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Christian Coleman wins Birmingham 100m in photo finish (video)

By Nick ZaccardiAug 18, 2018, 11:15 AM EDT
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In a matchup of two breakout U.S. sprinters, Christian Coleman beat Noah Lyles in a 100m for the second time this season at a Diamond League meet in Birmingham, Great Britain on Saturday.

Coleman, the 2017 World silver medalist, clocked 9.94 seconds. Lyles, the U.S. champion who is stronger at 200m, crossed in third in 9.98. Brit Reece Prescod was between them, also in 9.94 seconds and all but catching Coleman in the last half of the race.

Coleman is the fastest indoor 60m runner of all time, but the field usually closes on him in the last half of 100m races. Lyles is not a strong starter but makes up ground in the second half.

Lyles and another American, Ronnie Baker, are the fastest men in the world this year at 9.88 seconds. Coleman clocked 9.82 last year and could have broken 9.9 this year but missed all of June with a hamstring injury.

“It was a sigh of relief because you never know what to expect when you come back from injury,” Coleman said, according to meet organizers. “I got my rhythm back, and I came out with the win in a good time.”

Lyles said he thought he was last when he crossed the finish line and that it was his worst race.

Full results are here. The Diamond League concludes with finals meets in Zurich and Brussels on Aug. 30-31.

In other events Saturday, Olympic 400m champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo emerged from one of the deepest 200m fields in history to win in 22.15 seconds.

Every woman in the field ranks in the top 60 all-time. Miller-Uibo upset Brit Dina Asher-Smith, the triple gold medalist from last week’s European Championships that included the fastest 200m in the world this year (21.89). The Bahamian Miller-Uibo is undefeated at all distances this year.

“The 200m isn’t a race that I love,” Miller-Uibo said. “I really do like it, but not as much as the 400m.”

London Olympic champion Greg Rutherford finished last in what may have been his last long jump competition. The 31-year-old Brit has said he will retire after this season after a series of injuries in recent years.

American Sandi Morris beat Greek Katerina Stefanidi in a reversal of their 2016 Olympic and 2017 World Championships finish. But Morris only cleared 4.62 meters in windy conditions, well off her 2018 world-leading clearance of 4.95 from July 27.

American Fred Kerley, the second-fastest 400m runner in the world last year, edged European champion Matthew Hudson-Smith of Great Britain to win in 45.54. Kerley ranks eighth int the world this season, with Michael Norman having the fastest time of 43.61.

Ethiopian-born Dutchwoman Sifan Hassan held off Ethiopian Gudaf Tsegay — 4:00.60 to 4:01.03 — in a battle of the Nos. 3 and 4 1500m runners this year. Ethiopian Genzebe Dibaba and U.S. breakthrough Shelby Houlihan, not in Saturday’s field, remain the fastest women of 2018.

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Birmingham Diamond League set for sprint fireworks; TV, stream schedule

Christian Coleman, Noah Lyles
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By Nick ZaccardiAug 16, 2018, 11:59 PM EDT
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Look no further than the last two events of Saturday’s Diamond League meet in Birmingham, Great Britain.

The women’s 200m field includes eight women with a sub-22 personal best, led by recent triple European champion Dina Asher-Smith, plus all three world medalists in the event. Two-time Olympic 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce was to race here, but she withdrew Friday.

Several minutes later, American stars Christian Coleman and Noah Lyles are expected to duel over 100m for the second time in their pro careers.

The sprints headline Saturday’s meet, live on NBC Sports Gold at 8 a.m. ET and Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA at 9.

Here are the Birmingham entry lists. Here’s the schedule of events (all times Eastern):

8 a.m. — Women’s Pole Vault
8:19 — Men’s Long Jump
8:32 — Women’s 100m Hurdles
8:47 — Women’s Shot Put
9:03 — Women’s 400m Hurdles
9:13 — Men’s 400m
9:18 — Men’s High Jump
9:22 — Women’s 1500m
9:33 — Men’s 3000m Steeplechase
9:45 — Men’s Javelin
9:49 — Women’s 3000m
9:52 — Women’s Long Jump
10:06 — Men’s 110m Hurdles
10:14 — Men’s Mile
10:24 — Women’s 1000m
10:34 — Men’s 800m
10:44 — Women’s 200m
10:53 — Men’s 100m

Here are five events to watch:

Men’s Long Jump — 8:19 a.m. ET
Possibly the final jumps of Brit Greg Rutherford‘s career. The 2012 Olympic champion will retire at the end of the season and may not enter another meet after Saturday. Rutherford, 31, has struggled with ankle, foot, groin and stomach problems while finishing one of the greatest long jump careers: gold medals at the European and world champs along with his two Olympic medals. The favorite Saturday is Olympic silver medalist and world champion Luvo Manyonga of South Africa.

Women’s 1500m — 9:22 a.m. ET
Olympic 800m champ Caster Semenya was originally entered here but is no longer on the start list, reportedly due to illness. The field is still strong with Dutchwoman Sifan Hassan and Ethiopian Gudaf Tsegay, who rank Nos. 3 and 4 in the world this year, and U.S. Olympians Kate Grace and Brenda Martinez.

Men’s 800m — 10:34 a.m. ET
The fastest man in the world this year (Emmanuel Korir) takes on the world champion at 1500m (Elijah Manangoi) in a matchup of Kenyans. Korir, a 23-year-old who ran for UTEP, last month clocked the world’s fastest 800m since David Rudisha‘s world record at the 2012 Olympics. Manangoi moves down and takes a break from his recent 1500m rivalry with Timothy Cheruiyot. Rudisha won’t be there. He hasn’t competed since July 4, 2017, due to injury. Saturday’s field does include U.S. Olympic bronze medalist Clayton Murphy.

