Alison dos Santos smashes 400m hurdles world record with 45.80 in Zurich

Weltklasse Zürich delivered a historic night of athletics at Letzigrund Stadium on Thursday, August 27, as Alison dos Santos and Masai Russell shattered world records in the men’s 400m hurdles and women’s 100m hurdles. The penultimate meeting of the 2026 Wanda Diamond League season also produced a string of world-leading performances, national records and meeting records, with many athletes securing their places in next week’s Diamond League Final in Brussels.

The action began on Wednesday with the women’s pole vault city event at Zürich Main Station before moving to Letzigrund for Thursday’s main program.

Men's 400m Hurdles

Alison dos Santos produced a sensational performance, storming to a men’s 400m hurdles world record of 45.80 at the Letzigrund Stadium.

The Brazilian took 0.14 seconds off Karsten Warholm’s previous world record of 45.94, which had stood since the unforgettable Tokyo Olympic final in August 2021. Warholm witnessed the record fall from the adjacent lane, finishing a distant second in 46.69.

Dos Santos attacked the race aggressively and was already clear of Warholm coming off the final bend. Maintaining his rhythm over the last two barriers, the 26-year-old powered away down the home straight before celebrating with the Brazilian flag after seeing the historic time on the scoreboard.

The performance represented an enormous improvement on Dos Santos’ previous lifetime best of 46.29, set when winning the 2022 world title in Eugene. It also established Diamond League and Zurich meeting records and made him only the second man in history to break 46 seconds.

The record-breaking run continued Dos Santos’ unbeaten campaign against Warholm in 2026. He has now defeated the Norwegian in all five of their head-to-head races this season, including at the Silesia Diamond League four days earlier, where he recorded the previous world-leading time of 46.43.

”The crowd and the energy were perfect. I think this night was amazing for me, for those who came to watch - I did it for everybody. Also, for those watching from home. I hope that Brazil stopped to watch this as much as the people here in the stadium. This has been an incredible night, I have no words to explain what happened other than I just broke the World Record. I have been showing a great form througout the season - that I am fast, I am strong. We changed a lot of aspects of my training and racing in the preparation for this. I´m starting faster, I´m finishing stronger, and that is what I have to do to be able to break a World Record. I was looking for my coach since I crossed the finish line. I was the one running, but he is the one who made this possible - someone who believed inmme when I was younger. He helped me to develop both as an athlete and as a person, too. He´s like an older brother, like a dad to me. Bringing my personality to the track is very important. The idea is to to be able to inspire new people: with hair, with jewelry, with energy, with dance moves, knowing that they are a reference. A word to my younger self would be to be patient, because patience is a virtue." dos Santos said.

Nigeria’s Ezekiel Nathaniel completed the podium in 47.50, narrowly ahead of Brazil’s Matheus Lima, who finished fourth in 47.57. Abderrahman Samba recorded a season’s best of 47.77, while Slovenia’s Matic Ian Guček lowered his national record to 47.80.

Men's 400m Hurdles Results:

• SEE FULL RESULTS HERE
• WATCH VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

Women’s 100m hurdles

Olympic champion Masai Russell delivered the second world record of a memorable Weltklasse meeting, clocking 12.09 in the women’s 100m hurdles. Russell took 0.03 seconds off the previous record set by Tobi Amusan at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene. Amusan improved her season’s best to 12.23 to finish second, ahead of European champion Nadine Visser, who also recorded a season’s best of 12.34. Jamaica’s Danielle Williams placed fourth in 12.56, followed by Ackera Nugent (12.69), Pia Skrzyszowska (12.70), Ditaji Kambundji (12.82) and Annik Kälin (12.87).

Masai Russell: ”I just knew that the start felt like really good and then by the time I looked up I was crossing the line, and I was like, let me actually run through the line this time and see what the time is. When I saw 12.09 I just knew like I hot it and I just got so emotional. I dreamed about this moment and then hearing the crowd, like this is the best place I could have ever imagined to break the World Record. When I heard that Alison Dos Santos broke the World Record, in the back of my mind, I was trying to focus and lock in, but knew the track was hot. I got a lot of motivation from him for sure.

