US’ Masai Russell breaks Amusan’s world record in women’s 100m hurdles

Masai Russell of the US has broken Tobi Amusan’s world record in the women’s 100 meters hurdles. The 26-year-old American clocked 12.09 seconds at the Zurich Diamond League on Thursday to set a new world record. She surpassed the 12.12 seconds achieved by Amusan at the World Athletics Championships in 2022. Amusan also finished second behind Russell in the race in Zurich, clocking 12.23 seconds — her season’s best. Russell, the Olympic champion, had been threatening the world record for a few months. Her closest finish until now was 12.14 seconds at the Xiamen Diamond League in May. Advertisement Amusan’s world record stood for four years after she became the first Nigerian to achieve the feat in athletics. She set the record in her semi-final race at the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon. She had followed the performance with an even better 12.06-second finish in the final, but an illegal wind of 2.5 metres per second rendered the time untenable for records. On that night, she also became the first Nigerian to win a world title in athletics. Despite winning three consecutive Diamond League titles, Amusan has struggled to replicate the form from the world-beating campaign. She recently finished third in the event’s final at the 2026 Commonwealth Games. Advertisement She is billed to face Russell again this season in the Diamond League final in Brussels in early September.