Xiamen Diamond League: Avinash Sable finishes 13th in men’s 3000m Steeplechase

Ethiopia’s Samuel Firewu, only five days away from his 21st birthday, had a first-ever victory over the legendary Soufianne El Bakkali in the men’s 3000m Steeplechase at the Xiamen Diamond League on Saturday.

Firewu, who surpassed El Bakkali in the back straight after the final 400m bell, registered a meet record to boot with a World Leading timing of 8:05.61, thereby attesting to talks about him being the future of men’s Steeplechase.

Avinash Sable, the sole Indian representation in the discipline, finished 13th with a timing of 8:22.59, far cry from his personal best of 8:09.91.

Sable, gained three positions inside the first 1200m, but with around 1000m to go, Sable was 13th in standings and maintained the position till the very end.

Earlier, Morocco’s Abderrafia Bouassel, who was leading in the first minute, ended up getting a DNF. Firewu’s compatriot Hailemariyam Amare led at the 200m mark, registering a timing of 5:26.29.

More to follow…