Men’s pole vault

Emmanouil Karalis broke both the meeting and Greek records by clearing 6.20m on his first attempt. Armand “Mondo” Duplantis responded minutes later, sailing over 6.25m at the first time of asking to improve the meeting record again and claim his sixth consecutive victory in Zürich. Both men cleared every height through their final successful bars on the first attempt before making three unsuccessful attempts at 6.32m.

Armand Duplantis: ”Tonight, Manolo jumped really jumped out of this World. It was amazing when he jumpoed 6.20, so I just had to respond. The best way was to jump 6.25 and come away with a win - this is the highest levek of competition that there´s ever been. I think it´s going to be a lot of fireworks like they´ve been in the past few weeks. It´s just going to be a crazy competition. His jumping is amazing right now, so I have to jump my A-game. It is going to take 6.20 bars to win from now on. That is the level that we are at right now - this is really fun”

Emmanouil Karalis: ”Not every day two people attend for the world record, so that was nuts. I did the PR, I was able to drive for the world record, so I am glad that I am here. I really enjoyed myself. It was a great competition. Everyone had a blast there. The difference between these heights is mostly mental. I have to break my mental barriers. It is good that I have the attention to the world record because in the next competition it will be mentally easier. I am so happy I tried for it. But for now, I keep the second place. I will keep the 6.20 and I will keep all the luck from all the people that supported me. For sure, I pushed Mondo, I always push him. And I think he enjoys the pressure. And hopefully, in the future we are going to have amazing battles. Hopefully, I can get a win one day. But when that comes, I am going to keep smiling, keep competing and giving everything that I have in the field.

Sondre Guttormsen cleared 6.00m on his second attempt repeating the same height he achieved in Chorzow last Sunday. Christopher Nilsen finished fourth with 5.90m beating Ernest John Obiena on countback.  

Women’s 800m

European champion Audrey Werro claimed her second consecutive Weltklasse Zürich victory in 1:53.70, setting a world lead as well as Diamond League and meeting records. The Swiss star took 0.10 seconds off the personal best she had set at the Paris Diamond League meeting.

Audrey Werro: ”It was crazy, I am very proud. Thank you everybody. I am getting better and better and I am simply very motivated. I achieved my goals for this year, so now everything is for fun. Last year I won the Diamond League race here and so it was very important for me to win again here. As far as the world record is concerned, I saw the light, but there was a lot of movement during the race and it was not calm. But I still had enough energy at the end of the race to accelerate and to stay in the lead. Yes, it was tight for the WR, it was not meant for today. I am so proud to be able to run those sub 1:54 times which shows that I can run consistently and fast now and this is good for the future.

Femke Bol lowered her own Dutch record to 1:54.71, while Britain’s Georgia Hunter Bell improved her season’s best to 1:55.03 in third. Saida Tsehaye finished fourth in 1:57.33, ahead of Jessica Hull (1:58.24), Switzerland’s Valentina Rosamilia (1:58.49) and Italian record-holder Eloisa Coiro (1:58.53).

Femke Bol: ”Zurich is a special place. I must say, I really enjoyed it. Racing against these great runners, I love it. But there are still so many things to learn. Being in a great event with a great time - amazing. Audrey helped me and I am happy. I am starting to get confident. I am still learning this event .I am in a very good shape. It was very hot today. I love the crowd here and racing Audrey with this crowd is simply amazing.

Women’s 100m

Olympic champion Julien Alfred won a thrilling women’s 100m in a national record of 10.70, edging world champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden by just 0.005 seconds in a photo finish. Jefferson-Wooden suffered her first 100m defeat since the 2024 Paris Olympics but still improved her season’s best. Sha’Carri Richardson, the 2023 world champion, finished third in 10.97, just ahead of Tina Clayton (10.98) and European champion Amy Hunt (11.04).

Julien Alfred:”Running this fast is never easy, especially because getting out the blocks is always a challenge for me - I could be sleeping in that box all year. But, I trust what I can do, and what I can´t do. Staying at the top is definitely a harder job that making it up there. I mean, going up the mountain, you are still hungry, you want more. It is not much fun when you´re not the one being hunted. When I became Olympic champion, it was a completely different state - mentally and emotionally. In the times that people have high expectations of what I should be doing, I have to turn to my team: my coach, my agent and my family in particular. We have a long way to go in Saint Lucia, but we are getting there. A national record puts Saint Lucia on the map”

Melissa Jefferson Wooden: “I am always happy to set the season’s best. I do not like losing, but you know, it is the name of the game. Obviously, anytime we step to the line, it is going to be a good race. And today, it came down to the wire. So I am looking forward to seeing her again in two weeks. But not only her, you know, anybody going to go back in, and I want to see what I can put out there. But we are still in a really good spot to do some really amazing things. In the end, you cannot be bad with a season’s best at all.

