FONTVIEILLE, MONACO, July 10 — “Let me keep quiet; actions speak louder than words,” said Emmanuel Wanyonyi when asked about the 800 World Record. The question was a fair one. The ’24 Olympic 800 champion, still only 21, had just broken the 1000 WR in his first-ever race at the distance.
With only two 800s under his belt this season, neither of them wins, the young Kenyan lined up for what organizers publicized as an attempt on the 2:11.96 mark that Noah Ngeny set in Rieti nearly 27 years ago.
The first pacemaker, Poland’s Patryk Sieradzki, led through half-laps of 25.2 and 25.8 (51.0), with Wanyonyi at 25.7 and 25.9 (51.6). The only one of the contenders who tried hard to stay with the Kenyan was Jake Wightman at 51.9. The leaders were well off Ngeny’s ’99 pace of 49.9.
Sieradzki held the pace to nearly 600, when he went wide. The second rabbit, France’s Louey Ouerrat, took over (1:17.7). Wanyonyi covered that furlong in 26.4 (1:18.0), still off Ngeny’s 1:17.3 clip. Wightman at 1:18.2 kept the pressure on. Ouerrat, who has a 1:43.80 PR, took the field through 800 in 1:44.8. Wanyonyi (1:45.0—a 27.0) took over with 200 to run, and Wightman (1:45.2) still on his heels. The ghost of Ngeny remained ahead (1:44.62).
The threat of Wightman gave Wanyonyi the extra push he needed to catch the record. He pulled away for the victory and clocked 2:11.83, a record by 0.16; he covered the final 200 in 26.8. Wightman hit 2:12.77 for No. 4 all-time, with Daniel Sedjati of Algeria in 2:13.94. American Bryce Hoppel finished 8th in 2:15.80 to move to No. 6 all-time among Americans.
“I am so excited and so happy,” said Wanyonyi. “This was the first time I ran the 1000 and directly breaking the World Record makes me so happy. I want to thank the other athletes [for pushing] me to my limit.”
About that 800 record, he said, “I first want to run fast and improve my personal best… I have decided to not run too much this season because I want to run very fast at the end of the season.”
The 400 featured another impressive display from Botswana’s Collen Kebinatshipi, who destroyed the field with a brilliant homestretch finish to claim the DL Record with his 43.44. He immediately dropped to the track to do pushups.
Behind him, Americans Jacory Patterson (43.96) and Rai Benjamin (44.13) claimed the next two spots.
“I did not expect to be fast like this,” the winner declared. “We are just playing around to see how fast we can go towards the end of the season… I did not race under pressure. This time, it was about enjoying myself… It is only about the joy. I do these pushups in the finish to show that I still have a lot of energy.”
Despite strong efforts from Jamaica’s Wayne Pinnock at 27-6½ (8.39) and Cuba’s Jorge Hodelín at 27-4½ (8.34), the sand pit belonged to Miltiádis Tentóglou. The Greek opened up with a 27-10 (8.48) and never let up the pressure. He improved to 27-11½ (8.52) in round 2, added a 27-4½, a foul and a 27-10¼ (8.49), then dug deep on his final attempt to break an MR older than he is with his 28-3 (8.61). It was the second-best jump of his life, farther than either of his Olympic golds.
“That is just crazy,” the 28-year-old said. “To be honest, I wanted a little bit more. If you saw my last jump, I think there was space for slight improvement.” He revealed that to manage his foot pain, he jumped in middle distance spikes for a softer ride.
One raise of the bar can make a huge difference in the high jump. At 7-6½ (2.30), Arkansas’s NCAA champion, Kimani Jack, looked like a likely winner, leading with his first-attempt clearance. Oleh Doroshchuk, the world leader already, made it on the second attempt. But at 7-7¼ (2.32), the Ukrainian World Indoor champion soared over easily, and Jack struck out.
Said Doroshchuk, “It was a hard competition for me today because I did not feel like myself. I do not know the reason, maybe it was too hot.”
The vault was not a DL event, but that didn’t keep Mondo Duplantis away. After claiming the win with his first-attempt clearance at 19-2 ¼ (5.85), he soared over a meet record 19-11 (6.07) easily. The next bar wasn’t so kind; he couldn’t top 20-2 (6.15).
“It was maybe a little bit underwhelming in my mind, in my own eyes,” he said, “but I am trying to stay positive and trying to take only the positives away from it — that I still came with the win and the meeting record.” He noted that he has recently moved to Monaco: “I don’t think people even knew that we lived here.”
The steeplechase featured a runaway victory by Kenya’s Simon Koech, who left the field before the bell and streaked to a 50-meter win in 8:03.35 over Japan’s Ryuji Miura (8:10.30) and teammate Edmund Serem (8:11.15). Matthew Wilkinson got 4th in 8:11.76.
The 5000 came tantalizingly close to producing a first DL win for Graham Blanks. The Harvard alum stuck with the leaders throughout a fast-paced race (7:43.48 for Swiss Dominic Lobalu at 3K). Then as the sprint heated up he dropped confidently into 3rd at the bell. With 200 left, he moved to 2nd behind Lobalu. Coming off the turn, with 4 in contention, Blanks made all the right moves, and down the stretch his win looked certain. Until it didn’t, as Lobalu found another gear and came at him in the final steps to steal the win by 0.06 at the line, 12:52.54–12:52.60.
Said Blanks, who felt his Georgia background gave him an edge with the heat, “The goal for today was to do exactly what I did, except if I had nipped him at the line that would have been great.”
