.93.
– I would have put quite a lot of bills in a pile for him before the race. He has been in a strong recovery state for the past few weeks. Hansle was already close to first place in the World Cup final, but he struggled a bit.
The Caribbean has earned a reputation for its fiery final accelerations.
– It’s nonsense that he should especially focus on the start. Yes, that’s where the departure comes from, when the end is so wild.
A little disappointing
Florence Griffith-Joyner’s ME remained intact. Yankki ran 200 meters with a time of 21.34 in 1988 at the Olympic Games in Seoul. He passed away ten years later. PDO
of Jamaica Shericka Jackson attacked in the final sport of the 2023 Diamond League season by Florence Griffith-Joyner against the women’s 200m sprint ME.
The American record of 21.34 remained intact. Jackson’s final time was 21.57. The tailwind was 0.3 meters per second.
– At the beginning, Jackson started running a little too violently. The end was not so overwhelming in the relationship. Still, the time is really hard, Bryggare estimates.