Athletics: Echevarria produces huge leap in Stockholm

[June 11, 2018]  (Reuters) - Cuba's Juan Miguel Echevarria produced the furthest long jump in 23 years -- 8.83 meters -- in winning the Diamond League meeting in Stockholm on Sunday but a tailwind denied him a place in the record books.

The 19-year-old raced to the stands to celebrate with supporters after producing the fifth longest jump in all conditions, behind Mike Powell, Bob Beamon, Carl Lewis and Robert Emmiyan.

Even though his delight was tempered by the ruling that the wind of 2.1 meters per second was just over the legal limit, Echevarria was still delighted with the mark which bodes well for the rest of the season.

"Today I wanted 8.5 meters but I didn't think I could jump so far," he said.

American Powell holds the world record with 8.95 meters from the 1991 world championships.

Echevarria finished first ahead of American Jeff Henderson (8.39m) and South Africa's world champion Luvo Manyonga (8.25m).

On the track, Qatar's Abderrahman Samba posted his fourth Diamond League race win this year to take the 400m hurdles in a league and Asian record time of 47.41 seconds.

It was Samba's fifth consecutive sub-48-second clocking, the first time that has been achieved since Derrick Adkins in 1995.

"I was looking for something big and I got that today," said Samba, who finished ahead of Norwegian world champion Karsten Warholm.

"It was windy on the back straight so that made us push too hard but it was amazing to get the Diamond League record and a PB today. Now I'll get back training then I might compete (in the next Diamond League meeting) in Paris."

Juan Miguel Echevarria of Cuba competes to win the men's long jump event. TT News Agency/Christine Olsson via REUTERS

In the men's 200m, Turkey's Ramil Guliyev, who won gold at last year's World Championships, clocked 19.92 seconds to win although the victory was slightly marred by an injury to Bahamian Steven Gardiner, who pulled up with 100 meters to run.

Britain's Dina Asher-Smith continued her recent excellent form to win the women's 100m in 10.93, a time only 0.01 seconds slower than her British record of 10.92 which she set in Oslo on Thursday.

Asher-Smith finished ahead of Ivorian Murielle Ahoure (11.03) with Trinidad's Michelle-Lee Ahye third in 11.11.

The men's race was won by Hassan Taftian in a season's best 1.07, 0.03 off his own Iranian national record.

Ethiopia's Gudaf Tsegay coasted to victory in the women's 1,500m in a meeting record time of three minutes 57.64 seconds, finishing ahead of Briton Laura Muir, whose 3:58.53 was her season's best.

American Brianna McNeal impressed in the women's 100m hurdles, posting a world-leading time of 12.38, with Jamaica's Danielle Williams (12.48) second and Alina Talay of Belarus third in 12.55.

(Reporting by Neil Robinson; editing by Clare Fallon)

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