Kerr and Battocletti take the 3000 m titles in Toruń; Ehammer breaks a 14-year-old record

Saturday in Toruń belonged to the 3000 m and to a Swiss decathlete. Josh Kerr won the men's race in 7:35.56, the second-fastest time in the history of the championships behind Haile Gebrselassie's 7:34.71 from 1997, and his third global title. Cole Hocker led the first kilometre in 2:38.5 before Ethiopia's Addisu Yihune took it on through 2000 m in 5:10.57. Kerr went past Yihune just after the bell and ran the last lap in 26.4. Hocker closed to 7:35.70 for silver, and France's Yann Schrub was a hundredth behind him in 7:35.71. He regained the title he won in Glasgow two years ago.

The women's race was the opposite kind. Slow and tactical through a 3:15 first kilometre, it came down to Nadia Battocletti and Jessica Hull at the front with four laps left. Hull led at the bell; Battocletti went past on the outside before the last bend and won in 8:57.64, her first global title on any surface and Italy's first in the women's 3000 m. Emily Mackay of the United States caught Hull on the line for silver, 8:58.12 to 8:58.18. Battocletti ran her last kilometre in 2:40.9.

Simon Ehammer finished the heptathlon on 6,670 points, a world record, 25 points better than Ashton Eaton's 2012 mark. He ran 7.52 for the 60 m hurdles, the fastest ever inside a heptathlon, and closed with a 2:41.04 personal best over 1000 m. Mondo Duplantis won a fourth straight world indoor pole vault title with a championship record 6.25 m, and for the first time three men cleared six metres in one indoor competition: Emmanouil Karalis 6.05, Kurtis Marschall 6.00.

Christopher Morales Williams of Canada won the 400 m in 44.76, a championship record. A loud night in a small town.

Sources: World Athletics; RunBlogRun.