Australian running champion Jessica Hull wiped more than a second from her own national 1500-metre record in a sparkling performance at Italy's Florence Diamond League on Saturday morning (AEST).
Hull's national record stood at 3:58.81 as she lined up for her second Diamond League race of the season, but the superstar from Albion Park in New South Wales unleashed a 3:57.29 to knock off 1.52 seconds.
The race was dominated in breathtaking scenes by two-time Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon, who clocked 3:49.11 in a demolition of the world record.
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The Kenyan smashed the mark of 3:50.07 set by Ethiopia's Genzebe Dibaba in 2015.
Scotland's Laura Muir finished second in the Florence race in 3:57.09 as Hull rounded out the podium, eclipsing the Australian record she had set at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Abbey Caldwell charged home in sixth in 4:01.34 as fellow Victorian Linden Hall finished 10th in 4:02.43.
Kipyegon whipped the crowd into a frenzy in her dash to the finish line, clocking 58.81 for the final lap as she streaked away from the lights on the rail marking the world record.
"I was going to say … that is Bannister-esque," said commentator Tim Hutchings, referring to Sir Roger Bannister becoming the first-ever sub-four-minute miler in Oxford on May 6, 1954.
"Breaking 3:50 for the women's 1500 metres … Remember, four minutes for the women's 1500 metres was broken many, many years ago, decades ago. The 3:50 barrier has been tantalisingly close for many, many years … And now sub-3:50 — you have to rub your eyes to look at it and take it all in. And she hasn't just broken it — she's hammered it into oblivion … 3:49.11 — that's going to keep people awake."
https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics/status/1664730259604877316
The Florence meet also saw Western Australian pole vaulter Nina Kennedy record a season's best of 4.61 metres to claim third in the women's event.
Stewart McSweyn from Tasmania's King Island finished 16th in the men's 5000 metres, posting 13:23.81.
And Sydney speedster Rohan Browning finished sixth in the men's 100 metres, registering 10.15 (0.0 wind).
The next meet on the Diamond League calendar will be hosted by Paris next Saturday morning (AEST).
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