By Chris Chavez
July 23, 2023
U.S. champion Yared Nuguse won the London Diamond League men’s 1500m in 3:30.44 to become the first American man to win a Diamond League 1500m or mile race since Leo Manzano’s 2011 mile victory in Paris. Matthew Centrowitz won the 1500m in London in 2018 but it was not a Diamond League event.
What you need to know:
– Nuguse waited until the final 100m to kick down Norway’s Narve Gilje Nordas and managed to win by just 14 hundredths. Nordas ran 3:30.58. This was Nuguse and the On Athletics Club’s first-ever Diamond League victory.
– Great Britain went 3-4-5 with Neil Gourley finishing third with a personal best of 3:30.60. Elliot Giles ran a personal best of 3:30.92. Matthew Stonier also got a personal best in front of the home crowd in 3:31.30.
– Buried within the results is Wisconsin’s Adam Spencer, representing Australia internationally, notching a personal best of 3:31.81 for 12th place. The 21-year-old was third at the NCAA Championships.
– USA’s Cole Hocker notched a season’s best of 3:32.14 while avoiding a near fall with Great Britain’s George Mills toward the end of the race.
What they said afterward:
– Yared Nuguse: “I’ve never been in a world championship but I really feel like I could be one of those guys in contention to medal.”
– Neil Gourley (via Diamond League Flash Quotes): “It was an odd race, I felt like I kept trying to move but kept getting blocked so I gave myself too much to do, but I'm happy with how I closed. I made too many mistakes, I could've turned it around and won it but it's better to make the mistakes now than in Budapest. Some of the people I've beaten today bodes well, I'm beating more and more people as the season goes on so it's looking good for a few week's time.
Now it's time to unearth it in training and get it right tactically. I'm looking forward to the World Championships, I'd be selling myself short if I said I didn't want to go there and win a medal. It's going to be incredibly difficult but I feel like I'm coming around at the right time, I feel like I've timed this season really well so I'm excited about my chances.”
What’s next:
– The men’s 1500m at the World Championships will start on Saturday, Aug. 19. The semifinal is set for Sunday, Aug. 20 before the final takes place on Wednesday, Aug. 23.
Chris Chavez
Chris Chavez launched CITIUS MAG in 2016 as a passion project while working full-time for Sports Illustrated. He covered the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and grew his humble blog into a multi-pronged media company. He completed all six World Marathon Majors and is an aspiring sub-five-minute miler.
