Tori Bowie provided the highlight of the second day of the Adidas Boost Boston Games when she flew down the temporary track on Charles Street to win the women&rsquo;s 100m in 11.03 on Saturday (18).
Despite a sluggish start &ndash; her reaction time of 0.162 was the slowest in the field &ndash; the world bronze medallist was quickly into her stride and a convincing winner, with Trinidad and Tobago&rsquo;s Kelly-Ann Baptiste a distant second in 11.30.
&ldquo;The time doesn&rsquo;t show what sort of shape I&rsquo;m in right now, I feel like I&rsquo;m in 10.7-shape,&rdquo; quipped Bowie, who is the second-fastest woman in the world this year after she equalled her personal best of 10.80 when winning at the opening IAAF Diamond League meeting of the summer in Doha last month.
The men&rsquo;s 100m was, relatively speaking, nothing like as fast although it did provide an entertaining race and an upset. USA&rsquo;s Marvin Bracy beat Jamaica&rsquo;s 2011 world champion Yohan Blake by just 0.002, with both men being given the same time of 10.23.
The rather bouncy temporary track led to comparatively slow times but there were still confidence-boosting wins over the barriers for Great Britain&rsquo;s Tiffany Porter and USA&rsquo;s Ronnie Ash, watched by crowds two and three deep at what was billed to be the USA's first 'street meet'.
Porter triumphed in 12.94 and defeated USA&rsquo;s Sharika Nelvis, the fastest woman in the world last year, and Jamaica&rsquo;s world champion Danielle Williams, the pair finishing second and third in 12.98 and 12.99 respectively.
Ash won in 13.39, a modest time on the clock for a man who can boast of a personal best under 13 seconds, but he beat Orlando Ortega, another sub-13 performer, into second place with the Spaniard 0.02 in arrears.
Katie Nageotte won the pole vault with 4.50m in the absence of Olympic champion&nbsp;Jenn Suhr, who warmed up but then withdrew as she did not want to aggravate the calf and achilles problems she has suffered from in the past six weeks.
Phil Minshull for the IAAF

Tori Bowie provided the highlight of the second day of the Adidas Boost Boston Games when she flew down the temporary track on Charles Street to win the women’s 100m in 11.03 on Saturday (18).

