Wanyonyi, Chase Jackson, Karalis and Seville shine in Brussels Diamond League finals

Emmanouil Karalis finally stepped out of Armand Duplantis’s shadow in Brussels. The Greek pole vaulter cleared 6.12 meters on his third attempt to set a meeting record and win the opening day of the Diamond League finals.

Karalis took advantage of Duplantis’s withdrawal. The Swedish double Olympic champion and seven-time world champion felt discomfort during the warm-up and pulled out without attempting his opening jump, ending his chance to win a sixth Diamond League title.

Karalis has collected a long series of second-place finishes and silver medals behind Duplantis at international competitions. Before Brussels, he had won only two Diamond League meetings, in Lausanne in 2025 and Doha this year. Norway’s Sondre Guttormsen and Australia’s Kurtis Marschall shared second place at 5.82 meters.

Jamaican Oblique Seville, the world champion, won the 100 meters in 9.90 seconds, edging Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme, who finished in 9.93. It was Seville’s first Diamond League title, putting him alongside fellow Jamaicans Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell and Ackeem Blake on the list of winners.

Saint Lucian Julien Alfred chose the 200 meters instead of the 100 and won in 21.79 seconds. Kenya’s Faith Cherotich dominated the 3,000-meter steeplechase in a meeting-record 8:51.61, while Ethiopia swept the 5,000-meter podium, led by Freweyni Hailu in 14:35.20. Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi also won the men’s 800 meters after finding his best form near the Brussels final.