T&T’s two-time Olympic medallist Keshorn Walcott secured the silver medal at the Diamond League Meet in Gateshead, England yesterday behind a throw of 77.78 metres in his fifth effort.

Poland’s Marci Krukowski won with a distance of 82.61 metres, while Kim Amb of Sweden finished third with 76.96 metres.

Walcott, who threw the ‘iron-spear’ 82.75 metres for third place at the Golden Spike World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meet in Ostrava, Czech Republic on Wednesday, to finish behind Germany’s Johannes Vetter, the winner with a world-leading 94.20m effort, produced throws of 75.49 on his first effort, then fouled his second before registering 75.50, 76.78 and 73.31 metres when the top three qualifiers were given one final throw.

So far, Walcott, who opened his season with a distance of 81.87 metres at the National Association of Athletics Administrations of T&T (NAAATT) Track & Field Series at the Dwight Yorke Stadium in Bacolet Tobago on April 11, continue to show consistency in securing podium finishes in his three meets to date.

Grenada’s Anderson Peters finished fourth in 75.65 metres as his best from his five throws.

Results

Place*Name*National*Mark

1. Marcin KRUKOWSKI*POL*82.61

2. Keshorn WALCOTT*TTO*77.78

3. Kim AMB*SWE*76.96

4. Anderson PETERS*GRN*75.65

5. Gatis _AK_S*LAT*75.01

6. Norbert RIVASZ-TîTH*HUN*73.20

7. Harry HUGHES*GBR*71.23

8. Jakub VADLEJCH*CZE*DNS

Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith stormed to a superb 100m victory over American star Sha’Carri Richardson at a wet and windy Gateshead venue in the main event.

Asher-Smith powered home in 11.35 seconds, 0.11 seconds clear of in-form Richardson, the fastest woman this year.

Marie-Josee Ta Lou and Jamaican world champion Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce were also left trailing by Asher-Smith.

Scotland’s Laura Muir stormed through the rain to an emphatic 1500m win.

Asher-Smith hardly raced in 2021, restricting herself to three low-key outings on her home track in Bromley. Instead the 25-year-old concentrated on building her strength and technique, with recent training sessions featuring 300 reps of abdominal strengthening exercises.

That extra power was clear as she held off Richardson, who has dipped under 10.80 three times already this season, in the final 20m.

Asher-Smith, who won 100m silver as well as the 200m title at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, played down any psychological impact the result could have on her Olympic rivals. Both she and 21-year-old Richardson intend to run the 100m-200m double in Tokyo.

I think all in all today was more of an experience, she said. “The only thing that can indicate Tokyo is the Olympic final itself.

I feel really good. Conditions were far from ideal for sprinting but the most important thing is to come away with a good result and a win and I was very happy to do that.

Results

Women’s 100m Final, Wind: -3.1

Place*Name*National*Mark

1. Dina ASHER-SMITH*GBR*11.35

2. Sha’Carri RICHARDSON*USA*11.44

3. Marie-JosŽe TA LOU*CIV*11.48

4. Shelly-Ann FRASER-PRYCE*JAM*11.51

5. Blessing OKAGBARE*NGR*11.57

6. Javianne OLIVER*USA*11.58

7. Natasha MORRISON*JAM*11.77

8. Ajla DEL PONTE*SUI*11.81

Elsewhere, American world champion Sam Kendricks beat Swedish world record-holder Armand Duplantis in the latest instalment of their pole vault rivalry. The pair took turns to hold umbrellas over each other as steady rain made conditions tricky in Gateshead.

Kendricks won with 5.74m to the 5.55m of Duplantis, who thought he had cleared 5.80 with his last jump, only to see the bar wobble then fall.

Norway’s double European champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen, 20, produced a commanding performance to win the 1500m in 3:36.27, commentating afterwards “this is normal weather back in the west coast of Norway – I’m used to these conditions.”

But world champion Mariya Lasitskene saw a 14-event winning run come to an end in the high jump as Poland’s Kamila Licwinko triumphed, with Britain’s Emily Borthwick finishing second with a personal best of 1.91m.

The meeting marked the return of world-class athletics to Gateshead for the first time since 2010. The venue stepped in when Rabat was unable to host the first Diamond League of the season because of coronavirus restrictions. (BBC Sports)