Bowie a big hit on the second day in Boston

Following three successive losses, US sprint hurdler Jasmin Stowers returned to winning ways at the Gala dei Castelli in the Swiss city of Bellinzona on Tuesday (21).The 23-year-old started her season in incredible form, reducing her PB to 12.40, 12.39 and then 12.35 to win at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Doha. But the rest of her year has been a rollercoaster ride, after hitting a hurdle in Rome, getting disqualified for a false start in Birmingham, winning in Oslo and then finishing fifth at the US Championships, missing a place on the national team for the World Championships.In Bellinzona, though, Stowers was back on top, breaking the meeting record with 12.62 to edge out two-time world indoor champion Lolo Jones, who set a season&rsquo;s best of 12.65.&ldquo;The weather conditions were perfect for fast times,&rdquo; said Stowers. &ldquo;I am used to running in warm weather. I enjoyed running in front of this fantastic crowd.&rdquo;The meeting record also fell in the men&rsquo;s event. Ronnie Ash clocked 13.13 in the pre-meeting programme to take 0.07 off Colin Jackson&rsquo;s 110m hurdles stadium record. The US sprint hurdler didn&rsquo;t start for the final in the main programme, which was won by British champion Lawrence Clarke in 13.42, 0.03 ahead of USA&rsquo;s Jarret Eaton.Former world record-holder Asafa Powell broke the 10-second barrier for the 90th time in his career. In warm and windless conditions, the Jamaican clocked a meeting record of 9.87, repeating the time he produced when winning in Lucerne last week.In a race which featured five men with sub-10-second season&rsquo;s bests, Powell&rsquo;s compatriot Nesta Carter finished runner-up with 10.05 ahead of 2003 world champion Kim Collins (10.13).Turkey&rsquo;s Jak Ali Harvey twice bettered the track record set 16 years ago by Bruny Surin. First he clocked a national record of 10.04 in the heats and then later won the B race in 10.03. But that mark only lasted a matter of minutes as a meeting record as Powell significantly bettered it in the A race.&ldquo;It was a good race against a strong field,&rdquo; said Powell, competing in his last race before the IAAF World Championships. &ldquo;I am happy to run the first sub-10 on this track; the crowd pushed me a lot.&rdquo;Olympic 4x100m champion Tianna Bartoletta won the women&rsquo;s 100m in 11.07, having earlier won her heat in 11.09. Switzerland&rsquo;s Mujinga Kambundji broke her own national record with 11.17, taking 0.03 off the mark she set at last year&rsquo;s European Championships.One of the big surprises of the meeting came in the women&rsquo;s 800m. World University Games bronze medallist Fabienne Kohlmann smashed her PB to take the win in 1:58.37, the fifth-fastest time in the world this year and the best by a German runner since 2000.&ldquo;I just destroyed the PB I set two weeks ago,&rdquo; said the former 400m hurdler. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t believe it!&rdquo;USA&rsquo;s Molly Ludlow finished second in 1:59.05, beating European indoor champion Selina Buchel, who clocked 1:59.23.Amel Tuka, competing for the first time since his surprise world-leading win at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Monaco, notched up another victory in the 800m.As was the case in Monaco last Friday, the Bosnian athlete launched his kick on the final straight to pull away from second-place finisher Amine El Manaoui, winning by half a second in 1:45.80.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s an amazing season for me,&rdquo; said Tuka. &ldquo;The Monaco win was amazing as everyone apart from David Rudisha was there.&rdquo;Swiss hero Kariem Hussein, the European 400m hurdles champion, won in front of his local fans with 48.93, his second-fastest time of the season.Elsewhere, world champion Christina Obergfoll set a meeting record in the javelin with 61.71m. Kenya&rsquo;s Cornelius Kangogo won the men&rsquo;s 3000m in 7:47.21, while Ukraine&rsquo;s Kristina Hryshutina leapt 6.61m to defeat compatriot Maryna Beck by just three centimetres in the women&rsquo;s long jump.Diego Sampaolo for the IAAF

Following three successive losses, US sprint hurdler Jasmin Stowers returned to winning ways at the Gala dei Castelli in the Swiss city of Bellinzona on Tuesday (21).

Stowers, Kohlmann and Ash among the meeting record-breakers in Bellinzona

Two-time European champion Sergey Shubenkov won a three-man photo finish in 13.23 to become the first Russian sprint hurdles winner at an IAAF Continental Cup, and the first medallist since Sergey Usov was second in 1992.It was the closest top-three finish in the history of this competition, with Shubenkov dipping just ahead of USA’s Ronnnie Ash and his own Europe teammate William Sharman, who both clocked 13.25.After winning world bronze last year, Shubenkov has been in great form this season, and the tipsters had the Russian as marginal favourite ahead of Ash, the only sub-13-second man in the field.Fast times were anticipated especially after Dawn Harper Nelson’s blistering win in the women’s event, but despite the blanket finish the men couldn’t get close to Allen Johnson’s championship record of 12.96.Shubenkov, in lane seven, was out quickest of the three and had a slight lead by halfway, with Sharman in lane three a close second. However, Ash moved up to Shubenkov’s side over the last two hurdles and all three lunged for the line.There was silence for a few moments as the trio looked up at the scoreboard to check the result. Shubenkov’s name came up in first before another wait while the judges tried to separate Ash from Sharman.After winning two silvers this year at the Commonwealth Games and European Championships, Sharman had to take third this time but by the smallest of margins.China’s Xie Wenjun was some way back in fourth for Asia-Pacific, clocking 13.44.Matthew Brown for the IAAF

Two-time European champion Sergey Shubenkov won a three-man photo finish in 13.23 to become the first Russian sprint hurdles winner at an IAAF Continental Cup, and the first medallist since Sergey Usov was second in 1992.

