TRACK & FIELD
Men ’ s 1500m : Whiteman ’ s Wonder-run
Few would have bet against Norwegian Jacob Ingebrigtsen taking the men ’ s 1500m title , as he had been virtually unbeatable over three and three-quarter laps since 2021 , and clinched the Olympic title last year in imperious fashion , defeating arch rival , Timothy Cheruiyot of Kenya , in the process . In typical Ingebrigtsen fashion , the Norwegian went to the lead of the final in Eugene after 700m , but did not push the pace , possibly believing no-one would attack him at a pace that had seen the 400m mark passed in just 55.5 . It proved to be costly mistake , however , as Britain ’ s Jake Whiteman was having the race of his life .
At the bell , Ingebrigtsen still led , with defending World Champion Cheruiyot right on his shoulder , but at 1200m , Whiteman came up to leaders and launched his long sprint for home . The Brit opened a slight gap on Ingebrigtsen on the backstretch , got the inside line on the final bend , then held his speed all the way to the tape . About 10 metres from the line , Ingebrigtsen quickly looked to his right and left to be sure that he had secured the silver medal , knowing that the race for first was over . His 3:29.47 is the fastest ever for second place at the World Champs .
Whiteman became only the second British athlete to win a 1500m World Title - the other Brit being Steve Cram , who won in 1983 – and another twist in the tail is that Jake is the son of stadium announcer Geoff Whiteman , who had to keep his composure while commentating on the race . Geoff also is Jake ’ s coach .
Men ’ s 5000m : Ingebrigtsen Comes Good
This race was always going to be a cracker , given who was in the field . It included Olympic 5000m Champion Joshua Cheptegei , who had just won the World 10,000m Title , as well as Olympic 10,000m Champion Selemon Barega , who was out for revenge after being shut out of the medals in the 10,000m race , as well as Olympic 1500m Champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen , who had been denied World Championship 1500m gold .
Cheptegei briefly took the lead and set the pace , but then fell back and would eventually finish ninth , having picked up an injury in the 10,000m that would also rule him out of defending his 5000m and 10,000m titles at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in August . Meanwhile , Ingebrigtsen seemed to be out for an easy run , as he would run out wide , collect some water and gesture for the crowd to get behind the athletes , but the Norwegian may have found his ideal racing distance .
In the final kilometre , he used his blistering 1500m speed to turn on the screws , and none of the other athletes could match him as he went into the lead from 600m out and started his customary long sprint for home , coming home in 13:09.24 to win from Kenyan Jacob Krop ( 13:09.98 ) and Ugandan Oscar Chelimo ( 13:10.20 ). For Ingebrigtsen the World Championship title monkey is finally off his back , and he said , “ This is already my fifth attempt to become a World Champion outdoors , and my third World Championships , so finally , I became the World Champion . It feels amazing to win this gold !”
Women ’ s 4x400m Relay : Felix Bows Out With 20 th Gold
If many think Fraser-Pryce is the all-time greatest female athlete , if not the overall greatest , then what do you say about US star Allyson Felix . Bringing the curtain down on a career that spanned 22 years , she will retire with seven Olympic gold medals and 13 World Championship gold medals , and there is a remarkable story behind her 20th and final gold .
At the 2017 World Championships , Felix added three more medals to her already impressive haul , taking her to a total of 16 and surpassing the previous record of 14 World Champs medals , held jointly by Jamaican sprinters Merlene Ottey and Usain Bolt . Then in December 2017 , when Felix told her shoe and apparel sponsor that she planned to start a family in 2018 , she was told that her sponsorship would be cut by 70 % if she fell pregnant – and that shoe company still had the temerity to ask her to be part of a female empowerment advert !
Felix walked away from that brand and signed with Athleta , and just 10 months after having an emergency C-section to give birth to her daughter , she went to the 2019 World Champs and earned another two gold medals , in the women ’ s 4x400m and the new mixed 4x400m relays . That took her to 13 World Champs golds breaking Bolt ’ s record for the most golds .
While she did not qualify for the individual 400m at this year ’ s World Championships , she was entered into the 4x400m mixed relay , in which the
US came away with the bronze medal after being overtaken by the Dominican Republic and Dutch teams in the final metres of the race . It seemed a slightly disappointing end to Felix ’ s career , in spite of adding a 19th medal to her collection , but she bowed out with a smile and began to enjoy retirement . A few days later , however , she was out eating ice cream when she received a call to come back and run in the 4x400m relay heats , and when the American team won the final , Felix had secured her 20th gold . Definitely the greatest of all time !
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