Men’s 200m

Kenny Bednarek stormed to a world-leading 19.62 in the men’s 200m. Sinesipho Dambile broke 20 seconds with 19.82 in second, while Tokyo Olympic champion Andre De Grasse placed third in 20.03, ahead of Makanakaishe Charamba (20.10).

Kenny Bednarek: ”I think it was a crazy night tonight, generally seeing these records and atmosphere. I enjoyed it - it is the first time I have been at the meet where I have seen so many records. We have broken meet records, world records, world leads, all that stuff. You know, I wanted to run a little bit faster than my 200m, but honestly, I will take the win with 19.62. You can say there can always be a better execution in the race but win is a win. It is a good progress that I have made the entire season. We have got a few more races to go and we will see what happens with that. I did not really have to do too much to try to get it, so I know there is a lot left. This year is definitely a stepping stone for next year, so we are working on small things so that when we get into the Olympics or the world championships, we execute at the right time.

Men’s 800m

Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi won the non-Diamond League men’s 800m in a world-leading 1:41.76. The Kenyan held off Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati, who finished just 0.07 seconds behind in 1:41.83. Slimane Moula was third in 1:43.52, followed by Jake Wightman (1:43.76), Gabriel Tual (1:43.89) and Wycliffe Kinyamal (1:44.25).

Emmanuel Wanyonyi: ”The time was amazing. The race was good. The weather conditions were good too. I could go out and play, my body was responding to run fast. But before the start of the race. I had a big problem with my stomach. I though that maybe I cannot go to finish the race well. But I just got here to win. Just to try to run fast, to run my own race. This result shows that my body is coming up. And I am so happy to be here with this great crowds. I give the atmosphere 200 per cent. And when I see the world records being broken, I know my time will come. There is time for everything.

**Men’s javelin throw: **

This year’s Commonwealth Games champion Rumesh Pathirage threw 92.07m in the sixth round to win the men’s javelin throw. Pathirage produced his second throw beyond the 92 metres after his PB of 92.62m in Rome. Anderson Peters set his season’s best with 86.93m to finish second ahead of Dawid Wegner from Poland, who produced his best throw of the season with 85.16m. 

Rumesh Pathirage: ”This season has been fantastic and today, I am very proud of my result. I enjoyed the crowd so much and I have to say thank you for cheering and clapping for us. I was trying for the PB but missed it this time. Technically, everything felt good but I had a little bit of a headache before the competition, so it affected me a bit. Now, Brussels and some more competitions, I keep myself busy.

Women’s high jump

World champion Nicola Olyslagers cleared 2.02m on her second attempt to win the women’s high jump at Weltklasse Zürich for the second consecutive year. The Australian, who won last year’s Diamond League Final at Sechseläutenplatz, then made three unsuccessful attempts at 2.05m. Iryna Gerashchenko equalled her personal best of 2.00m to finish second, while Montenegro’s Marija Vuković matched her PB of 1.98m in third. Lamara Distin and Yaroslava Mahuchikh shared fourth at 1.96m, with Eleanor Patterson sixth on countback at the same height.

Nicola Olyslagers: ”In Poland, with 1.96m on Sunday, it took me some time to reflect. And the new run-up I worked on all year, I decided it does not work. So, within four days, I had to try and relearn in my head what I did last year to jump 204 here. When I felt the track, I knew it was the same feeling as last year in the street meet. I felt like even if I fail tonight and do not clear the bar, it does not matter. I thank god for that contentment because it gave me great confidence to try things. After I cleared the 2 meters with first attempt, I knew I was in shape. So I was very happy with the 2.02m and the 2.05m were one of my best attempts at that height. It was amazing”

Men’s long jump: 

Olympic champion and four-time European gold medallist Miltiadis Tentoglou opened with 8.25m in the first round. The Greek athlete extended his lead to 8.45m in the fourth round. Jamaica’s Tajay Gayle came very close by jumping 8.43m in the fifth round to take second place. His compatriot Wayne Pinnock and Cuba’s Jorge Hodelin leapt to 8.33m and 8.32m respectively. Bozhidar Saraboyukov finished fifth with 8.16m ahead of European silver medallist Simon Ehammer (8.14m). 

