Residence victories for Morgan Lake, Georgia Hunter Bell and Charlie Dobson at arguably the world’s premier one-day observe and area assembly
On a day when the UK Authorities backed London’s bid to stage the 2029 World Athletics Championships, the Novuna London Athletics Meet gave everybody a style of what they could anticipate in 4 years’ time. That is assuming the British capital wins a bidding battle which World Athletics president Seb Coe predicts will probably be “aggressive” and which UKA chief govt Jack Buckner admits will probably be removed from a shoo-in.
A sold-out London Stadium crowd of near 60,000 individuals on Saturday (July 19) noticed a Diamond League assembly filled with thrills, spills and three stirring British victories. Or make that 12 wins in case you embrace all of the relays, para and ‘nationwide’ races.
On a usually gray and damp day in London, the assembly escaped the worst of the weekend’s heavy downpours by just a few hours. Ultimately the athletes loved first rate situations with minimal winds and cooler situations than the earlier weekend’s heatwave.
Georgia Hunter Bell was among the many British winners as she produced a withering dash end to win the ladies’s 800m in 1:56.74. The occasion was disenchanted to lose its poster woman, Keely Hodgkinson, as a consequence of damage however not for the primary time the occasion however noticed a British winner in her absence.
Two years in the past Jemma Reekie stepped as much as win right here after Hodgkinson’s final minute withdrawal and now, in 2025, Hunter Bell received impressively from Addison Wiley of the US as Reekie completed sixth this time and Laura Muir, who’s coming back from damage, was tenth.
“I’m a part of such a particular period with not simply Keely and my group however Jemma and Laura who’ve set the requirements for years,” stated Hunter Bell. “With the British Champs arising, I can’t loosen up. I have to carry my A-game to that occasion in two weeks’ time.”
She added: “In that final 100m I felt wonderful so I actually needed to push to the end line. You’re feeling so supported on this stadium that the 2029 Worlds right here can be unimaginable. It’s so noisy and for us British ladies it’s unimaginable.”
Matt Hudson-Smith began favorite for the lads’s 400m however when he faltered slightly within the residence straight it was fellow Brit Charlie Dobson who stormed by to take the win.
Dobson, the European silver medallist from final 12 months, clocked 44.14 as he surged by from sixth place with 50m to go to win. The time makes him the second quickest European in historical past over the space, too.
Hudson-Smith, the Olympic silver medallist, ran 44.27 in second as Zakithi Nene of South Africa ran 44.29 in third.
“It’s an unimaginable feeling,” stated Dobson, “I like working right here in entrance of an enormous residence crowd and it’s simply superior to get that point.”
Morgan Lake not solely took excessive bounce victory nevertheless it was her first ever win at a Diamond League. The 28-year-old proved a preferred winner with the house crowd as she jumped 1.96m on her second try as world record-holder Yaroslava Mahuchikh of Ukraine, Eleanor Patterson of Australia and Christina Honsel of Germany all cleared 1.93m behind her.
Such was the standard of the athletes she beat, this was undoubtedly one of many best performances of all-time by a British feminine excessive jumper.
“In London with so many family and friends right here, it’s wonderful,” stated Lake. “Even on the decision outs the group have been so loud and at present was all about having fun with it and having enjoyable and staying within the competitors so long as potential.
“I cleared 1.96m on the second try so I used to be actually glad about that. It felt like a giant clearance, so after I jumped that, I knew I had 2.00m in there. I had three good makes an attempt at it, so I’m actually happy with how I carried out. I used to be practically over it on the final try, I simply clipped it with my ft, so I do know it’s in there.”
Few occasions produced as a lot drama as the lads’s 1500m as George Mills and Cam Myers fell with 200m to go, leaving teenage Kenyan Phanuel Kipkosgei Koech of Kenya to storm to victory in a meet file of three:28.82 as Josh Kerr chased him residence in 3:29.37.
Amid speak of a British file, Ben Claridge led by 400m in 55.47 and 800m in 1:51.46 earlier than Zan Rudolf assumed the pacing duties. With 550m to go, Mills took over and was main down the again straight on the ultimate lap earlier than Kerr, who had sat behind Mills all through, overtook him on the surface as Koech concurrently handed him on the within with 250m to go.
As Koech started to burst clear across the remaining bend – with Kerr chasing arduous – Mills’ and Myers’ legs appeared to make contact, sending each runners flying on to the ground.
Koech, who continues to be solely 18, regarded highly effective as he strode away from Kerr to set certainly one of a number of UK all-comers’ information in the course of the afternoon. Kerr, the reigning world 1500m champion, was glad about his sub-3:30 and can now flip his consideration to 5000m on the UK Championships after having raced 800m on the similar assembly final 12 months.
