Szymański storms to 7.37 Polish record, Schilder launches 20.69m world lead at ISTAF Indoor Berlin
Poland’s Jakub Szymański and the Netherlands’ Jessica Schilder delivered standout performances at the ISTAF Indoor Berlin, a World Athletics Indoor Tour Silver meeting held in Berlin on Friday (6), producing world-class marks just two weeks ahead of the World Athletics Indoor Championships 2026.
Szymański runs 7.37 Polish record in 60m hurdles
European indoor champion Szymański continued his remarkable 2026 season by clocking 7.37 seconds in the men’s 60m hurdles, improving his own Polish record and extending his winning streak to 11 races this year.
The 23-year-old’s performance moved him joint seventh on the world all-time list and places him level with Dylan Beard and Trey Cunningham atop the season’s world rankings.
Only one European athlete has ever run faster in the event: Colin Jackson, whose marks of 7.30 and 7.36 in 1994 included the world record that stood until 2021.
Szymański’s previous national record was 7.39, set in Łódź in 2025. In Berlin, he dominated the final ahead of compatriot Damian Czykier, who secured second place in 7.55.
With the World Indoor Championships set for 20–22 March in Toruń, Szymański now heads into the global showdown in formidable form.
Schilder unleashes 20.69m shot put world lead
In the women’s shot put, reigning world and European indoor champion Jessica Schilder delivered another dominant performance.
After opening with two fouls, Schilder responded with a 20.38m throw in round three followed by 20.03m before finishing with a massive 20.69m in the final round.
The mark extended her world lead, equaled her Dutch record, and matched the distance she achieved while winning the 2025 European Indoor title in Apeldoorn.
Schilder’s winning effort was more than 1.5 metres ahead of the field, with Portugal’s Auriol Dongmo taking second place with 19.14m and Germany’s Olympic champion Yemisi Ogunleye finishing third with 19.08m.
The 26-year-old Dutch star remains unbeaten in 2026 and now owns three of the four farthest indoor throws of the season, confirming her status as the clear favourite heading into the World Indoor Championships later this month.
Azu sprints to meeting record
Reigning world indoor champion Jeremiah Azu also impressed in Berlin, storming to victory in the men’s 60 metres in a personal best and meeting record of 6.47 seconds.
The performance gave Azu the European lead and lifted him to joint fifth on the European all-time list, alongside Olympic 100m champion Linford Christie.
Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme finished second in 6.55.
Visser edges Kambundji in hurdles duel
The women’s 60m hurdles delivered one of the most exciting races of the evening as the Netherlands’ Nadine Visser narrowly defeated Switzerland’s Ditaji Kambundji.
Visser surged off the final barrier to win in 7.81, just 0.01 seconds ahead of Kambundji’s 7.82.
The anticipated rematch of last year’s European indoor podium was incomplete after Poland’s Pia Skrzyszowska, bronze medallist at those championships, was disqualified in the heats for a false start.
McCreath wins women’s 60m
Elsewhere, Canada’s Sade McCreath claimed victory in the women’s 60 metres, clocking 7.12 seconds to top the sprint field.
