- Masai Russell has broken Tobi Amusan’s 100m hurdles world record
- Russell clocked 12.09 seconds in Zurich. Amusan finished second in 12.23 seconds
American Olympic champion Masai Russell has broken Nigerian hurdler Tobi Amusan’s world record in the women’s 100m hurdles, clocking a stunning 12.09 seconds at the Weltklasse Zürich Diamond League.
Eko Hot Blog gathered that Russell’s performance on Thursday improved Amusan’s previous world record of 12.12 seconds, set at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, by three hundredths of a second.
The 26-year-old American produced the record-breaking run without a favourable wind, making the performance legal and establishing a new global benchmark in the event.
Russell, who won Olympic gold at the Paris 2024 Games, made her decisive move over the final hurdle before powering across the finish line in 12.09 seconds.
Amusan finished second in 12.23 seconds, her best time of the season, while Dutch hurdler Nadine Visser took third place in 12.34 seconds, also recording a season’s best.
Russell’s record was the latest achievement in a season that has seen her steadily close the gap on Amusan. She had already posted the second-fastest time in history when she ran 12.14 seconds at the Xiamen Diamond League in China in May.
Russell also defeated Amusan in that race, with the Nigerian finishing second in 12.28 seconds. The American subsequently maintained her strong form and continued to build momentum towards breaking the world record.
After her 12.14-second performance in Xiamen, Russell had openly expressed her belief that she would eventually surpass Amusan’s mark, saying she had been targeting the record throughout the season, Her ambition became reality in Zurich.
The new record further confirms Russell’s rapid emergence as one of the dominant forces in women’s sprint hurdling. Before Thursday’s race, her 12.14-second performance had placed her second on the all-time list, while her earlier 12.17 seconds had already established her among the fastest hurdlers in history.
For Amusan, the Zurich race ended a remarkable four-year spell as the world record holder. She shocked the athletics world in Eugene in 2022 when she ran 12.12 seconds in the semi-final, becoming the first woman to legally break the 12.2-second barrier in the event.
She later won the world title at the same championships, further cementing her status as one of Nigeria’s most successful track and field athletes.
Amusan, however, remains the fastest woman ever recorded over the distance when wind-assisted performances are included. She ran 12.06 seconds in the 2022 World Championships semi-final, but the +2.5m/s tailwind exceeded the legal limit, meaning the mark could not be recognised as a world record.
Her 12.12-second performance therefore remained the legal world record until Russell’s breakthrough in Zurich.
Russell’s 12.09 seconds, achieved under legal conditions, now gives the United States a new world record in the event and sets a fresh target for Amusan and the rest of the world’s elite hurdlers