Report: men's 110m hurdles – IAAF Continental Cup, Marrakech 2014

The women&rsquo;s 400m hurdles should be one of the main attractions on Saturday (19) at the Meeting de Madrid, an IAAF World Challenge and IAAF Hammer Throw Challenge meeting and Spain&rsquo;s most prestigious athletics competition, thanks to the presence of world leader Kaliese Spencer.The 27-year-old Jamaican is enjoying a fruitful outdoor season with no fewer than three victories so far on the IAAF Diamond League circuit as she took top spots in Eugene, Rome and Oslo, prior to running a world-leading 53.41 in Kingston to win the Jamaican title.The world indoor 400m silver medallist will face opposition from her compatriot Janeive Russell (54.75) and USA&rsquo;s Tiffany Williams (54.74).The men&rsquo;s hammer event features Tajikistan&rsquo;s Dilshod Nazarov and Egypt&rsquo;s Mostafa Hicham Al-Gamal. The in-form Nazarov is a consistent 80-metre thrower who has surpassed that barrier twice this season, topped by a 80.24m best effort not particularly far from his PB of 80.71m.Al-Gamal produced a huge toss of 81.27m &ndash; which ranks third on this year&rsquo;s list &ndash; on home soil in Cairo in March but has not gone beyond 78.07m since then.The flat 400m also promises to be a Jamaican party as the classy line-up includes Olympic 4x400m bronze medallist Christine Day, Stephenie Ann McPherson and Shericka Williams.The 28-year-old Day has progressed this season from 50.91 to 50.16 and should be aiming for her first sub-50-seconds clocking in Madrid. McPherson, who has a season&rsquo;s best of 50.40, captured the world indoor 4x400m silver earlier this year in Sopot while the former world and Olympic silver medallist Williams has still to find her best form this season (51.23).Trying to deny a Jamaican clean sweep will be USA&rsquo;s Olympic bronze medallist DeeDee Trotter, who has a season&rsquo;s best of 50.98.USA&rsquo;s Ronnie Ash will be the one of the standout athletes on Saturday following his entrance in the selected sub-13-second club in the 110m hurdles. The 26-year-old managed that feat in the semi-finals of the US Championships, clocking a huge PB of 12.99 but then failed to finish the final.Aleec Harris, who lowered his PB to 13.18 to take fourth in that race, will also be in Madrid, while Cuba&rsquo;s Orlando Ortega and Shane Brathwaite of Barbados seem strong enough to challenge them.The shortest distance of the program also offers an interesting USA-Jamaica battle with 2008 Olympic silver medallist Kerron Stewart defending the Jamaican pride, fresh from a runner-up place at the National Championships in a season&rsquo;s best of 11.02.The US pair of Barbara Pierre (11.05) and Lekeisha Lawson (11.07) took silver and bronze respectively at the US Championships held in Sacramento in late June. The fierce rivalry among this trio might produce a sub-11.00 performance.A quality field is also assembled in the long jump, which will be a wide open contest. South Africa&rsquo;s Zarck Visser seems to be the man to beat after his 8.18m win in Kourtane last Sunday. USA&rsquo;s Tyron Stewart kicked off the outdoor in style with a massive PB of 8.39m in April but has failed to approach the eight-metre barrier over his last outings.France&rsquo;s Salim Sdiri, the Spanish pair of Eusebio Caceres and Jean Marie Okutu plus Portugal&rsquo;s Marcos Chuva will be heading the European response.The US duo of Ryan Whiting and Jordan Clarke will be on show in the shot put. The latter managed a huge PB of 21.37m last month but had to settle for sixth place at the US National Championships while Whiting produced 21.31m in the early stages of the summer season but has not come close to that measure recently.The big surprise might come from the in-form Spaniard Borja Vivas, who set a career best of 20.80m in mid-June backed by another 20.64m heave on Tuesday.Former world silver medallist Wallace Spearmon should be tipped as favourite in his specialist 200m event. The 29-year-old came second at the US National Championships in a season&rsquo;s best of 20.19, just ahead third-placed Maurice Mitchell (20.30), who is also in contention in Madrid. Antoine Adams of St Kitts and Nevis, who set a national record of 20.08 earlier this season, could emerge as Spearmon&rsquo;s toughest opponent.The 800m promises to be a close affair. South Africa&rsquo;s Andre Olivier is the fastest athlete this year after his 1:44.42 run in Paris earlier this month. Kenya&rsquo;s world youth 1500m champion Robert Biwott has opted this season for the shorter event and has set a 1:44.69 best so far.Watch out too for Puerto Rico&rsquo;s Wesley Vazquez who has dipped under 1:45 for the first time this season (1:44.64 for a national record) and Spanish record-holder Kevin Lopez who is still rounding into form.A three-horse battle is on the cards in the 1500m where the in-form Leonel Manzano of the US faces the Kenyan duo of Bethwel Birgen and Collins Cheboi.The entrants will enjoy a newly refurbished blue track, which should play in favour of the athletes&rsquo; performances.Weather forecasters predict a partially cloudy day on Saturday. While the thermometer marks 37&deg;C on the eve of the competition, a sharp decrease on the event&rsquo;s day will leave the temperature about 25&deg;C.Emeterio Valiente for the IAAF

