Audrey Werro Wins Lausanne 800m but Falls Short of Jarmila Kratochvílová’s World Record

Audrey Werro Smashes Meeting Record in Lausanne

Audrey Werro delivered a stellar performance at the Liga Diamante de Lausana meeting in Lausanne, securing victory in the women’s 800 meters with a time of 1:55.33 at the Stade Olympique de la Pontaise, according to reports from international sports agencies. The 22-year-old Swiss athlete, who also claimed the European title earlier this year and a World Indoor silver medal, thrilled her home crowd by setting a new meeting record, though she fell short of her stated ambition to break the long-standing world record.

A Blistering Pace and a Fierce Home Straight

The race unfolded at a blistering pace, paced initially by Dutch athlete Myrte Van der Schoot serving as the rabbit. Werro held off a fierce challenge down the home straight from the Netherlands’ Femke Bol, who crossed the finish line just eight centésimas behind in 1:55.41 to secure a national record. Ethiopia’s Saida Tsehaye took third place with a personal best of 1:56.92. Werro’s winning time of 1:55.33 eclipsed the previous meeting record of 1:55.69, which Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson established the previous year. With this triumph, Werro maintains an undefeated streak in outdoor 800-meter finals this season.

The 43-Year-Old Benchmark Remains Unbroken

Despite the swift tempo orchestrated in Lausanne, Jarmila Kratochvílová’s world record of 1:53.28—set on July 26, 1983—remains unbroken after more than four decades.

High-Caliber Showdowns Across Middle Distances and Jumps

The Lausanne meeting featured a series of high-caliber showdowns across multiple disciplines. In the men’s 800 meters, reigning world champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi of Kenya claimed victory in 1:42.19, edging Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati by twelve centésimas. In the field events, Portugal’s Pedro Pichardo won the triple jump with a leap of 17.44 meters, finishing just one centimeter ahead of Algeria’s Yasser Triki at 17.43 meters. Greek long jump star Miltiadis Tentoglou secured victory with a mark of 8.24 meters on his third attempt, denying Swiss favorite Simon Ehammer, who placed second with an 8.13-meter jump.

Fierce Javelin Clashes Light Up the Field

The men’s javelin competition delivered one of the evening’s tightest contests between world number one Rumesh Pathirage of Sri Lanka and India’s Neeraj Chopra, the Tokyo Olympic champion and 2023 world champion. Pathirage prevailed by a mere nine centimeters, throwing 88.14 meters compared to Chopra’s 88.05 meters. In the women’s javelin, Japan’s Haruka Kitaguchi took the top spot with a throw of 64.90 meters, outdistancing Colombia’s Flor Denis Hurtado, who recorded 64.29 meters.

Record-Breaking Sprints and Track Highlights

Additional highlights on the track included Bahrain’s Winfred Yavi capturing the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase in 9:00.04 to set a new meeting record. Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo claimed the men’s 200-meter dash in 19.87 seconds, while Slovakia’s Emma Zapletalova won the 400-meter hurdles in 52.41 seconds. In other sprint and field events, American athletes Kayla White won the 200 meters in 22.18 seconds, Masai Russell took the 100-meter hurdles in 12.27 seconds with a meeting record, and Hana Moll cleared 4.84 meters to win the women’s pole vault.