The Nigerian duo of Tobi Amusan and Ese Brume were electifying at the Gyulai István Memorial meet in Szekesfehervar, Hungary, on Tuesday, with both athletes securing a podium finish.
100m hurdles world champion and world record holder Amusan raced to her second consecutive win in two days following Sunday’s triumph at the Silesia Diamond League in Poland, where she ran a season-best time of 12.34 seconds.
The Nigerian track queen emerged as the winner in Szekesfehervar with a time of 12.35 (-0.5m/s), defeating United States’ hurdler and 2019 world champion Nia Ali, who finished in second with a time of 12.41 secs, while her compatriot Alaysha Johnson was third in 12.50.
Amusan, who won her fourth race in July, has shown consistency as she continues to improve over the course of the season, as her time at the Gyulai István Memorial meet was her second fastest this season.
With the World Athletics Championship in Budapest, Hungary, just about a month away, the 26-year-old Nigerian, who is looking to retain her top position, said: “It is great to win a competition, but the most important thing is to be in good shape at the World Championships.”
“My progress is going well, and I am looking forward to coming back to Hungary and competing with the best athletes next month,” she added.
In the women’s long jump event, African and Commonwealth Games record holder Brume settled for silver as her 6.69-metre mark was just behind Serbia’s Milica Gardaevi, who won the event with a 6.80-metre jump.
The 27-year-old, who is a world silver medallist, leapt her highest (6.69m) in the second round in Szekesfehervar to top Hungarian champion and home favourite Petra Banhidi-Farkas, who settled for bronze with a 6.66 metre jump.
In the other events, Kenya’s Nelly Chepchirchir broke the meeting record to win the women’s 1500 metre event. She cruised to victory in a time of 4:00.18, beating compatriot Brenda Chebet, who raced for a personal best (PB) time of 4:01.25, while Uganda’s Winnie Nanyondo finished third in 4:01.96.
In the men’s 3000-metre steeplechase, Mohamed Tindouft of Morocco won the race in a time of 8:15.73, just two days after compatriot Soufiane El Bakkali won at the Silesia Diamond League. Ethiopia’s world under-20 silver medalist Samuel Firewu finished second in a personal best time of 8:16.40, while Uganda’s Leonard Chemutai ended third in a PB of 8:17.14.
