At the Zurich Diamond League meet on Thursday, several athletes delivered record-breaking performances, with Brazil’s Alison dos Santos and American Masai Russell setting new world marks in their respective events.
Dos Santos claimed victory in the men’s 400-meter hurdles with a time of 45.80 seconds, surpassing the previous world record of 45.94 seconds set by Norway’s Karsten Warholm during the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. The Brazilian surged ahead on the final bend and maintained his pace down the homestretch, leaving Warholm in second place with a time of 46.69. This win extended Dos Santos’s unbeaten streak against Warholm to five races this season, marking a decisive turning point in their rivalry. Dos Santos, who holds a gold medal from the 2022 world championships and Olympic bronzes from Tokyo and Paris, expressed enthusiasm about the night, emphasizing the support from the crowd and his home country.
Warholm commended Dos Santos’s performance but acknowledged he could not match the pace, indicating he will reassess his training moving forward.
American Masai Russell also made a significant impact by breaking the women’s 100-meter hurdles world record, finishing in 12.09 seconds. Russell overtook the previous mark of 12.12 seconds held by Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan since 2022. The Olympic champion powered away in the final stretch, setting a new benchmark in the event.
In the women’s 800 meters, home favorite Audrey Werro delivered a standout performance, winning in 1:53.70 and coming within 0.42 seconds of Jarmila Kratochvilova’s longstanding 43-year-old world record of 1:53.28—a record often regarded as one of the toughest in track and field. Werro, the recent European champion, was joined on the podium by Dutch runner Femke Broeders-Bol, a double world champion in the 400 hurdles who is transitioning to the two-lap event; Broeders-Bol finished second with a personal best of 1:54.71. Notably absent from the event was Britain’s Olympic 800-meter champion Keely Hodgkinson, who withdrew earlier in the week due to fitness concerns.
In the men’s pole vault, Sweden’s Mondo Duplantis cleared 6.25 meters for his second consecutive victory after a period of less consistent results. Duplantis attempted three times to break his own world record at 6.32 meters but was unsuccessful. Emmanouil Karalis of Greece set a national record by clearing 6.20 meters to finish second and also attempted, but failed, to surpass the world record.
Saint Lucia’s Julien Alfred continued her strong season by winning the women’s 100 meters in a national record time of 10.70 seconds. The Olympic champion highlighted the mental and emotional challenges of maintaining top performance levels following her breakthrough.
The Zurich Diamond League meet underscored the intensity and depth of talent across multiple disciplines as athletes prepare for the upcoming World Athletics Ultimate Championships.