Mills can have been notably aggravated as he fell within the Emsley Carr Mile at this assembly 12 months earlier and likewise fell within the Olympic 5000m heats.
With Mills and Myers jogging residence together with one other faller, Robert Farken, it left Isaac Nader of Portugal clear to complete third in 3:31.55 with Jake Wightman, the 2022 world champion, persevering with his encouraging return to high type with fourth in a season’s greatest of three:31.58.
“Usually I actually preferred how I felt in the entire race,” stated Kerr. “I felt like I made a strong transfer at 250m, I simply didn’t have my head on straight with 200m to go and I allow them to go slightly bit. The facility was not fairly there however it isn’t distant. However we now have not ran a race like that for some time. To be working 3:29 at this level of the season is encouraging and I do know I could make some jumps over the following couple of months.”
Olympic champion Noah Lyles was anticipated to win the lads’s 100m however Indirect Seville of Jamaica hadn’t learn the script and blasted to a cushty victory in 9.86 (-0.6) as Lyles completed runner-up with 10.00.
In third, Zharnel Hughes clocked 10.02 with fellow Brit Jeremiah Azu working 10.11 in sixth. Letsile Tebogo, the Olympic 200m champion from Botswana, was seventh in 10.12 with one other Brit, Louie Hinchliffe, clocking 10.21 in eighth as he regains health following damage.
The lads’s 800m was billed as a world file try however Emmanuel Wanyonyi, the Olympic champion, needed to make do with a mere assembly file of 1:42.00 because the Kenyan loved one other good win.
Behind, Marco Arop of Canada clocked 1:42.22 with Britain’s Max Burgin having fun with a wonderful run in third with 1:42.36 to go No.3 on the UK all-time rankings behind Seb Coe’s long-standing British file of 1:41.73 and Ben Pattison’s 1:42.27.
Pattison positioned tenth right here in 1:46.08 however the 2023 world bronze medallist is on the comeback path from damage. In ninth, in the meantime, Ethan Hussey made the many of the alternative with a PB of 1:44.30.
As for Burgin, the Olympic finalist says he’s discovered to handle the decrease leg points which have brought on him issues in latest seasons. He benefited from a a lot cleaner race in London than within the latest Monaco Diamond League, too, the place he was bumped round by rivals and jogged residence disenchanted.
“I knew this race had been in me, so it was nice to lastly get all of it collectively after disappointing runs at Paris and Monaco Diamond Leagues,” he stated. “I managed to stick with the leaders on this one with out taking the lead too early and it was essential to get a great, robust race in earlier than the trials and put my stamp down.
“It was a massively robust area on the market at present, so to come back away with a PB may be very pleasing. I received’t do an excessive amount of extra now earlier than the trials only a little bit of sharpening. As standard, I gave it my all at present however I actually wanted that PB and a great race after some messy ones.”
Certainly, such was the standard of the sector, Donavan Brazier, the 2019 world champion from the US, ran 1:43.08 as he continues his comeback from Achilles issues however was solely sixth.
The ladies’s 5000m was not so quick on the sharp finish with Medina Eisa of Ethiopia profitable in 14:30.57 – a comparatively routine time on the world scene throughout a summer season that has seen Beatrice Chebet break the 14-minute barrier. However behind there have been some nice British performances.
Hannah Nuttall ran a PB of 14:39.48 whereas Innes FitzGerald, nonetheless solely 19, clocked a British under-20 file of 14:39.56 to smash Zola Budd’s nationwide junior mark 14:48.07 that has stood for 40 years.
When Budd ran that point, it was additionally a world file. She did it in naked ft, too.
FitzGerald, nevertheless, has erased Budd’s title from the file books. “I nonetheless love 3000m, although,” she stated when requested which occasion she prefers. “The 5000m is a good distance!”
The Exeter College pupil additionally now has a barely faster greatest than her mentor, Jo Pavey. In addition to being a British under-20 file, FitzGerald’s time was additionally a European under-20 file.
Such is the standard of the Diamond League, Megan Keith completed sixteenth however nonetheless ran a good time of 14:47.34.
Gudaf Tsegay led a raft of quick instances within the girls’s mile. The Ethiopian received in 4:11.88 – a time that’s sooner than the previous world file held by Sifan Hassan, the latter of whom was as a consequence of race however needed to pull out of this assembly a few days earlier. It additionally places Tsegay No.2 on the world all-time rankings behind Religion Kipyegon’s 4:07.64 world file.
Tsegay went off arduous and the early splits have been 59.9 at 400m, 2:03.4 at 800m and three:07.9 at 1200m. By the bell she had been caught by Jess Hull, however Tsegay drew away once more from the Australian within the closing phases.
