Trayvon Bromell Runs World-Leading 9.84 In 100; Azeddine Habz Leads Parade Of Fast Times In 1,500; Josette Norris Runs Big 5,000 PR

By Oliver Hinson of DyeStat

Photos by Chiara Montesano/Diamond League AG

Beatrice Chebet and Trayvon Bromell recorded world-leading times at the Golden Gala Diamond League meeting in Rome Friday night.

Chebet stormed to the win in the women’s 5,000 meters, running 14:03.69, a Kenyan national record and the second fastest performance of all time. She took the lead around halfway through the race and put a gap on the field throughout the last six laps, closing in around 62 seconds.

“After running 14:03, a personal best and meeting record, I’m so impressed,” Chebet said. “I see (the) world record is capable and I’m going to plan for it.”

The 25-year-old has been on a tear in the last few weeks. On May 25, she ran 8:11.56 in the 3,000 meters at the Rabat Diamond League meet, putting her second on the all-time list in that event, too. Her dominance even back to last season; she hasn’t lost a track race since the 5,000 meters at the Kenyan Olympic Trials in June of 2024. 

Freweyni Hailu finished second, well behind Chebet in 14:19.33, a personal best. Nadia Battocletti finished third and broke the Italian national record with her 14:23.15 performance.

Ethiopians Birke Haylom and Gudaf Tsegay finished fourth and fifth, respectively, in 14:24.20 and 14:24.86. Tsegay currently holds the world record of 14:00.21, which she ran at the Prefontaine Classic in 2023.

Josette Andrews, meanwhile, enjoyed a breakthrough performance, finishing sixth and running 14:25.37 for an 18-second personal best and the third fastest time in American history.

Eight women went under 14:30 in this race, a feat that only 48 women have ever done, making this one of the deepest distance races of all time.

Bromell Blasts World Lead In 100

After failing to break 10 seconds in the 100 meters in 2023 and 2024, Trayvon Bromell has done so twice in the last two weeks.

Bromell ran 9.84 for the win in Rome, the fastest time in the world this year. On May 24, he ran 9.91 at the PURE Athletics Global Invitational in Clermont, Fla. 

Bromell last competed at a national championship in 2023, when he finished sixth in the 100 at the USATF Championships. He hasn’t competed at a World Championships since 2022, when he took home the bronze medal for the United States with a 9.88 performance. The 29-year-old has struggled with injuries in the last few years, but he appears to be ready to reassert himself on the global stage.

Emmanuel Eseme finished second in 9.99, followed by Ferdinand Omanyala in 10.04. A trio of Americans — Brandon Hicklin, Fred Kerley and Courtney Lindsey — finished fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively, in 10.04, 10.06 and 10.18. 

Azeddine Habz, meanwhile, led another deep distance race, winning the men’s 1,500 meters in 3:29.72. Ten of the 16 finishers recorded personal bests — the rest recorded season’s bests — and Robert Farken (Germany) and Samuel Pihlström (Sweden) broke their respective national records. 

Twelove men ran under 3:32, and Vincent Ciattei’s 3:31.69 performance — the slowest of those sub-3:32s — was the fastest 12th place finish of all time. It also puts him 15th on the world leaderboard this year.

Kenya’s Timothy Cheruiyot finished just behind Habz in 3:29.75, followed by Morocco’s Anass Essayi in 3:30.74. Farken and Pihlström were fourth and fifth, respectively, in 3:30.80 and 3:30.87.

Olympic gold medalist Quincy Hall won the men’s 400 meters in 44.22, beating South Africa’s Nene Zakithi by one hundredth of a second. Hall has only raced the 400 three times in 2025, and he’s improved substantially each time. In his last performance at the Rabat Diamond League, he clocked a 44.90 to take third.

Switzerland’s Jason Joseph won an even closer race over Cordell Tinch in the men’s 110-meter hurdles. Joseph ran 13.131, while Tinch was three thousandths of a second slower at 13.134.

Andrenette Knight led a 1-3 Jamaican finish in the women’s 400-meter hurdles, torching the field with a season’s best 53.67. Runner-up Ayomide Folorunso (Italy) finished well back in 54.21, while Rushell Clayton ran 54.31 for third. 

Anavia Battle ran 22.53 to win the women’s 200 meters, picking up her third Diamond League win in the event.

Rounding out the track events, Ireland’s Sarah Healy led five women under four minutes in the women’s 1,500 meters, running 3:59.17 and closely beating Australians Sarah Billings and Abbey Caldwell. Billings ran 3:59.24, while Caldwell ran 3:59.32; both of those performances are personal bests. 

Heather MacLean finished fourth in 3:59.71, her first sub-4:00 performance of the outdoor season. In March, MacLean ran 3:59.60 (en-route to a 4:17.01 mile) to break the indoor American record in the 1,500.

Valarie Allman Throws Meet Record In Discus

Olympic gold medalist Valarie Allman hasn’t lost in the discus since 2023, and she added another win — and a meet record for good measure — in Rome. She threw 69.21 meters, well off her world lead of 73.52 but more than enough to beat her competition. Cuba’s Yaimé Pérez took second with a throw of 66.63 meters.

Fellow American Sandi Morris won the women’s pole vault, clearing 4.80 meters on her third attempt. That performance puts her fifth on the world leaderboard.

New Zealand’s Liam Adcock recorded a massive personal best in the men’s long jump, soaring 8.34 meters to take the win over Italy’s Mattia Furlani. That performance ties him for fifth in the world this year and beats his old PB by 0.19 meters.

Korea’s Sanghyeok Woo cleared 2.32 meters, a season’s best, to win the men’s high jump.

Jamaica’s Shanieka Ricketts jumped a season’s best 14.64 meters in the women’s triple jump, taking the win in that event.