adminSOUTH Africa’s Caster Semenya coasted to victory in the 800 metres at the Monaco Diamond League in a world leading and personal best time on Friday to underline her status as a heavy favourite for next month’s Rio Olympics. On a subdued evening in Monaco following Thursday’s Bastille Day attack in nearby Nice, Dutchwoman Dafne Schippers won the women’s 100m while there was a surprise triumph in the men’s 1 500m as Kenya’s Ronald Kwemoi beat Olympic champions Taoufik Makhloufi, Mo Farah and Asbel Kiprop.
There had been doubts as to whether the meeting would take place after a gunman at the wheel of a heavy truck ploughed into a crowd celebrating France’s national day in Nice, killing at least 84 people.
A decision was made for the event to go ahead although a statement earlier said the programme would be kept “strictly to the sporting events with no festivities”.
Semenya streaked away to finish in 1:55.33, more than a second ahead of her previous world leading time of 1:56.64.
Semenya, who had to undergo gender testing before being cleared to compete as a woman after winning the world championship in 2009, powered away on the home straight to shave 12 hundredths of a second off her personal best.
World indoor champion Francine Niyonsaba trailed in second, with Kenya’s Jepkoech Eunice in third.
“I was expecting to run under 1:56,” Semenya said, before adding that she was looking forward to winning gold in Rio. “You have to believe in yourself and that’s what I did today.”
South African Wayde van Niekerk, whose gold medal-winning 400m run at the 2015 world championships in Beijing made him the fourth best performer over the distance, meanwhile showed his one-lap form with victory in 44,12sec, the perfect way to celebrate his 24th birthday.
Van Niekerk has made sprint history by becoming the first athlete to dip under benchmark times in the 100 (9,98), 200 (19,94) and 400m (43,48), but he insists his focus this season is wholly on the one-lap race.
“It was a tough race but I’m taking every small thing as it comes,” he said. “This is another opportunity I am given to fine tune my racing. Hopefully by the time the Olympics come, I’ll be ready.”
Schippers, the heptathlete-turned-sprinter, claimed a dominant win in the 100m, crossing the line in 10,94 seconds, a long way clear of Jamaica’s Veronica Campbell-Brown (11,12) and South Africa’s Carina Horn (11,14).
Kenya’s former Olympic and three times world champion Asbel Kiprop was beaten into sixth place in a fast-paced 1 500 metres that was won by his 20-year-old compatriot Kwemoi.
After leading the majority of the race, Kiprop faded to finish in 3:32.03, as Kwemoi kicked in the home straight to streak clear, crossing the line in 3:30.49.
Farah, Britain’s 5 000 and 10 000m Olympic gold medallist trailed home in fifth in 3:31.74, behind Kenya’s second-placed Elijah Motonei Manangoi (3:31.19), Algeria’s Makhloufi (3:31.35) and Abdelaati Iguider of Morocco (3:31.54). — Reuters
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