Richardson continues to build momentum toward Budapest following U.S. title by edging Jamaican star in matchup of top two global athletes this year; Barshim, Ingebrigtsen, Kitaguchi and Rojas all produce world-leading marks

By David Woods for DyeStat

There could have been reasonable excuses for Sha’Carri Richardson:

1, She was coming off six races – heats, semifinals, finals – in the 100 and 200 meters at the Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships; 2, she lacks the experience of 29-year-old Shericka Jackson; 3, she relies on a bullet start, and she trailed the powerful Jackson, the reigning 200-meter world champion.

Never mind all that.

Richardson won a rare non-championships showdown, coming from behind to win the 100 meters in a wind-legal 10.76 seconds Sunday at the Kamila Skolimowska Memorial, the annual Silesia Diamond League Meeting at Silesian Stadium in Chorzow, Poland.

Jackson, of Jamaica, finished second in 10.78.

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Jackson (10.65) and Richardson (10.71) were coming off victories at their respective nationals.

“It was an amazing race,” Richardson said in a statement distributed by World Athletics. “I am having fun. The 10.76 – I love the time. I put a great race together.”

Ewa Swoboda of Poland was third in 10.94 and TeeTee Terry fourth in 10.99.

In a Twitter post by Michael Johnson, he said:

“Shericka advantage is power. Sha’Carri advantage is speed. Speed won today.”

The outcome could make Richardson, 23, a favorite to win the gold medal in next month’s World Championships at Budapest, Hungary. However, Jamaica’s Shelly-Ann Fraser-Price, 35, the reigning World champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist, has not raced in a 100 this year.

In the men’s 100, Akani Simbine of South Africa won in 9.97 over World champion Fred Kerley (9.98) and U.S. champion Cravont Charleston (9.99). Kerley had won 11 successive races at 100 meters since May 2022.

Elsewhere, Norway’s Jakob Ingebrigtsen made another run at the 25-year-old world record in the 1,500, setting a European record of 3:27.14. Aided by three different pacemakers, he ran the fastest time in the world in eight years, bettering his world-leading time of 3:27.95 from June 15 at Oslo. Nine men were under 3:32 – top eight all set PBs -- with Kenya’s Abel Kipsang second in 3:29.11.

Ingebrigtsen climbed to No. 4 on the all-time list behind:

3:26.00, Hicham El Guerrouj, Morocco, 1998.

3:26.34, Bernard Lagat, Kenya, 2001.

3:26.69, Asbel Kiprop, Kenya, 2015.

In the other marquee event, world record-holder Tobi Amusan of Nigeria won the 100-meter hurdles in 12.34, compared with the world lead of 12.31 by Olympic champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn of Puerto Rico.

Olympic silver medalist Keni Harrison and U.S. champion Nia Ali were second and third in 12.35 and 12.38, respectively. It was the first race in history in which three women ran wind-legal times under 12.40. (Five were sub-12.40 at the 2022 World Championships, but with a wind of +2.5.)

In other women’s highlights:

>> Poland’s Natalia Kaczmarek set a meet record of 49.48 in the 400. Dominican Republic’s Marileidy Paulino, silver medalist at the 2021 Olympics and 2022 worlds, had to surge late to be third in 50.00.

>> Kenya’s Mary Moraa ran to her third Diamond League victory of 2023, breaking Ajee’ Wilson’s meet record with a time of 1:56.85. Former World champion Halimah Nakaayi was second in a Ugandan record of 1:56.85. Sage Hurta-Klecker was fourth in 1:58.09, fastest by an American this year.

>> Hirut Meshesha led an Ethiopian sweep of the top four in the 1,500, setting a meet record of 3:54.87. Birke Haylom, 17, was second in 3:54.93 to break Faith Kipyegon’s African Under-20 record. Linden Hall, 32, was fifth in an Australian record of 3:57.27.

>> Venezuela’s Yulimar Rojas won the triple jump with a meet record and world-leading mark of 49-9.75 (15.18m). Rojas, a seven-time global champion, is unbeaten since the 2021 Olympics.

>> Japan’s Haruka Kitaguchi set a meet and national record of 219-11 (67.04m) in the javelin to take over as world leader this season.

In other men’s highlights:

>> World record-holder Wayde van Niekerk won the 400 in a meet record of 44.08, his fastest time since winning the 2017 world title. Brazil’s Alison dos Santos, World champion at 400 hurdles, returned from injury and finished third in 44.73. Bryce Deadmon and Vernon Norwood, who were 1-2 at U.S. nationals, finished 6-7 in 44.81 and 44.88.

>> Qatari high jumper Mutaz Essa Barshim broke his own seven-year-old meet record with a world-leading 7-8.75 (2.36m). Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi, who famously shared Olympic gold with Barshim, was second at 7-8 (2.34m).

>> Swedish pole vaulter Mondo Duplantis won at 19-8.75 (6.01m). Sam Kendricks, after failing to make the United States’ world team, was second at 19-4.75 (5.91m). U.S. champion Chris Nilsen was third at 19-0.75 (5.81m).

>> Ryan Crouser needed a last-round 73-11.75 (22.55m) to become 9-0 in the shot put this year. The world record-holder overtook fellow American Payton Otterdahl, second at 71-9.5 (21.88m), with a fifth-round effort of 73-10.50 (22.52m).

>> Daniel Roberts, coming off a victory at U.S. nationals, was seventh in the 110 hurdles in 13.90. That was won by Cuba’s Roger Iribarne in 13.25, with world silver medalist Trey Cunningham fourth in 13.36.

Contact David Woods at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.