Tobi Amusan warmed up for the 2026 Diamond League Final in style, winning the women’s 100m hurdles at the Grand Prix Brescia in Italy on Sunday.
Amusan crossed the finish line in 12.56 seconds to claim victory despite competing in a stiff 1.7m/s headwind.
The Nigerian star finished ahead of American hurdler Alaysha Johnson, who placed second in 12.62 seconds, while Jamaica’s Ackera Nugent completed the podium in 12.75 seconds.
Amusan’s victory in Brescia came days after American hurdler and Olympic champion Masai Russell broke her world record at the Zurich Diamond League last Thursday.
Russell ran a stunning 12.09 seconds, taking three hundredths of a second off Amusan’s previous world record of 12.12 seconds at the Letzigrund Stadium.
The 26-year-old finished ahead of Amusan, who placed second in a season’s best of 12.23 seconds.
Before Russell’s record-breaking performance, Amusan had held the world record for four years after running 12.12 seconds in the semi-finals of the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
The Nigerian went on to win the final in 12.06 seconds, but the time did not count as a world record due to an excessive tailwind.
Both hurdlers will go head-to-head again when the Diamond League Final takes centre stage in Brussels, Belgium, from September 4 to 5.
Amusan is a three-time Diamond League champion, having won the title in 2021, 2022 and 2023, and will be hoping to reclaim the crown this year.
Credit: punchng.com
