Amusan Settles for Third Place in Diamond League Season Opener

Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan finished third in the women’s 100m hurdles at the opening Diamond League meeting of the 2026 season in Shanghai on Saturday.

The world record holder crossed the line in a season’s best time of 12.41 seconds, placing behind Olympic champion Masai Russell of the United States and Bahamian world indoor champion Devynne Charlton.

Russell dominated the race, clocking a meeting record and world-leading time of 12.25 seconds to improve on her previous season’s best of 12.40 seconds. Charlton secured second place with a time of 12.38 seconds, marking one of her strongest outdoor performances.

Amusan, who still holds the world record of 12.12 seconds set in 2022, showed significant improvement from her previous season’s best of 12.84 seconds, which she achieved while winning gold at the African Senior Athletics Championships in Ghana earlier this week.

The 29-year-old Nigerian faced a highly competitive field that included reigning world champion Ditaji Kambundji of Switzerland, who finished fifth in 12.82 seconds. Jamaican pair Megan Simmonds and Ackera Nugent also competed, with Nugent taking sixth place in 12.98 seconds. Americans Tonea Marshall and Danielle Williams did not finish the race.

Amusan, a three-time Diamond League final winner, arrived in Shanghai fresh from her triumph in Accra, where she claimed the African title.