The meet closed with a 100 match billed as Oblique Seville vs. Letsile Tebogo. In reality, it was all Seville, as Jamaica’s world champ dominated in a 9.88 win over Jordan Anthony’s 9.92, the wind a negligible 0.2. Tebogo ran as if on borrowed legs, finishing 5th in 10.04.
“My motive is to win every race I compete in,” said Seville, who pointed out that he hasn’t lost in Europe since the Paris Olympics (though to be fair, that’s only 3 races).
MONACO DL MEN’S RESULTS
100(0.2): 1. Oblique Seville (Jam) 9.88; 2. Jordan Anthony (US) 9.92; 3. Emmanuel Eseme (Cam) 10.00; 4. Owen Ansah (Ger) 10.01; 5. Letsile Tebogo (Bot) 10.04; 6. Ronal Longa (Col) 10.05; 7. Sam Blaskowski (US) 10.06.
400: 1. Collen Kebinatshipi (Bot) 43.44 NR (=6, =7 W);
2. Jacory Patterson (US) 43.96; 3. Rai Benjamin (US) 44.13; 4. Matthew Hudson-Smith (GB) 44.22; 5. Zakithi Nene (SA) 44.24; 6. Jereem Richards (Tri) 44.44; 7. Attila Molnár (Hun) 44.47 NR; 8. Muhammad Abdalla Kounta (Fra) 44.57 PR.
(best-ever mark-for-place: 8)
1000: 1. Emmanuel Wanyonyi (Ken) 2:11.83 WR (old WR 2:11.96 Noah Ngeny [Ken] ’99) (25.7, 25.9 [51.6], 26.4 [1:18.0], 27.0 [1:45.0], 26.8) (13.1, 26.8, 53.8, 1:46.1);
2. Jake Wightman (GB) 2:12.77 PR (5, 6 W);
3. Djamel Sedjati (Alg) 2:13.94 PR; 4. Azeddine Habz (Fra) 2:14.02 PR; 5. Ben Pattison (GB) 2:14.11 PR; 6. Gabriel Tual (Fra) 2:14.97 PR; 7. Ko Ochiai (Jpn) 2:15.24 NR;
8. Bryce Hoppel (US) 2:15.80 PR (6, 6 A);
9. Daniel Williams (Aus) 2:16.41 PR (4, 7 WJ).
(best-ever mark-for-place: 1–8)
St: 1. Simon Koech (Ken) 8:03.35; 2. Ryuji Miura (Jpn) 8:10.30; 3. Edmund Serem (Ken) 8:11.15; 4. Matthew Wilkinson (US) 8:11.76; 5. Leonard Bett (Ken) 8:13.37; 6. Ruben Querinjean (Lux) 8:14.22; 7. Carson Williams (US) 8:17.36; 8. Geordie Beamish (NZ) 8:19.36.
5000: 1. Dominic Lobalu (Swi) 12:52.54 (54.8); 2. Graham Blanks (US) 12:52.60 (54.7); 3. Birhanu Balew (Bhr) 12:52.91; 4. Jacob Krop (Ken) 12:53.71; 5. Cornelious Kemboi (Ken) 12:57.36 (10:22.53); 6. Biniam Mehary (Eth) 12:58.37; 7. Etienne Daguinos (Fra) 13:01.92; 8. Khairi Bejiga (Eth) 13:07.06; 9. Abdihamid Nur (US) 13:09.49.
Field Events
HJ: 1. Oleh Doroshchuk (Ukr) 7-7¼ (2.32); 2. Kimani Jack (GB) 7-6½ (2.30); 3. Sarvesh Anil Kushare (Ind) 7-5 (2.26); 4. tie, JuVaughn Harrison (US) & Romaine Beckford (Jam) 7-3¾ (2.23); 6. tie, Matteo Sioli (Ita) & Gianmarco Tamberi (Ita) 7-3¾.
Non-DL PV: 1. Armand Duplantis (Swe) 19-11 (6.07) (18-8¼, 19-2¼, 19-11, 20-2 [xxx]) (5.70, 5.85, 6.07, 6.15 [xxx]); 2. Baptiste Thiery (Fra) 19-2¼ (5.85); 3. Kurtis Marschall (Aus) 19-2¼; 4. tie, Renaud Lavillenie (Fra) & Thibaut Collet (Fra) 18-8¼ (5.70); 6. Ben Broeders (Bel) 18-½ (5.50).
LJ: 1. Miltiádis Tentóglou (Gre) 28-3 (8.61) (WL) (27-10, 27-11½, 27-4½, f, 27-10¼, 28-3) (8.48, 8.52, 8.34, f, 8.49, 8.61);
2. Wayne Pinnock (Jam) 27-6½ (8.39) (27-6½, 26-9, 26-11¼, 26-11, 26-3¾, 27-1¾) (8.39, 8.15, 8.21, 8.20, 8.02, 8.27);
3. Jorge A. Hodelín (Cub) 27-6 (8.38) (x, =2 WJ);
4. Bozhidar Saraboyukov (Bul) 27-5¼ (8.36) NR; 5. Simon Ehammer (Swi) 27-3¾ (8.32); 6. Gerson Baldé (Por) 26-11 (8.20) =PR; 7. Tajay Gayle (Jam) 26-4½ (8.04); 8. Mattia Furlani (Ita) 26-3½ (8.01).
(best-ever mark-for-place: 5)
