Monaco (AFP) – Julien Alfred and Emmanuel Wanyonyi delivered two masterclasses with outstanding victories in a high-quality Diamond League meeting in Monaco on Friday that brought a raft of records.
Issued on: 10/07/2026 - 22:12
3 min Reading time
Wanyonyi arguably produced the performance of a sultry evening at the Stade Louis II, clocking a world's best in the men's 1,000m, a non-Olympic event.The world and Olympic 800m champion's 2:11.83 took 0.13sec off the previous best set by his Kenyan compatriot Noah Ngeny in Rieti, Italy, back in 1999.Wanyonyi turned on the afterburners with 200 metres to run, outpacing Britain's Jake Wightman down the home straight."I want to thank the other athletes for pushing me to my limits," the ever-modest Wanyonyi said, immediately dismissing any talk of a tilt at the 800m world record set by fellow Kenyan David Rudisha in winning Olympic gold in London in 2012.Alfred produced a devastating final burst through the line to win the 200m in a stunning meet record of 21.51 seconds, bettering her own personal best by 0.20sec.It left St Lucia's Olympic 100m champion third in the all-time list for the 200m. Only American Florence Griffith Joyner and Jamaica's Shericka Jackson have gone faster."I don't care about my reaction time, I was first, that's all that matters," said Alfred."I looked at the clock and saw my time and that's why I was screaming like at the Olympics."Reigning Olympic 200m champion Gabrielle Thomas of the US had to be content with third behind Alfred and Adaejah Hodge of the British Virgin Islands.Oblique Seville, Jamaica's current men's world 100m champion, had no dramas in the blue-riband event, winning in 9.88sec ahead of American Jordan Anthony (9.92). In his first competition on home turf, newly-minted Monaco resident Armand 'Mondo' Duplantis bettered his own meet record to win the pole vault with a best of 6.07m.But there was no shot at a 16th world record, the US-born Swede failing three times at 6.15m.The first of a raft of meet records was set in the women's 400m by Olympic champion Marileidy Paulino, who produced a tremendous final kick to win in 48.67sec, her third victory of the season.Project 5m launchedBotswana's Busang Collen Kebinatshipi backed that up in the men's one-lap race, clocking a Diamond League record of 43.44sec for an equally impressive win.
