NAIROBI, Kenya, July 10 – Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi wrote his name into history books with a world record at the Monaco Diamond League in France on Friday night.
The Olympic and world 800m champion clocked 2:11.83 in the men’s 1000m, replacing fellow countryman Noah Ng’eny as the fastest man over the distance.
Ng’eny clocked 2:11.96 in 1999 in Rieti, Italy, breaking the previous record by Seb Coe set earlier in 1981.
World silver medalist Jake Wightman came second with a personal best of 2:12.77 whereas Algerian Djamel Sedjati took the final podium place in 2:13.94 — another personal best.
Wanyonyi was competing in his fourth race of the season, and his third Diamond League race.
His previous races in the prestigious one-day event yielded two second-place finishes in a row.
At the Rabat Diamond League in May, he clocked 1:43.56 in the men’s 800m before timing 1:42.09 in the same event at the Oslo Diamond League, in June (last month).
