Glasgow: Double Dutch delight for Schippers

Photos: © Victah Sailer


She scorched to victory in the women’s 200m in 22.34 ahead of London 2012 Olympic Games champion Allyson Felix and Nigeria’s Diamond Race leader Blessing Okagbare just two hours after winning the 100m B race in 11.03.

Schippers took 0.01 from her own Dutch best over 200m as she came from behind down the home straight to overhaul the long-striding Felix in the last 20 metres, having earlier beaten Tianna Bartoletta by 0.04 in the 100m.

“I’m very happy with two good races,” said Schippers, the heptathlon bronze medallist in Moscow last summer.

“Obviously, I was a little bit tired after the first race but I know I can run faster when I’m tired. I’m 22 and I have won a Diamond League event, and that is not normal. I’m so happy with that. It is amazing to be running alongside the likes of Allyson Felix.”

Felix, wearing long flourescent yellow socks, as if to show-off her graceful style, looked a certain winner as she came into the straight a metre ahead of Okagbare.

She held off the Nigerian but the powerful Schippers beat her to the line by 0.01.

Okagbare was third in 22.41. Behind the principal trio, there was good news for British fans as the 2010 World Junior Championships 100m gold medallist, Jodie Williams, took another chunk from her best in the longer sprint to finish fourth in 22.60.

Queen reigns in the hurdles

The sprinting straight witnessed another majestic performance when Queen Harrison glided over the barriers to win the 100m hurdles in 12.58. Harrison pulled away early and had daylight to spare at the end.

She won by a full tenth from Lolo Jones, with 2012 Olympic champion Sally Pearson a distant third in 12.87, the Australian’s best of this summer season.

Harrison duly moves ahead of Dawn Harper-Nelson in the Diamond Race, the woman who beat her to the US title last month.

However, Pearson’s performance will be good news for Australian fans as she finished ahead of Britain’s Tiffany Porter, her main rival at the Commonwealth Games to be staged at the same venue in three weeks’ time.

“For me, it’s all about wearing the gold and green,” said Pearson. “But the Commonwealths will be tough because Tiffany is in such great form.”

A huge lifetime best of 86.99m in the last round secured a shock victory for Germany’s Thomas Roehler in the men’s javelin, the best of the day’s field events.

Roehler, whose previous best was 84.74m, pushed Czech Republic’s world champion and long-time leader Viteszslav Vesely into second with a throw that will make him one of the favourites for a medal at the European Athletics Championships medal next month.

“It was perfect for me today,” said Roehler. “Great conditions for the javelin with the rain. When I arrived yesterday, it was really sunny and I thought this can’t be Britain.”

Vesely’s best was 85.23m from the first round while Finland’s former world champion and Moscwo 2013 silver medallist Tero Pitkämäki was third, throwing 84.95m with his sixth effort.

Taylor finally trumps Claye

There was a last gasp win in the triple jump too as Christian Taylor finally got the better of Will Claye with a sixth round jump of 17.36.

Having finished second to Claye in their last four Diamond League meetings and at the US championships last month, Taylor was on the verge of taking the runners up spot again as he trailed Claye’s 17.27m going into the last round.

However, the Olympic champion, who had leapt 17.08 in the fifth round, found his rhythm at the end to land just one centimetre short of his season’s best. “It’s nice to get the win, it’s been a long time,” reflected Taylor.

Sandra Perkovic may have been surprisingly beaten on Friday evening, but Blanka Vlasic at least gave Croatia one victory this weekend as she took the maximum points in the high jump points for the second meeting in a row to top the Diamond Race standings.

Vlasic was the only woman over 1.96m, a clearance which prompted a trademark wiggle from the two-time former world champion.

Fabiana Murer restored a modicum of sporting pride to Brazil with her second Diamond League pole vault win of the season.

The 2011 world champion leads the world this year with 4.80m but topped out at 4.65m, her first-time clearance enough to beat Ekaterini Stefanidi and Olympic silver medallist Yarisley Silva on count back, while the USA’s 2012 Olympic champion Jennifer Suhr bowed out with a best of 4.55m.

Michelle-Lee Ahye followed up her fast 100m win in Lausanne with another victory against the world’s best here, albeit in a non-Diamond League event.

The Trinidad and Tobago athlete is this year’s fastest woman with 10.85 and the 22-year-old showed her class again, clocking 11.01 to beat double Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce by 0.09.

Kenya’s Silas Kiplagat broke Kip Keino’s Scottish all-comers’ record when he won the men’s 1500m in 3:32.84, while Ajee Wilson looked effortless in striding away from the field to win the women’s 800m in 1:59.68.

The men’s long jump started with the news that Great Britain’s 2012 Olympic champion Greg Rutherford had withdrawn after injuring his knee during warm-up but US champion Jeff Henderson made the most of his absence, winning with 8.21m, the only man to go over eight metres in the competition.


Matthew Brown for the IAAF and the IAAF Diamond League