Women’s 200m — 10:44 a.m. ET
All eight women in the field have a personal best of sub-22.2 seconds (and rank in the top 60 all-time), which IAAF statman Jon Mulkeen believes may be a first. The favorite has to be Brit Dina Asher-Smith, who last week swept 100m, 200m and 4x100m titles at the European Championships. Her winning 200m time, 21.89, made her fastest in the world this year by .15. She faces the three 2017 World medalists — Dafne Schippers, Marie-Josée Ta Lou and Shaunae Miller-Uibo — and U.S. champion Jenna Prandini.

Men’s 100m — 10:53 a.m. ET
Christian Coleman and Noah Lyles, ushering the new generation of U.S. sprinters since the Rio Games, take on some of the world’s best here. There is Jamaican Yohan Blake, the second-fastest man of all time who hasn’t been near that form in five years. There is Brit Zharnel Hughes, a former Usain Bolt training partner who just won the European title. Coleman owns the world’s fastest 100m since Rio (a 9.82 in June 2017), but he ranks 17th in the world this year, slowed by hamstring problems. Lyles shares the world’s fastest time of 2018 (9.88) but so far has looked better at 200m, given his slow starts. Coleman beat Lyles by one hundredth in the first pro 100m duel on July 13.

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World championships rematches in Birmingham; Diamond League preview

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By Nick ZaccardiAug 16, 2017, 4:02 PM EDT
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Several newly crowned world champions headline a Diamond League meet in Birmingham, Great Britain, on Sunday, live on NBC Sports Gold and The Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA.

Coverage begins on NBC Sports Gold at 8:20 a.m. ET and on the Olympic Channel at 10 a.m.

Many stars made the 125-mile trek northwest from London, where worlds concluded last Sunday, to Birmingham for the last Diamond League meet before the finals in Zurich (Aug. 24) and Brussels (Sept. 1).

They include Allyson Felix, Mo Farah, Elaine Thompson and Shaunae Miller-Uibo, plus surprise world champs Emma Coburn, Phyllis Francis and Ramil Guliyev.

Here are the Birmingham entry lists. Here’s the schedule of events (all times Eastern):

8:22 a.m. — Women’s Pole Vault
8:31 a.m. — Men’s Long Jump
8:41 a.m. — Women’s 800m
9:30 a.m. — Men’s Mile
9:39 a.m. — Men’s High Jump
9:47 a.m. — Women’s Discus
10:03 a.m. — Women’s 400m Hurdles
10:14 a.m. — Men’s 800m
10:23 a.m. — Men’s 100m
10:28 a.m. — Women’s Triple Jump
10:32 a.m. — Men’s 400m
10:40 a.m. — Women’s 3000m
10:53 a.m. — Men’s Shot Put
10:57 a.m. — Men’s 110m Hurdles
11:08 a.m. — Women’s 100m
11:17 a.m. — Men’s 200m
11:26 a.m. — Women’s 1500m
11:36 a.m. — Women’s 400m
11:45 a.m. — Men’s 3000m

Here are five events to watch:

Women’s 3000m — 10:40 a.m.
Emma Coburn and Courtney Frerichs, the surprise one-two finishers in the world championships 3000m steeplechase, race without the barriers and water jumps here. The two fastest American steeplers of all time face the two fastest Americans in the 5000m all time — Shannon Rowbury and Molly Huddle.

But the favorite has to be Kenyan Hellen Obiri, who is the fastest woman since 1993 in this non-Olympic event. Obiri dusted 10,000m world-record holder Almaz Ayana with her kick to win the world 5000m crown on Sunday.

Men’s Shot Put — 10:53 a.m.
Ten of the top 11 finishers from worlds are here, including the medalists — Tomas Walsh (NZL), Joe Kovacs (USA) and Stipe Žunić (CRO).

Nobody has been more impressive this season than Olympic champion Ryan Crouser, who will look to make up for his shocking sixth-place finish from London. Crouser owns five of the world’s top six throws in 2017, including a 22.65-meter heave at the USATF Outdoor Championships. That’s two feet farther than Walsh’s world title-winning throw.

Women’s 100m — 11:08 a.m.
An interesting field will race in two heats to qualify for this final. It does not include Tori Bowie, who in London became the first American woman to take a global 100m crown since 2005.

But it does include Olympic 100m champion Elaine Thompson, who earned zero medals at worlds while reportedly slowed by a stomach illness and an Achilles problem. World 100m silver and bronze medalists Marie-Josée Ta Lou and Dafne Schippers are also in the field.

Two Olympic champions making their Diamond League 100m debuts are Sally Pearson, the 2012 Olympic 100m hurdles gold medalist, and Rio 400m champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo.

Men’s 200m — 11:17 a.m.
Who would have thought six months ago that a Diamond League 200m without Usain Bolt, Andre De Grasse, Wayde van Niekerk or Justin Gatlin would be one of the headline events?

After the surprise at worlds, this one is intriguing. Turkey’s Ramil Guliyev is entered after winning an out-of-nowhere gold medal in London. He’ll face a man with reason to carry a chip on his shoulder — Botswana’s Isaac Makwala. Makwala has the fastest 200m time in the world this year but finished sixth at worlds, likely in part due to his medical controversy and having to run an extra 200m heat alone the night before the final.

Women’s 400m — 11:36 a.m.
The three world medalists return here, hopefully to race in better weather conditions. American Phyllis Francis surpassed Allyson Felix and a stumbling Miller-Uibo to claim gold on a wet, chilly night in London last week in the slowest world championships-winning time ever. Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser clipped Felix for silver, with Miller-Uibo falling to fourth.

Felix still owns the fastest time in the world this year and, with Miller-Uibo choosing to race the 100m in Birmingham, is a quarter of a second faster than anyone in this field in 2017.

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