In an impressive display of athleticism at the recent Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais Trophée EDF on Saturday (10), Gudaf Tsegay, Lamecha Girma, and Grant Holloway delivered performances that approached the threshold of rewriting historical records in their respective fields.
Tsegay, the reigning world 10,000m champion, came close to breaking the world indoor record in the 3000m event at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Lievin. Competing on the same track where she established the world indoor 1500m record three years ago, Tsegay strategically followed the pacemakers through the initial kilometers, maintaining a commendable pace. Despite reaching 2000m in 5:29.38, inside world record pace, Tsegay encountered difficulties passing lapped runners in the final stretch, eventually finishing in 8:17.11. Her performance stands as the third-fastest indoor clocking in history, narrowly missing the world indoor record (8:16.60).
Girma, renowned for his steeplechase prowess, returned to a familiar track with ambitions of breaking Kenenisa Bekele’s world indoor 2000m record of 4:49.99. Despite sustaining a strong pace through 500m and reaching halfway in 2:25.59, Girma fell short of matching the required speed in the final laps. Nonetheless, he secured a comfortable victory in 4:51.23, marking the second-fastest time in history.
Grant Holloway, the three-time world 110m hurdles champion, continued his dominance in the 60m hurdles. After winning his heat in 7.39, Holloway equaled his own meeting record with a world-leading time of 7.32 in the final. This noteworthy accomplishment marked his 20th sub-7.40 clocking, a feat unparalleled in history. France’s Just Kwaou-Mathey secured a runner-up spot with a substantial personal best of 7.43, narrowly surpassing Poland’s Jakub Szymanski.
The captivating performances by Tsegay, Girma, and Holloway have ignited anticipation for future competitions, as these outstanding athletes persist in pushing the boundaries of their respective disciplines.
