ATHLETICS – BAHRAIN’S world and Olympic champion Winfred Yavi raced to an impressive victory last night in the women’s metres steeplechase at the Night of Athletics meeting in Belgium.
Yavi put on a dominant, ultra-quick performance, winning her event by nearly half-a-minute as she attacked the world record.
Although she came up short, the 25-year-old track superstar was still in a class of her own, clocking a mark that was quicker than nine minutes for the second time this season. It was also a new meeting record.
The Night of Athletics was held at Stadion De Veen in the Belgian municipality of Heusden-Zolder. It was a bronze-level event on this year’s World Athletics Continental Tour.
Competing for the fourth time this outdoor season, Yavi finished her run in eight minutes 49.59 seconds. She was well ahead of the rest of the field, which saw Celestine Jepkosgei Biwot of Kenya take the runner-up spot in a distant 9:19.22. Veerle Bakker of the Netherlands came third in 9:41.15.
From the other participants, Sumeyye Erol of Turkey finished fourth in her season’s best time of 9:42.02, while Gaia Colli of Italy was fifth in a personal best of 9:54.06. Micol Majori, also of Italy, was the last to finish in 10:05.12.
Yavi’s mark was her second-fastest of the year and it came following her sensational victory at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, California, in the US – a Wanda Diamond League event – earlier this month. Yavi won amongst a star-studded field in 8:45.25 seconds, which was also the first time she dipped below the nine-minute mark this season.
Her time yesterday shattered the old meeting record in the women’s 3,000m steeplechase of 9:22.12, which was set by Hanane Ouhaddou of Morocco in 2009.
Her win was also her second of the season, adding to that in Eugene. She had previously placed second in her two earlier competitions – both of which were Diamond League meetings in Doha last May and in Norway in June.
Yavi was not far from her personal best of 8:44.39 in her last two races. She set that mark last year and it remains an Asian and Bahraini record. It is also the second-fastest time ever, slower only than the current world record of 8:44.32, registered by Beatrice Chepkoech of Kenya on this day in Monaco in 2018.
Yavi was the only Bahraini to hit the track in yesterday’s Night of Athletics. She is expected to be amongst the kingdom’s top athletes who will be going for gold at this year’s World Athletics Championships, set to take place in Tokyo from September 13 to 21.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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