Robinson leaps to impressive third in Diamond League debut

LONG jumper Nia Robinson had the best finish by a Jamaican at yesterday's Bauhaus Gala Diamond League meet in Stockholm, Sweden.

Competing in the fifth leg of the Diamond League series, Robinson, the World Indoor Championships fifth-place finisher iade an impressive Diamond League debut, finishing third with a wind-assisted leap of 6.80 metres (2.4m/s). France's Hilary Kpatcha won the event with 6.85m, while Italy's Larissa Iapichino was second with 6.84m.

Tokyo Olympic Games gold medallist Roje Stona had the next best finish by a Jamaican after his second-round throw of 66.42 metres earned him fourth place in the  discus. Sweden's Daniel Stahl, the 2020 Olympic champion, competing before his home crowd, won with a season's best 69.60m. Australia's Matthew Denny was second with 69.02m, while Slovenia's Kristjan Ceh finished third with 67.67m.

With one legal attempt, Jamaica's Danniel Thomas-Dodd produced 18.86m, which was only good enough for sixth place in the women's shot put. World leader Jessica Schilder of the Netherlands won with a meet record 20.89m.

In a major upset in the field, Armand Duplantis suffered a rare defeat before his home fans in the men's pole vault. Duplantis, who broke the world record on home soil a year ago, saw his winning streak of 37 consecutive victories come to an end after finishing second with a clearance of 5.80m. Australia's Kurtis Marschall took the victory with 5.90m.

On the track, where there were several outstanding performances, Jamaica's lone competitor, Assinie Wilson, could only manage seventh  place in the men's 400m hurdles. It was a one-two finish for Brazil, with world leader Alison dos Santos winning in 47.11 seconds ahead of teammate Matheus Lima, who clocked a personal best 47.37  for second place. World Championships sprint champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden of the United States bounced back in style following her second-place finish in the 200m three days earlier to Saint Lucia's Julien Alfred in Rome, with a convincing victory in the women's 100m. Competing in her first 100m race in nine months, Jefferson-Wooden stormed to victory in 10.84 seconds, the fourth-fastest time in the world this season. Great Britain's Amy Hunt was second in a personal best 10.97 while Luxembourg's Patrizia van der Weken was third in a season's best 11.05.

Tokyo Olympics 800m champion Keely Hodgkinson of Great Britain ran a personal best and national record 1:54.33 in the women's 800m but had to settle for second place as Switzerland's Audrey Werro produced a stunning performance to win. Werro stopped the clock at a personal best 1:53.98, a Diamond League and meet record, national record and world-leading mark.

American  Kenneth Bednarek closed the meet with another impressive run in the men's 200m, winning in 19.87 seconds ahead of South Africa's Sinesipho Dambile, who finished second in 20.01.