The final day of the two-day Diamond League final in Brussels saw Jamaican athletes deliver commendable performances, highlighted by third-place finishes from hurdlers Ackera Nugent and Shiann Salmon, as well as shot putter Rajindra Campbell.
On Saturday, the Jamaicans did not add to the two Diamond League titles secured on Friday by Ackeem Blake in the men’s 100m and Tajay Gayle in the men’s long jump.
Ackera Nugent’s impressive four-race winning streak came to an end as she finished third in the 100m hurdles final with a time of 12.55 seconds. Danielle Williams also competed but placed fifth with a time of 12.62 seconds. Puerto Rico’s Jasmine Camacho-Quinn took the win with a time of 12.38 seconds, followed closely by Nadine Visser of the Netherlands in second place with 12.54 seconds.
In the men’s shot put, Rajindra Campbell earned a third-place finish with a throw of 21.95m. Italy’s Leonardo Fabbri set both a national and meet record with his winning throw of 22.98m, surpassing his own Italian record of 22.95m set earlier this year and the previous meet record of 22.61m set by American Joe Kovacs in 2022. Olympic champion Ryan Crouser of the USA came in second with 22.79m.
Shiann Salmon delivered a strong performance in the women’s 400m hurdles, securing third place with a time of 53.99 seconds. The race was won by Femke Bol of the Netherlands in 52.45 seconds, with American Anna Cockrell finishing second in 53.71 seconds. Jamaican competitors Janieve Russell and Andrenette Knight finished seventh and eighth, respectively, with times of 55.94 seconds and 56.70 seconds.
Romaine Beckford narrowly missed a podium finish in the men’s high jump, placing fourth with a clearance of 2.22m. Beckford faced challenges early in the competition, requiring multiple attempts to clear the initial height of 2.12m before eventually succeeding. He cleared 2.17m on his first attempt and needed two tries to clear 2.22m.
In the men’s 400m hurdles, Roshawn Clarke led up to the eighth barrier before a collision disrupted his momentum, resulting in a fifth-place finish with a time of 49.08 seconds. Malik James-King finished just behind Clarke in sixth place with a time of 49.37 seconds. Brazil’s Alison dos Santos claimed the Diamond trophy with a time of 47.93 seconds, defeating Qatar’s Abderrahman Samba (48.20 seconds) and Estonia’s Rasmas Magi (48.26 seconds).
In the men’s 100m invitational, Michael Campbell finished fifth with a time of 10.40 seconds. Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala won the event with a time of 10.07 seconds.
