Daily Times

SHANGHAI: British sprinter Reece Prescod foiled the local challengers and overcame world champion Justin Gatlin to win the men’s 100 metres at a rainy Shanghai Stadium to claim his maiden Diamond League victory on Saturday. Running in the outside lane, the 22-year-old came through to win in 10.04 seconds, edging out local favourite Su Bingtian (10.05). China’s Xie Zhenye came third in 10.17 with Gatlin trailing in seventh (10.20). “When I saw the rain tonight I thought ‘yes’. I train in these conditions all the time in the East Midlands. It suits me,” said Prescod who was 0.01 seconds shy of his personal best. “My expectation going in was I knew I had it in me as long as I executed my race. It is definitely the happiest moment in my time on the Diamond League circuit,” he said.

American Gatlin put in a disappointing display after struggling to get out of the blocks. “I got stuck a little in the blocks tonight, and I just had too much ground and distance to make up,” Gatlin said. In his first 110m hurdles race this year, world and Olympic champion Omar McLeod of Jamaica edged Spaniard Orlando Ortega in a repeat of the Rio Games to win in 13.16 seconds. Bahamian Olympic champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo powered home in the women’s 200 metres, clocking one of the eight meet records of the day to win in 22.06 seconds.

Fellow Olympic champion Brianna McNeal led an American sweep of the top four places in the women’s 100m hurdles which she won in 12.50 seconds. Chinese world champion Gong Lijiao showed her class in women’s shot put with 19.99m to win in front of the delighted home crowd. Colombia’s Olympic gold medallist Caterine Ibarguen easily won the women’s triple jump with 14.80 metres to take her Diamond League meeting victory tally to 29, which puts her behind only Sandra Perkovic (39) and Renaud Lavillenie (32). The women’s 3,000m steeplechase had some drama towards the end when Norah Jeruto slipped coming off the final barrier and fellow Kenyan Beatrice Chepkoech won in 9:07.27 minutes. Jeruto recovered to finish second ahead of sister Daisy Jepkemei.

Published in Daily Times, May 13^th 2018.