The women’s 400m hurdles should be one of the main attractions on Saturday (19) at the Meeting de Madrid, an IAAF World Challenge and IAAF Hammer Throw Challenge meeting and Spain’s most prestigious athletics competition, thanks to the presence of world leader Kaliese Spencer.

Sprints take centre stage on Madrid’s new track

A breakthrough performance from long jumper Jeffery Henderson and an exquisite coming-of-age run from 20-year-old Ajee Wilson over 800m were the highlights on the final day of the US Championships in Sacramento, California on Sunday (29) &ndash; a session that drew 9601 fans to Hornet Stadium.Prior to this weekend, Henderson&rsquo;s personal best stood at 8.33m, but in the sweltering conditions yesterday &ndash; with temperatures exceeding 38&deg;C &ndash; the 25-year-old leapt beyond that in all three of his measured jumps, his best effort of 8.52m coming in the final round.The mark, while wind-assisted (3.5m/s), is the longest jump in the world this year under any conditions. Henderson&rsquo;s second-round jump, a wind-legal 8.43m, moves him to fourth on the 2014 world list.&ldquo;I feel really good,&rdquo; he said afterwards. &ldquo;I think I did really well. My coach and I were focusing on my approach. I can jump 29 feet [8.83m] in ideal conditions. My fifth jump was actually longer than the last one, but it was a break.&rdquo;Out on the track, meanwhile, a young athlete of whom much has been expected delivered a coming-of-age performance to take the US title over 800m. In what was one of the most competitive fields, Ajee Wilson swept to the front 300m out, a position she refused to surrender all the way to the finish, which she reached in 1:58.70 &ndash; the third fastest time in the world this year. Oregon&rsquo;s Laura Roesler was second in a PB of 1:59.04, with Molly Beckwith third in 1:59.35.&ldquo;We were about 57 for the first lap,&rdquo; said Wilson. &ldquo;I thought to myself: &lsquo;just go. You&rsquo;ve got the strength and endurance&rsquo;. I&rsquo;ve been working really hard.&rdquo;Wilson &ndash; a world junior champion in 2012 &ndash; will now pit herself against the world&rsquo;s best on the European circuit, with immediate plans including the IAAF Diamond League meetings in Glasgow and Monaco.In the men&rsquo;s 800m, the favoured Duane Solomon quickly showed himself a class apart once the gun fired, speeding through the first 200m faster than 24 seconds and 400m in 49.66 seconds. &ldquo;The plan was to take it out with authority,&rdquo; he said afterwards, and that he certainly did.Far from self-destructing, Solomon held it together well on the second lap and came home a clear winner in 1:44.30 ahead of Casimir Loxsom (1:45.97) and Erik Sowinski (1:46.94). &ldquo;My next race will be Monaco, then I&rsquo;ll have a whole month of training. I want to go back to Europe then and get the American record.&rdquo;In the women&rsquo;s 400m hurdles, Kori Carter turned in one of the performances of the day, winning in 53.84, the second-fastest time in the world this year. Georganne Moline was a close second in 54.00 with Cassandra Tate third in 54.70.