LONDON: Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce produced a superb display to outclass local favourite Dina Asher-Smith and Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou as she won the women’s 100 metres in 10.78 seconds at the London Diamond League on Sunday.

The 32-year-old double Olympic champion made a blistering start to dominate the race from start to finish, giving Asher-Smith (10.92) and Ta Lou (10.98) no chance of catching her. World 200m champion Dafne Schippers was disqualified after a false start at the Diamond League event.

“It’s a long season and I’ve been training and training. To come out here and run 10.78 is a fabulous time,” Fraser-Pryce, whose season’s best time of 10.73 came at home in Jamaica last month, said.

“I feel good. The aim is to make sure when I get to the Doha (world championships) that I’m on point. Right now the females are so close in terms of time so you definitely just have to come out and make sure that you’re ready to run.

“My aim for Doha is definitely to be on the podium. For me, its a long season from here so I am hoping my experience will come into play.”

No Americans were in the 100m field at the London Stadium because their world championship qualifiers are coming up this week.

Kenya’s Hellen Obiri sealed the women’s 5,000m in a time of 14 minutes 20.36 seconds -- the best of the year so far.

Dutch runner Sifan Hassan, who broke the 23-year-old women’s mile record in Monaco last week, had to settle for bronze.

“I am so happy because this is my favourite track and I have done my best and I ran the way I wanted to,” said Obiri. “In the last lap I was thinking, work hard and I said to myself when I went past Hassan: ‘let me go and see if you can catch me’. I have been training well and this will help when I defend my title in Doha.”

Britain’s Lynsey Sharp was a popular winner in the women’s 800m, outlasting Australia’s Catriona Bisset to win in a time of 1:58.61.

In other women’s track events, Jamaica’s Rushell Clayton won the 400m hurdles in 54.16 sec.

Germany’s Malaika Mihambo won the women’s long jump with a leap of 7.02 metres.

China’s Xie Zhenye set a new Asian record in winning the men’s 200m in 19.88sec.

“It was amazing because it was my PB (personal best) and a new Asian record, so I’m very happy. I love you guys, I love this track,” he said. “I just told myself to go fast. This gives me a lot of confidence for the world championships.”

China’s Xie Wenjun won the 110m hurdles in a time of 13.28sec.

Jamaica’s Akeem Bloomfield won the men’s 400m race with his season’s best time of 44.40 seconds, ahead of Jonathan Jones of Barbados and Jamaican compatriot Nathon Allen.

World indoor 1500m record holder Samuel Tefera of Ethiopia ran the fastest mile of the year so far in a time of 3:49.45, beating Norway’s Filip Ingebrigtsen by just 0.15sec.

The mile is not an Olympic or world championship distance.

Ingebrigtsen, 26, who set a new Norwegian record, is the older brother of 18-year-old Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who finished second in Saturday’s 5000m.

Syria’s Majd Eddin Ghazal won the men’s high jump with a leap of 2.30m, beating world champion Mutaz Essa Barshim into second place, and Swede Daniel Stahl surpassed Gerd Kanter’s 2010 meet record in discus with a 68.56m effort.

Britain’s men’s sprinters won the 4x100m relay, clocking 37.60sec, the fastest time of the year.

There are Diamond League events to come in Birmingham, Paris, Zurich and Brussels in the lead-up to the world championships in Doha, which start on September 27.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2019