Home boys Phanuel Koech and Emmanuel Wanyonyi delivered stunning performances at the London Athletics Meet on Saturday, July 19, 2025, rewriting records and underlining Kenya’s rising power in middle-distance running. 

Eighteen-year-old Koech, who was making his mark in his debut Diamond League season, stormed to victory in the men’s 1500m with a blistering UK all-comers’ record of 3:28.82.

He surged ahead on the final lap, leaving world champion Josh Kerr trailing in second with a season’s best of 3:29.37. 

Moments later, Olympic champion Wanyonyi followed with his own heroics in the men’s 800m. 

After leading most of the race, he was briefly overtaken by world champion Marco Arop on the bend, but Wanyonyi found another gear in the closing metres to clinch gold in a meeting record of 1:42.00.  

Arop settled for second in 1:42.22, while Britain’s Max Burgin claimed third in a personal best of 1:42.37, moving up to third on the nation’s all-time list. 

This win adds to Wanyonyi’s victories this year in the prestigious meet, bringing the total to four.  

Meanwhile, a Wanda Diamond League record from discus world record-holder Mykolas Alekna, an Ethiopian mile record from Gudaf Tsegay and a world-leading 200m run from Julien Alfred were among the many highlights at the London Athletics Meet on Saturday (19). 

All three athletes not only broke meeting records but also improved on the UK all-comers’ marks in their respective disciplines. 

Alekna took an early lead with 66.97m, but 2022 world champion Kristjan Ceh bettered it in round two with 68.37m.

Alekna responded with one of the best throws of his life – and the best throw ever produced at a Wanda Diamond League meeting – and sent his discus out to 71.70m. 

Ceh, who had won nine consecutive competitions prior to this meeting, improved to 68.83m in the final round but had to settle for second place.

British record-holder Lawrence Okoye was third with 67.24m. 

World 10,000m champion Gudaf Tsegay achieved her first Diamond League win of the season, producing a dominant run to win the women’s mile with the second-fastest time in history. 

After a swift opening lap of 59.93, Tsegay settled into a steadier pace and went through 800m in 2:03.45.

At the bell, Australia’s Jessica Hull had closed the gap on the Ethiopian, but Tsegay had saved something for the end and kicked to victory in a national record of 4:11.88. Hull was second in 4:13.68, an Oceanian record. 

Olympic 100m champion Julien Alfred smashed her own national record and world lead to win the 200m in convincing fashion.

The St Lucian was in the lead as she came off the bend, then continued to open up a significant leading margin, crossing the line in a meeting record of 21.71. 

Alfred’s training partner, 2019 world champion Dina Asher-Smith, finished strongly to take second in a season’s best of 22.25, just ahead of compatriot Amy Hunt, who set a PB of 22.31 in third. 

Earlier in the afternoon, Asher-Smith and Hunt had teamed up to win the women’s 4x100m in a world-leading 41.69.  

–Additional reporting by World Athletics