Miltiadis Tentoglou:”I am the winner, that was the most important. But I wanted to jump more because my fouls were very close jumps and they were very close or even more than 8.50m. I could have jumped better because there were great conditions, ideal conditions for me, warm. And you saw that everybody was jumping very far. So at the end of the day, I am ok, I am satisfied. I admit that I wanted to jump 8.50m or more. I hope that it could come at the Ultimate Championships because I need warm weather and we know that in Brussels maybe this will not be the case. So let´s see what could happen at the Ultimate Championships.

Women’s pole vault city event at Zürich Main Station

Weltklasse Zürich began on Wednesday afternoon with a thrilling women’s pole vault competition inside the iconic Wanner Hall at Zürich Main Station. Approximately 3,000 spectators watched a field featuring six of the world’s top 10-ranked athletes.

Twenty-one-year-old American rising star Hana Moll confirmed her extraordinary form by winning in Zurich with a personal best of 4.90m, improving her previous personal record of 4.88m set last January in Seattle by two centimeters. This victory completed a Swiss double for Moll, marking her second consecutive win in the country following her success in Lausanne last Friday, where she cleared 4.84m.

During her career, Moll won the World Under-20 title in Cali in 2022, as well as the NCAA indoor title in 2024 (4.60m) and the outdoor title in 2025 (4.79m).

Moll had a difficult start to the competition, requiring three attempts to clear both 4.50m and 4.65m. However, the American found her rhythm, clearing 4.75m on her first attempt and 4.85m on her second, before sealing the victory by clearing 4.90m on her very first attempt.

Hana Moll: "I think I have to attribute my performance and my personal best to this extraordinary environment. This is the most fantastic crowd I have ever competed in front of. I am really happy with how the season has gone."

Swiss crowd favorite Angelica Moser cleared 4.85m on her second attempt to finish second. This result repeated her second-place finish from Lausanne, where she had cleared 4.74m. Moser, the European indoor champion from Toruń, previously cleared 4.50m and 4.65m on her first attempts and 4.75m on her second. 

Angelica Moser: "The result is fantastic. It is the second-highest mark I have ever cleared. After the European Championships, my energy had dropped a bit, but the crowd helped me tremendously by passing on a ton of energy. Weltklasse Zürich is one of my favorite competitions, though I also love championships. Vaulting here in the train station is truly special; the atmosphere is fantastic and it's a lot of fun. In the end, I used a pole that I had never used before at this height. I am extremely satisfied."

US pole vaulters Sandi Morris and Katie Moon finished tied for third place with a height of 4.75m. Morris maintained a perfect scorecard by clearing every height up to 4.75m on her first attempt. After two failures at 4.85m, she opted to pass directly to 4.90m for her final jump, where she only narrowly brushed the bar. 

Slovenia's Tina Šutej cleared 4.75m on her first attempt but finished fifth due to an earlier miss at 4.65m.

This victory officially qualified Moll for the Wanda Diamond League Final in Brussels next week. Joining her in securing qualification were Moser, Katie Moon, Tina Šutej, and Imogen Ayris.

Men’s 1500m

Olympic champion Cole Hocker won the men’s 1500m in 3:31.71, holding off Kenyan world U20 record-holder Phanuel Kipkosgei Koech (3:31.84) and Olympic bronze medallist Yared Nuguse (3:31.85). Anass Essayi finished fourth in 3:32.05, one place ahead of European 5000m champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen (3:32.16).

**Women’s 3000 metres steeplechase: **

Faith Cherotich won the women’s 3000 metres steeplechase in 8:55.82. Doris Lemngole broke the 9 minutes barrier with a PB of 8:55.94. Peruth Chemutai from Uganda also dipped under the 9 minutes with 8:58.28. Lexy Halladay from the USA finished fourth with 9:11.10. 

