By Sevket F. Erbay in Budapest
Budapest’s over-warmed summer is continuing to boil with some hot moments. The big names such as Gianmarco Tamberi, Soufiane El Bakkali and Faith Kipyegon have all displayed memorable action on the fourth-day finals in front of an enthusiastic crowd. Here are some takes from the night.
MEN’S HIGH JUMP
Another memorable story written in men’s high jump at National Stadium of Budapest. Current joint Olympic champions Mutaz Barshim and Gianmarco Tamberi came together once again. Barshim, who aimed at his fourth World title in the contest, failed to clear 2.36 metres, which was passed by Tamberi on the first try. American multi-talented JuVaughn Harrison also cleared 2.36 on his second attempt then failed at 2.38 – not so close tries though. Tamberi who started a big celebration after guaranteeing his first-ever World title before his final jump, invited Mutaz Barshim to the festivities. Mutaz’s three-year-old adorable son joined them and showed his father-sake jumping skills on the mat!
MEN’S 3000M STEEPLECHASE
Soufiane El Bakkali proved once more he’s a championships monster. The tall Moroccan ended up in the final which started at a slow pace and then turned into a two-way battle with recent world-record breaker Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia. El Bakkali landed in the final stretch with a formidable gap over his rival and clocked 8:03.53 after a 58-second last lap. Lamecha Girma took another silver in the third consecutive edition, as well as the Olympics. The bronze medal went to the Commonwealth Games winner Abraham Kibiwott of Kenya.
WOMEN’S DISCUS THROW
A stunning surprise happened in the final that featured Olympic champion Valarie Allman and all-time great Sandra Perkovic. But less-known American Laulauga Tausaga took the gold coming from the very last place in the final after barely escaping from elimination in the third round. She hung on in the final by throwing 65.56 personal best in the third round, then fired up to the lead after a stunning 69.49-metre throw – which means a four-metre progression of her previous best. Tokyo 2020 gold medallist Allman missed her eluded World title once more by only 26 centimetres. China’s Feng Bin who won the title last summer, secured a safe bronze in the final with a 68.20 effort, one metre ahead of The Netherlands’s Jorinde Van Klinken. Last but not least, the legendary Sandra Perkovic left with a proud fifth place in her seventh World final.
WOMEN’S 1500 METRES
The athlete in the best form on the planet, Faith Kipyegon has not allowed a great battle in one of the eagerly awaited finals of Budapest 2023. The Kenyan superstar took an early lead in order to control everything at the final even though she stepped into the bell in tenth place. The undisputed world record holder produced a 55.75-second last lap by demolishing the rest of the field at her 3:54.87 finish. Kipyegon just became the first three-time titlist in the 40-year event history. Ethiopia’s former World U20 medallist Diribe Welteji secured a silver medal – Ethiopia’s 100th World Champs medal overall - just ahead of Sifan Hassan, who bounced back to the podium after her painful loss at 10,000 metres.
