'This is incredible': Athletics world in disbelief at 'crazy' moment

Norwegian young gun Jakob Ingebrigtsen has shocked the athletics world after beating a stacked field to win the men's 5000m in a world-leading time at the Diamond League event in Florence.

Ingebrigtsen upstaged a host of more experienced runners on Thursday in a victory he said was like winning gold.

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All eyes were on Uganda's Joshua Cheptegei - the reigning world 10,000m champion who set new world records in the 5000m, 10,000m and 5km road events last season.

But before the race, Cheptegei had singled out European 1500 and 5000m champion Ingebrigtsen as the "man of the moment". And he proved to be right.

The Ugandan fell off the pace with just over a lap to go, with Canada's Mohammed Ahmed and Ethiopian Hagos Gebrhiwet taking up the lead.

But they had not counted on the 20-year-old Ingebrigtsen, who stormed through the field for victory in a European record of 12min 48.45sec.

It was Ingebrigtsen's first sub-13min time over the distance, installing him as the 12th fastest of all time.

He bettered the previous European best of 12:49.71 set in 2000 by Moroccan-born Belgian Mohammed Mourhit.

"It was like winning a gold medal. It is pretty crazy," the Norwegian said.

"This European record is incredible. Now I have to able to win a medal, too.

"If I am able to win against the best runners, then I can also win at the Olympics."

Fans and commentators were left in disbelief over Ingebrigtsen's performance.

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Just six weeks out from the Tokyo Olympics, a glut of top track and field athletes rewarded the crowd in the Italian city with some stunning performances in perfect conditions.

Dutch runner Sifan Hassan came within half a second of a stunning world record in the women's 1500m, just five days after setting a short-lived 10,000m world record.

With three world records already to her name, the world 1500m champion ran a world-leading time of 3:53.63sec.

Rounding the corner to the final straight, Hassan was level with Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon.

But in a sprint finish she just edged the Kenyan, the latter bagging second with a national and personal best at 0.28sec, with European champion Laura Muir of Britain rounding out the podium (3:55.59).

"I am surprised about the time," said Hassan. "It was not my plan to run so fast, I had hoped to run under four minutes."

Hassan saw Ethiopian Letesenbet Gidey set a new world best in the 10,000m in Hengelo on Tuesday just two days after she herself had knocked more than 10 seconds off the record.

Meanwhile, world 200m champion Dina Asher-Smith showed no signs of rust as she raced to victory in 22.06sec, bettering the meet record set by Marion Jones back in 1999.

It was her second Diamond League victory of the season after she stormed to 100m glory at the opening meet in a rainswept Gateshead ahead of US sprint star Sha'Carri Richardson.

Jamaican Omar McLeod then equalled Allen Johnson's meeting record of 13.01sec in the men's 110m hurdles, while in-form Jasmine Camacho-Quinn of Puerto Rico clocked 12.38sec to better the women's 100m hurdles meet record that had stood since 1980.

Rising Dutch hope Femke Bol also set a national and personal record of 53.44sec in the 400m hurdles.

with AFP

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