Holloway beats Jackson’s 27-year-old world record
Jonathan Edwards was left as Britain’s sole world record-holder last night after Colin Jackson’s indoor 60-metres hurdles mark that had stood since 1994 was finally beaten by American Grant Holloway.
Jackson’s 7.30-second run 27 years ago had long been considered as close to perfection as any sprinthurdling display in history.
But after weeks of homing in on Jackson’s time, world 110metres hurdles champion Holloway ended an outstanding indoor campaign by clocking a stunning 7.29sec in Madrid. Britain’s Andrew Pozzi, the reigning world indoor 60metres hurdles champion, was some way back in second, but claimed a morale-boosting season’s best of 7.51sec ahead of next week’s European Indoor Championships.
Holloway, 23, is one of the most talented athletes in the sport, with
his incredible sprint hurdling prowess backed up by a long jump personal best of 8.17metres – further than any British long jumper has managed since 2017. He was also an accomplished high jumper in his late teenage years.
With Paula Radcliffe losing her marathon world record in 2019, Edwards’s triple-jump mark of 18.29metres, set when winning the world title in 1995, is now the last world record belonging to a Briton.
In Madrid, Ethiopia’s Gudaf Tsegay was furious despite backing up her indoor 1500metres world record from a fortnight earlier with the second-fastest indoor 3000 metres in history.
Determined to add a second world record in what has been an astonishing winter campaign for her, Tsegay could not claw back time after the pacemaker had struggled to set the required early pace and clocked 8min 22.65sec – second only to her compatriot Genzebe Dibaba on the all-time list.
In Belgrade, multiple British high jump champion Morgan Lake showed a fine return to form, achieving the Olympic qualifying height with a clearance of 1.96 metres.