Runner-up Hull ran an Oceania file of 4:13.68. In third, Sara Healy of Eire ran a PB of 4:16.26 and fourth-placed Sinclair Johnson of the US ran a North American file of 4:16.32.
First Brit residence was Revee Walcott-Nolan with 4:19.16.
With world-class performances coming thick and quick, Julien Alfred of Saint Lucia ran a nationwide file, UK all-comers’ file, meet file and world lead of 21.71 (-0.6) to win the ladies’s 200m in fashion.
Rising to the problem in entrance of her residence crowd, Dina Asher-Smith battled by to second place in a season’s greatest of twenty-two.25, with fellow Brit Amy Hunt third in a PB of twenty-two.31.
Mykolas Alekna, the discus world record-holder, threw a Diamond League and UK all-comers’ file of 71.70m in cooler and barely greasier climate than he’s used to.
“Circumstances weren’t too good nevertheless it was not slippery so I felt very assured with my throws and my approach,” he stated. “It’s my largest throw ever on this stadium. Individuals have been saying I solely throw huge outdoors of stadiums, however now I’ve thrown huge inside one.”
It’s 13 years since a younger Lawrence Okoye reached the Olympic discus remaining in London and right here he threw effectively for third place with 68.74m.
Molly Caudery completed fifth equal within the girls’s pole vault with 4.60m as Olivia McTaggart of New Zealand took the win on rely again with 4.73m. On the comeback from a latest damage, Caudery is optimistic about her possibilities of making the rostrum on the World Championships in Tokyo in September.
Lengthy bounce victories went to Malaika Mihambo of Germany with 6.93m (-0.6) as Britain’s Jazmin Sawyers jumped 6.63m (-0.5) throughout a season that has seen her make a outstanding comeback from Achilles surgical procedure, whereas world heptathlon champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson jumped 6.48m (-0.6).
Sawyers stated: “It has been going effectively so I hoped to get a greater efficiency out of myself. However I’ve loads of time to construct extra energy and get extra competitors follow.”
The lads’s lengthy bounce, in the meantime, was received by Wayne Pinnock of Jamaica with 8.20m (0.2), one centimetre forward of world No.1 Miltos Tentoglou of Greece.
Femke Bol has lit up the London Stadium in latest seasons and she or he received once more this weekend however not fairly as rapidly as standard, though her 52.10 left her greater than a second in entrance of runner-up Jasmine Jones of the US.
Earlier within the programme, Ben Sandilands ran 3:48.95 to win the lads’s para 1500m whereas Sophie Hahn clocked 12.89 (0.0) as she pulled away from Olivia Breen within the girls’s para 100m.
The lads’s para 100m was nearer as Zak Skinner clocked 11.01 (0.5) to beat Thomas Younger by one hundredth of a second. It was so shut, the truth is, Younger felt he’d received and celebrated as he crossed the road.
Twelve months after Sam Reardon’s 44.70 victory within the ‘nationwide’ males’s 400m, Lewis Davey loved an identical sub-44 breakthrough as he clocked a PB of 44.91 to win the 2025 version of this race. Davey’s PB beforehand stood at 45.60.
Davey stated: “I got here into this competitors hungry after just a few excessive 45s. I actually needed to come back right here and smash my PB and I’ve executed that. The entire week I’ve been visualising a PB.”
Victoria Ohuruogu was simply outdoors her season’s greatest when profitable the ladies’s ‘nationwide’ 400m in 51.22.
Tyri Donovan was one other Brit who rose to the event in entrance of his residence crowd as he equalled his PB within the ’nationwide’ males’s 400m hurdles with 48.46 forward of Seamus Derbyshire. The occasion guarantees to be one of the vital aggressive on the UK Championships in early August.
Within the 4x100m relays, Dina Asher-Smith, Amy Hunt, Desiree Henry and Daryll Neita got here near their UK file of 41.55 with 41.69 – world main time – as Jamaica, France and Eire adopted them residence, the latter in a nationwide file of 43.73.
Within the males’s 4x100m, Kishane Thompson anchored the Jamaican males residence in 37.80 because the British quartet of Jeremiah Azu, Louie Hinchliffe, Romell Glave and Zharnel Hughes have been second in 38.08.
From the celebs of 2025, there was additionally the prospect to recognise the winners of yesteryear Roger Black, Iwan Thomas, Jamie Baulch, Mark Richardson and Mark Hylton have been belatedly awarded an upgraded gold from the 4x400m on the 1997 World Championships in Athens following the disqualification of the US.
“We obtained an important reception,” stated Thomas. “I believe we have been a preferred workforce and I’m most likely extra emotional now than I might have been if I’d obtained the medal in 1997 as a result of I used to be simply younger and within the second.”
Actually, athletics followers love nostalgia and the 4x400m workforce from 1997 loved one of many largest cheers of the day.
