Diamond League: Jessica Hull breaks women's 2,000m world record

, July 13 (IANS) Jessica Hull showcased a fearsome form ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games as the Australian set a world record of five minutes and 19.70 seconds in the women's 2,000m at the Diamond League meeting, here. The previous world record of this non-Olympic event was 5:21.56 achieved by Francine Niyonsaba of Burundi in September 2021. Having followed closely as the pacemakers led through the first 1,000m in 2:39.88, Hull stayed focused and the trackside lights indicating world record pace never left her side, reports Xinhua. Hull followed the United States' Heather MacLean as the second pacemaker stepped aside, and then when MacLean left the track too, it was Hull against the clock. Storming away from the lights as she left the final bend, Hull crossed the finish line in 5:19.70 to take almost two seconds off the previous world record. "It was incredible. When I was on my own on the last lap, everyone was cheering for me," said Hull. "I was just looking at the lights, hoping they wouldn't catch me." "There are for sure some women who can run that 5:19, but for now I have my place in the history books. I ran hard for this record, I worked extremely hard for this," she added. The men's 800m all-time list was also rewritten again in Monaco, as Algeria's Djamel Sedjati crossed the finish line in 1:41.46 to break the Diamond League record, a performance that made him the third-fastest 800m runner in history. Elsewhere, Jakob Ingebrigtsen stuck steadfast in his pursuit of a record time as the Norwegian improved his European record from 3:27.14 to 3:26.73 in the men's 1,500m. --IANS cs/