World finalist Ja’Kobe Tharp produced a stunning 12.75 run to break the world 110m hurdles record  at the NCAA Championships in Eugene on Wednesday (10).

What made the feat all the more surprising was the fact it came in the heats. The Auburn student powered out of the blocks and executed a flawless run, pulling further ahead of the field after each barrier before charging through the line in 12.75 (1.0m/s), taking 0.05 off the world record set by Aries Merritt in 2012.

Tharp, still just 20 years of age, won the world U20 title in 2024 and then won the NCAA indoor and outdoor titles one year later. He also won at the US Championships last year with a personal  best of 13.01 before going on to finish sixth in the World Championships final.

He is undefeated in individual races this year, including heats, and in March he retained his NCAA indoor title with a world-leading 7.32, elevating him to third on the world all-time list. He continued that momentum outdoors with a string of victories on the US collegiate circuit.

The 110m hurdles final at the NCAA Championships takes place on Friday (12).

[World Athletics]

American teenager Cooper Lutkenhaus produced a stunning performance to hold off Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi in the men’s 800m at the Diamond League meeting in Norway.

The 17-year-old crossed the line in a personal best of one minute and 42.08 seconds to edge out the Kenyan by one hundredth of a second in Oslo, despite Wanyonyi recording his fastest time of the season (1:42.09).

Lutkenhaus was unbeaten in his five previous 800m finals this year, having claimed gold at the World Indoor Championships and become the Diamond League’s youngest ever winner on his debut in Stockholm last weekend.

“This boy [Lutkenhaus] is in a good shape,” said the 21-year-old Wanyonyi, who missed the event in Sweden following the birth of his first child.

“Can you believe that as an Olympic champion, you are trying to knock down a 17-year-old boy?

“I started the race in front and after 600m to go, I tried to see who is coming to push me. Then I saw him passing me so then I tried to respond. But my target today was to run my season best, to improve.”

British sprinter Amy Hunt placed second in the women’s 100m in 10.99 seconds, with St Lucia’s Olympic champion Julien Alfred taking victory in a time of 10.76.

Amber Anning was fourth in the women’s 400m as Norway’s Henriette Jaeger enjoyed success, while her fellow Briton, Jake Wightman, finished fifth in the Dream Mile behind Kenya’s Timothy Cheruiyot.

There was Ethiopian dominance in the women’s 3,000m race, with Freweyni Hailu, Likina Amebaw, Senayet Getachew and Hawi Abera occupying the top four positions.

Hailu recorded the fastest time in the world this year, crossing the line in 8:24.22, while GB pair Megan Keith and Innes Fitzgerald finished seventh and ninth respectively.

In the final event of the evening, home favourite Karsten Warholm’s time of 47.40 was only enough to earn the Swede second place behind Brazilian rival Alison dos Santos (46.89) in the men’s 400m hurdles.

[BBC Sports]

Sri Lanka will open their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup campaign against hosts England when the 12-nation tournament gets underway in Birmingham on Friday. The event carries a prize purse of USD 8.7 million, underlining the remarkable growth of the women’s game in recent years.

Every participating team is guaranteed a minimum of USD 250,000, even if they fail to win a game during the group stage.

Sri Lanka have been drawn in Group A alongside hosts England, defending champions New Zealand, Ireland, Scotland and West Indies. The top two teams qualify for the semi-finals.

The islanders endured a miserable campaign at the previous Women’s T20 World Cup in the UAE, losing all four of their group games. More concerning than the defeats themselves were the margins of those losses. Since then, however, the side has made significant progress and, under new Head Coach Jamie Siddons, there is a renewed sense of belief within the camp.

Sri Lanka arrived in Birmingham after comprehensive warm-up victories over Pakistan and the Netherlands in Derby. The team was scheduled to train under lights at Edgbaston on Wednesday evening as preparations entered the final phase.

Having qualified for the tournament by virtue of their international ranking, Sri Lanka will be quietly confident of giving a good account of themselves.

Following the opening game in Birmingham, they will travel to Southampton, Bristol and Manchester for the remainder of the group stage. A trip to London will materialise only if they progress to the knockout rounds.

Since the last World Cup, Sri Lanka have played a considerable amount of bilateral cricket and also underwent an intensive residential camp in Pallekele in the lead-up to the tournament.

Several exciting young players have emerged over the last year, adding fresh energy to the side and raising expectations. The biggest challenge, however, will be adapting to English conditions.

Australia remain the most successful team in the tournament’s history, having lifted the trophy six times. England, West Indies and New Zealand have each won the title once.

Rex Clementine in Birmingham