MONACO (AFP) – World and Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi set a new world’s best in the men’s 1,000m at the Diamond League meet in Monaco on Friday._x000D_
_x000D_
Wanyonyi took 0.13 seconds off the previous world best of 2min 11.96sec set by his Kenyan compatriot Noah Ngeny in Rieti, Italy, in 1999._x000D_
_x000D_
Patryk Sieradzki was the pacemaker at the Stade Louis II and he duly set off at an electric pace, immediately splitting the pack in the non-Olympic distance._x000D_
_x000D_
Sieradzki hit 400m on world record pace of 50.95sec, as planned. The second pacemaker hit_x000D_
_x000D_
Louey Ouerrat took up the running at the bell and went through 800m in 1:45.11._x000D_
_x000D_
That left Wanyonyi to turn on his afterburners with 200 metres to run, Britain’s Jake Wightman on his shoulder._x000D_
_x000D_
Wightman, the 2023 world 1,500m champion, looked like he had enough in the tank to go shoulder-to-shoulder with the Kenyan down the home straight._x000D_
_x000D_
But Wanyonyi showed all his class to pull away for victory in 2:11.83, the Briton clocking a personal best of 2:12.77 in second._x000D_
_x000D_
“This was the first time I ran the 1,000m, and directly breaking the world record makes me so happy,” said Wanyonyi, immediately dismissing any talk of a tilt at the 800m world record set by fellow Kenyan David Rudisha when winning Olympic gold in London in 2012._x000D_
_x000D_
“I want to thank the other athletes for pushing me to my limits._x000D_
_x000D_
“I don’t want to talk about the world record in the 800m. I first want to run fast and improve my personal best. Let me keep quiet, actions speak louder than words.”_x000D_
_x000D_
Wanyonyi added: “My next competition is in London. I have decided to not run too much this season because I want to run very fast at the end of the season.”_x000D_
_x000D_
Wightman said he had wanted to “go really, really quick and I knew Wanyonyi would be tough over 1km, but I did not know how it would be in the last 200m”._x000D_
_x000D_
“I was nearly there. This was just a long 800 so I wanted to go through quickly and try and hang on for as long as I could._x000D_
_x000D_
“I wish I could have surprised Wanyonyi but it is probably the best 100m you have ever had, so it was hard.”