Men’s 3000 metres

Parker Wolfe won the men’s 3000m in 7:27.43, smashing Saïd Aouita’s long-standing meeting record and claiming his second Diamond League victory of the season. Graham Blanks completed a US one-two with a personal best of 7:27.92, edging Cameron Myers (7:27.97). Egide Ntakarutimana improved his PB to 7:28.13, ahead of Biniam Mehary (7:28.18) and Ky Robinson (7:29.13).

Men’s shot put

Jordan Geist set a personal best of 22.53m in the third round to claim his first Diamond League victory. The American backed up that result with two more throws beyond 22 metres. Olympic bronze medallist Rajindra Campbell placed second with 22.22m, while European champion Leonardo Fabbri took third with 22.16m. Joe Kovacs (21.65m), Roger Steen (21.53m) and Tom Walsh (21.48m) completed the top six.

Jordan Geist: ”I felt I had this PB in myself. Well, we are so close to the final of the Diamond League and I guess I can keep improving. Hopefully I can get another PB in Brussels. The 22.53m throw was not perfect, it is still about the timing. We did not have big championships, so we still kind of build up. So after the Diamond League break I started very well in Silesia, came second. I felt very comfortable today. The stadium is absolutely amazing. It is my first time in this stadium, my wife is here with me. This is the perfect environment for great results. I would love to come back here next year for the Diamond League final.

Women’s 400 metres hurdles

Olympic silver medallist Anna Cockrell won the women’s 400 metres hurdles setting a meeting record and a world world lead of 52.13. Former world record holder Dalilah Muhammad completed the US double by finishing second in 53.16 holding off Rushell Clayton from Jamaica (53.17). Emma Zapletalova hit the penultimate hurdle and finished sixth in 54.07. Zapletalova’s five-race winning streak in the Diamond League came to an end. 

Men’s 110 metres hurdles

Swiss record holder Jason Joseph, European champion in Birmingham 2026, won the non-Diamond League scoring men’s 110m hurdles race improving his season’s best to 13.11 to the delight of Swiss fans. Trey Cunningham, winner at the Diamond League meeting in Rome in 13.19, placed second in 13.19 ahead of Austria’s Enzo Diessl (13.22) and world indoor silver medallist Enrique Llopis from Spain (13.35). 

Jason Joseph: ”This was an important victory for me, beating all the others. That is amazing. When I crossed the finish line the applause was so heavy. It felt louder than at my victory in Birmingham. I had hoped that I ran a sub 13, I would have loved to get a new PB. Doing the victory lap in Zurich is always top, the lap is long and I would love to give autographs to everybody asking for one, but there were too many fans. I loved the victory lap.

Men’s 400 metres

Japanese record holder Yuki Nakajima won the men’s 400 metres in 44.62 holding off Italian record holder and European 4x400 relay champion Edoardo Scotti, who improved his season’s best to 44.70. Multiple Olympic and world medallist Kirani James placed third in 44.83. ahead of Olympic 4x400 relay champion Vernon Norwood (44.92). 

Yuki Nakajima: ”I was so confident. In June I got injured and had to take a two-month break. Now I rebuilt my form. I ran a 200m PB in Japan and have a great execution and capability. My first 200m are always a bit slow because I lack speed, but then I come strong on the last 200m. This is my first time in Zurich, I have always wanted to come to this competition. I enjoyed to interact with the fans a lot. This atmosphere is crazy. Everybody is fanatic about track and field, it reminds me of the world championships in Tokyo. I felt the same vibes here today. My mum is from Japan and my dad from Nigeria. I train in Japan and also at UCLA.

Women’s 200 metres

Fabienne Hoenke from Switzerland, fourth in the 200 metres and silver medallist with the 4x100 relay, won the women’s 200 metres in 22.53 ahead of 2024 world under 20 silver medallist Torrie Lewis from Australia (22.66) and Spanish record holder Jael Bestue (22.74).  

Women’s 1500 metres

Italian indoor 1500m and 3000m champion Ludovica Cavalli won the non-Diamond League women’s 1500 metres race in 4:03.27 ahead of 2025 world indoor finalist Heather Maclean from the USA (4:03.57) and Marta Garcia from Spain (4:03.86).

• SEE FULL RESULTS HERE
• WATCH VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS