Jess Hull has smashed the women's world record in the 2000 metres at the Monaco Diamond League meeting with a display that reaffirms her as a genuine Olympic medal contender.
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The 27-year-old New South Wales middle and long distance star clocked 5 minutes 19.70 seconds, going it alone in what is, admittedly, a rarely-contested distance over five laps on Friday evening.
Yet her brilliant solo effort, set up by pacemakers, still destroyed the previous mark of 5:21.56 set by Burundi's Francine Niyonsaba three years ago.
"It was incredible. When I was on my own on the last lap, everyone was cheering for me," said a thrilled Hull, who was pursued by the moving trackside light that indicated she was inside record pace.
"I was just looking at the lights, hoping they wouldn't catch me.
"There are for sure some women who can run that 5:19, but for now I have my place in the history books. I ran hard for this record, I worked extremely hard for this."
Her first victory in the prestigious Diamond League series came just five days after she also obliterated her personal best by five seconds in the 1500 metres in Paris to clock an Australian and Oceanian mark of 3:50.83 in the metric mile behind Kenyan great Faith Kipyegon, who set a new world record.
Hull's performance in the French capital rocketed her to fifth in the all-time list, and becoming a world record holder will boost her even more going into the Paris Games, which begin in two weeks.
"I definitely felt the Paris race all week in my legs. So today the goal was just to be strong, even if my legs were very heavy. I ran at a different pace and level of fatigue that I have never been at before," said Hull.
Australian Associated Press
