Botswana Golden Grand Prix: Muzala Samukonga runs 400m world lead as Andre De Grasse and Sha'Carri Richardon suffer 200m defeats
Zambia's Commonwealth Games champion goes sub-44 for the first time, and Ferdinand Omunyala scorches to 100m victory in Gaborone.
Athletics
Zambia's Muzala Samukonga showed he is a genuine contender for top 400m honours with the fastest time in the world this year at the Botswana Golden Grand Prix on Saturday (29 April).
Last year's Commonwealth Games champion clocked 43.91, improving his personal best by seven-tenths of a second, to beat London 2012 gold medallist Kirani James (44.76) and Botswana's Leungo Scotch (44.92).
The 20-year-old, who collapsed to the track afterwards in what is becoming trademark fashion, eclipsed the time of 44.17 set by Wayde van Niekerk at the start of the month in the South African Championships.
Two of the big names failed to deliver in Gaborone which hosted Botswana's first World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meet.
Olympic champion Andre De Grasse could only finish seventh in the 200m which was won by home favourite Letsile Tebogo.
The 19-year-old rising star also set a world lead time this year, crossing the line in 19.87 with De Grasse's compatriot Aaron Brown (20.00) in second and Liberia's Joseph Fahnbulleh (20.14) third.
De Grasse beat just one rival home in 20.41.
That came after Sha’Carri Richardson was beaten in the same event by fellow American Kayla White.
In her first 200m of the season, Richardson clocked 22.54 with White running a season's best 22.38 to take victory.
Omanyala scorches to 100m success
Earlier, Ferdinand Omanyala produced a blistering performance to win the men's 100m.
The Kenyan clocked 9.78 despite easing up at the finish, but a wind of 2.3 m/s was just over the legal limit for record purposes.
He was a long way clear of Tebogo (9.91) with another 200m specialist, world and Olympic silver medallist Kenny Bednarek, third in 10.02.
There was another Kenyan triumph in the women's 400m as Mary Moraa, the Commonwealth Games champion and world bronze medallist over 800m, set a new national record of 50.44.
Nigeria's Olympic bronze and world silver medallist Ese Brume looked set for defeat in the long jump, but pulled out 6.77m in the sixth and final round to beat Burkina Faso's Marthe Koala (6.69m).
There was a one-two for Italy in the men's shot put with Leonardo Fabbri (21.32m) getting the better of Zane Weir (21.09m).