Jeruto, Feng hammer out emphatic wins in steeple and discus at worlds

EUGENE, OREGON: Kenyan-born Norah Jeruto won world gold for Kazakhstan in the women’s 3,000m steeplechase on Wednesday while China’s Feng Bin threw a massive personal best to claim the discus title.

While day five of action at Hayward Field featured only two finals, South African heavyweights Caster Semenya and Wayde van Niekerk were trackside along with 400m hurdles stars Sydney McLaughlin and Dalilah Muhammad in a series of high-caliber heats and semifinals.

Jeruto clocked the third fastest time in history and a championship record of 8min 53.02sec for the steeplechase victory in Eugene, with Ethiopian Werkuha Getachew claiming silver in a national record of 8:54.61.

A second Ethiopian, Mekides Abebe, made the most of a mistake by Kenyan-born Bahraini Winfred Mutile Yavi on the final water barrier, to snatch bronze (8:56.08).

The discus was all but over after the first round as Feng threw 69.12m on her opening visit to the ring, improving by more than three meters her previous best of 66.00m set in Beijing in April.

Croatia’s Sandra Perkovic, a two-time Olympic champion and also twice a world gold medallist, claimed silver with 68.45m. American Valarie Allman, who won Olympic gold at the Tokyo Games, took bronze with 68.30m.

Semenya’s first appearance in a world championships in five years saw the controversy-mired South African fail to qualify for the women’s 5000m finals.

In roasting mid-afternoon temperatures, the two-time Olympic gold medallist finished 13th in the first of two rounds in 15:46.12, more than 45sec off the 15th and final qualifying place.

“Cooking!” said Semenya, who was forced to switch from her favored 800m (in which she is also a former three-time champion) to the longer event due to