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The athletes and the public showed stoicism, but the torrential rain prevented the show from reaching its full potential at the 50th edition of Athletissima in Lausanne. Three stood out from the storm, Cordell Tinch with a brilliant 12.98 over 110m hurdles on a soaked track, Oblique Seville with a dominant 9.87 win in the 100m, and Keely Hodgkinson with a meeting record of 1:55.69 in the 800m.
Oblique Seville was simply impressive on the straight. The Jamaican controlled the race from start to finish, in what looked like a carbon copy of his London performance last month. As in the British capital, he left sprint superstar Noah Lyles far behind, stopping the clock at 9.87. The American Olympic champion salvaged second place in 10.02, edging out Jamaican Ackeem Blake who was third in the same time.
Keely Hodgkinson (GBR), in just her second race since returning from the Olympics, was in command of the 800m. The Olympic champion erased the meeting record held by Maria Mutola for 23 years, clocking 1:55.69 well ahead of the pack. With a superb finish, Switzerland’s Audrey Werro claimed second in 1:57.34, just nine hundredths shy of her national record, ahead of Olympic 1500m bronze medalist Georgia Hunter Bell (GBR). It was the first Diamond League podium of Werro’s young career.
Tinch on cloud nine
Emmanuel Wanyonyi could not live up to his favorite status in the men’s 800m. The Olympic champion was caught in the closing stages by Josh Hoey (USA), who claimed a brilliant win in 1:42.83, while Wanyonyi finished second in 1:43.29, a year after becoming the second-fastest man in history on this very track.
Cordell Tinch delivered the evening’s performance by dipping under 13 seconds in the 110m hurdles. In 12.98, the American claimed his fourth Diamond League victory of the season. The US swept the podium, with Jamal Britt second in 13.13 and Trey Cunningham third in 13.19.
“I felt great already in warm-up. This is exactly the kind of weather I like,” said a beaming Tinch, unfazed by the downpour and the cool 18 degrees at La Pontaise.
“Like cross-country”
Even the 5000m runners suffered, but Belgian Isaac Kimeli took full advantage, taking an unexpected win in 13:07.67, six years after his only other DL victory in Brussels. American Grant Fisher (13:08.58) and Mexico’s Eduardo Herrera (13:09.50) had to settle for the minor places. The result defied every prediction. “The conditions reminded me of cross-country. The rain made the race totally chaotic and tactical, but it was a good preparation for the World Championships,” said Fisher.
The rain also upset the hierarchy in the women’s 100m hurdles. Olympic champion Masai Russell (USA) had to settle for second in 12.53, as Nadine Visser of the Netherlands took the win in 12.45, just four days after clipping a hurdle in Silesia. Switzerland’s Ditaji Kambundji, roared on by the home crowd, claimed an excellent third in 12.54, confirming her upward form.
Yaroslava Mahuchikh was among the evening’s disappointments. The world record holder and Olympic champion, keen to avoid risks, stopped her high jump competition after failures at 1.86m and 1.91m on a soaked apron. Victory was shared by three women, Christina Honsel (GER), Nicola Olyslagers (AUS) and Maria Zodzik (POL), all clearing 1.91m without a miss before failing three times at 1.94m.
The long jumpers were drowned out by the weather. In a shortened, disrupted contest with a flooded take-off board, Uzbekistan’s Anvar Anvarov took the win with 7.84m. Simon Ehammer secured Switzerland’s third podium of the evening (after Werro and Kambundji) with second at 7.72m, ahead of Jamaica’s Tajay Gayle with 7.71m.
Outside the Diamond League program, the women’s 4x100m relay closed the night. The Germans (Lisa Mayer, Rebekka Haase, Sophia Junk, Gina Lückenkemper) prevailed in 42.53, ahead of the Netherlands in 42.60 and Switzerland in 42.81 (Geraldine Frey, Celine Bürgi, Léonie Pointet, Salomé Kora).
Here’s hoping that for the next anniversaries, the weather will be far more forgiving.