&ldquo;It was awesome,&rdquo; said Carter. &ldquo;I got a little shady over hurdles five, six and seven but then I just decided to go for it and got into Kori-Monster mode, gave it everything I had, and luckily today it was good enough.&rdquo;The men&rsquo;s 110m hurdles provided the biggest shock of the day, with 19-year-old NCAA champion Devon Allen dipping for a surprise win in 13.16 ahead of world silver medallist Ryan Wilson (13.16) and world champion David Oliver (13.23).Favourite Ronnie Ash crashed out mid-race in the final, having recorded the fastest time in the world this year to win his semi-final in 12.99 (+1.2m/s).&ldquo;I knew I was going to run fast,&rdquo; said Allen. &ldquo;Things started clicking in practice, I was feeling better.&rdquo;Another favourite to crash out was Bershawn Jackson, whose hopes of another US title were dashed as he fell to the track injured on the opening bend of the 400m hurdles final. Johnny Dutch was a convincing winner in 48.93, the national title proving a just reward for his decision to stick at the sport this season.&ldquo;This year has really been a journey,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I was on the verge of giving up, had so many personal things in my life and injuries. I really thought about quitting, but everybody had faith around me. I kept going, and finally it&rsquo;s worked out. I had no strategy today. I just ran with my heart.&rdquo;In the women&rsquo;s 200m, Jeneba Tarmoh took the win in a wind-assisted 22.06 (3.8m/s) ahead of Kimberlyn Duncan (22.10) and Joanna Atkins (22.19). &ldquo;I was very excited about the time until I saw it was wind-aided,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;We had a hurricane behind us.&rdquo;In the men&rsquo;s 200m, Curtis Mitchell got his career back on track after injury and recorded an impressive win in 20.13 (1.3m/s) ahead of Wallace Spearmon (20.19) and Maurice Mitchell (20.30). &ldquo;It&rsquo;s all a testament to the hard work I&rsquo;ve done,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Words can&rsquo;t describe how happy I am to be back.&rdquo;Elsewhere, Jenny Simpson &ndash; a former world champion at 1500m &ndash; finally took her first outdoor US title at that distance, leading from gun to tape to comfortably hold off rising star Mary Cain, 4:04.96 to 4:06.34.&ldquo;I feel good at the front so I went there,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;I wanted to slowly wind it up the whole way. It was really important for me to win today.&rdquo;Evan Jager was another gun-to-tape winner in the men&rsquo;s 3000m steeplechase in 8:18.83. In the field events, Sean Furey took the men&rsquo;s javelin title with a best of 81.10m, Sam Kendricks the men&rsquo;s pole vault with 5.75m, and Gia Lewis-Smallwood was an easy winner of the women&rsquo;s discus with 65.96m. The early-morning men&rsquo;s 20km race walk was won by John Nunn in 1:27:56.Cathal Dennehy for the IAAF

A breakthrough performance from long jumper Jeffery Henderson and an exquisite coming-of-age run from 20-year-old Ajee Wilson over 800m were the highlights on the final day of the US Championships in Sacramento, California on Sunday (29) – a session that drew 9601 fans to Hornet Stadium.