Olympic 1500m champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen broke the world indoor 1500m record with 3:30.60 at the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais on Thursday 17 February. The Norwegian middle-distance runner opened his 2022 campaign winning at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Lievin.

Following the pacemakers, Ingebrigtsen, 21, passed through the 1000m in 2:20.98 and closed last lap in 27.57 to outkick Ethiopian Samuel Tefera, the former world record-holder, who finished second in 3:33.70.

Ignacio Fontes crossed the line in third place with a Spain’s lead of 3:37.39, while his fellow countryman Saúl Ordóñez set a personal best of 3:37.99 in fourth, earning the World Indoor Championship standard.

In the women’s mile, Esther Guerrero broke a 24-year-old Spanish record with 4:28.54 to finish fifth in a race won by Ethiopian Gudaf Tsegay with a meeting record of 4:21.72.

The former Spanish record was set by Maite Zuñiga also in Liévin, but in 1998, with 4:33.06.

Spain’s next greatest moment of the meet was the victory of Mariano García in the 800m. The national record-holder and world leader clinched his second World Indoor Tour Gold win of the season with a hard last lap-kick that Great Britain’s Elliot Giles couldn’t respond.

With this 1:46.29 win, García becomes the World Indoor Tour Gold series leader with 20 points, ahead of Giles and United States’ Bryce Hoppel (both 17).

Fellow Spaniard Adrián Ben finished fifth in the 800m B race with 1:47.89.

In the women’s long jump, Spain’s Fátima Diame set a 6.64m personal best to place second, just two centimeters ahead of her fellow countrywoman heptathlete María Vicente, who ended in third position. Double world indoor triple jump champion Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela won the contest with a PB of 6.81m.

The 21-year-old Enrique Llopis of Spain placed fourth in the 60m hurdles final with 7.62, just behind world indoor record holder Grant Holloway, triple world indoor medalist Pascal Martinot-Lagarde, and current World Indoor Championship runner-up Jarret Eaton.

United States’ Grant Holloway set a world leading time of 7.35 in his way to victory, extending a 60m hurdles winning streak that started in 2014.

Spanish 1500, 3000 and 5000m record-holder Mohamed Katir was seventh in the 3000m with a 7:36.62 season opener.

Six world leading marks were set in Liévin:

  • Men’s 1500m – Jakob Ingebrigtsen (Norway) – 3:30.60 (world record)
  • Men’s 60m hurdles – Grant Holloway (United States) – 7.35
  • Men’s triple jump – Lázaro Martínez (Cuba) – 17.21m
  • Women’s 800m – Natoya Goule (Jamaica) – 1:58.46
  • Women’s 3000m – Dawit Seyaum (Ethiopia) – 8:23.24
  • Women’s pole vault – Anzhelika Sidorova (ANA) – 4.85m