by Stuart Weir
Five Highlights from Monaco
1 Jessica Hull is at it again.
Five days after becoming the fifth-fastest women’s 1500m runner in history, Australia’s Jessica Hull became the quickest 2000m runner of all time, setting a world record of 5:19.70 bettering the 5:21.56 achieved by Francine Niyonsaba in September 2021. And, to make her feel better, Monaco spelled her name correctly – she was Hall in Paris last week!
She said afterward: “It was incredible. Everyone was cheering for me when I was alone on the last lap. I was looking at the lights, hoping they would miss me. I definitely felt the Paris race all week in my legs. So, today, the goal was just to be strong, even if my legs were very heavy. I ran at a different pace and level of fatigue that I have never been at before”.
2 Djamel Sedjati Déjà Vu all over again!
Djamel Sedjati won the 800 as he had in Paris, this time in 1:41.46. He commented: “It´s the fourth time I have run a World Lead and the second time an Algerian Record, I have worked really hard for that. Now I am thinking of the World Record, I hope to run it at the Olympic Games”.
3 Jakob Ingebrigtsen wins
His winning time was 3:26.73 (AR, WL, PB)
He commented: “I feel amazing. It is truly amazing how we, as athletes, develop ourselves, and we run even faster at almost every competition we participate in. I really enjoy competing in Monaco, especially when a lot of Norwegian fans are here. That helps me a lot. I will continue doing what I have been always doing. I will continue developing physically and continue believing in my training. I see that I am increasing my potential every year. Athletes need to believe in what they are doing. Achieving great results makes it easier to be confident for future competitions. I am excited about Paris. I feel strong; I will do my best and hopefully bring home the gold medal”.
4 Unbeaten Holloway ready for Paris.
Unbeaten this year, Grant Holloway has won everything – except the Olympics. In 2021, Hansle Parchment was the surprise winner. Grant ran 13.01 into a negative wind, showing he is the man to beat in Paris. He said, ” Running races after a long journey is always tough. I arrived in Monaco from the USA just two days ago. To compete against some of the best talents in the world is great. I like the rhythm I had in the race today. I just need to push a bit more to run sub-13 seconds. I was tired after the American trials; they took a lot from me. But I am always ready to run the Monaco race. The only thing I need now is the rest, which I will focus on. I need it before the main competition this season”.
5 Pole-vault is wide open
The men’s pole vault gets exciting after Mondo wins, and we wonder how much, beyond 6 meters, he will soar. The women’s is intriguing because it is so open, with Nina Kennedy winning in Monaco with 4.88 from Angelica Moser, who needed a national record to secure the second spot. Molly Caudery was third with 4.83m, while reigning Olympic champion Katie Moon is returning to her best after an early season injury. Nina summed up her evening: “ I had a perfect jump at 4.88m tonight. Doing it in my first attempt was really important. The results of the other girls show us that everyone is in perfect form. Those 4.93m jumps from them were great as well. What is special in the Olympic year is that everybody is showing off their best, jumping their personal best. Angelica jumped a 10 cm PB, which is huge. Everyone is pushing for the Olympic gold. Our sport is in a perfect shape. Now I just got a fire in my belly, and I want to win in Paris”.
