Denny and Griffith Capitalise on Diamond League Double in Stockholm
Published Mon 03 Jun 2024
A blockbuster weekend of Diamond League action has been capped off with two podium performances by Australians in Stockholm, as discus giant Matthew Denny and middle-distance star Georgia Griffith continued their strong international campaigns.
Celebrating his 28th birthday in style, Australian record holder Denny (Dale Stevenson) continued to produce both quality and quantity in 2024, launching to yet another Diamond League podium with a 66.75m throw for second place in the Men’s Discus.
The sixth and final stop on the reigning Diamond League champion’s international campaign before returning to Australia to prepare for the Olympic Games, Denny added the finishing touches to his overseas stint with a clutch final round throw – overtaking Olympic champion and hometown hero Daniel Stahl (SWE) for the silver.
“Competing the way I did today is really important. Whether you feel great or you don’t, or if the conditions are good or not, it’s important to step up, compete and have fun. To be the last thrower and do my best throw of the series was great,” Denny said.
“I felt bad to pip Daniel on the last throw in front of his home crowd. I could sense a bit of sadness from them which doesn’t feel great, but he respected it which is good!”
The competition was won by world record holder Mykolas Alekna (LTU) with a 68.64m effort.
Backing up her 3000m Australian record and Diamond League triumph in Oslo on Friday, Griffith (Nic Bideau) kept her form rolling in Stockholm when racing to third place in the Women’s 1500m, stopping the clock in 3:59.17 – the second sub four-minute performance of her career.
Defeated by only Olympic silver medallist Laura Muir (GBR, 3:57.99) and Edinah Jebitok (KEN, 3:58.88), Griffith made it back-to-back Diamond League podiums when riding her luck on the rails before finding running room at the top of the home straight to produce a strong finish.
“I’m still working on my timing and my kick. I think I had a little bit of a kick but I was too far off to come back, but I’m pretty happy with that. It’s my second time on the podium so I definitely will take that,” Griffith said.
“The race on Friday gave me confidence so I was in a good mindset. I’m readjusting the expectations I have for myself a little bit this season, but I still like to play it week by week.”
Fellow Australian Linden Hall (Ned Brophy-Williams) also piled on another Olympic qualifier in a time of 4:01.01 for seventh place, while Sarah Billings (Nic Bideau) rounded out the action in 12th.
After early misses at 1.90m and 1.94m in the Women’s High Jump, reigning World Indoor champion Nicola Olyslagers (Matt Horsnell) found herself under pressure at her first international outdoor appearance of 2024, choosing to pass at the bar of 1.97m at which a clearance would have been enough for silver.
Chasing the 2.00m barrier instead to keep her chances of victory alive, the high-flying Australian ultimately fell short as Ukrainian rival Yaroslava Mahuchikh returned to top form with a rare six-centimetre Diamond League victory, as Olyslagers settled for fourth place with 1.94m followed by Eleanor Patterson (Alex Stewart) in fifth with 1.90m.
Surging into contention at the bell of the Men’s 3000m, Stewart McSweyn (Nic Bideau) worked his way into the race which favoured the fast finishers. The King Island product lost ground as the field jostled for position heading into the back straight, before fighting on to claim seventh place in a time of 7:36.78 in the race won by Norway’s Narve Gilje Nordas in 7:33.49.
The results come after Friday’s Oslo Diamond League, with a recap of Australian performances available HERE.
The Diamond League series continues on July 7 in Paris.
By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 3/6/2024
