The 100-meter hurdles is among the most fun occasions in our sport. Dash hurdles require impeccable approach and nerves of metal. Masai Russell has each of these attributes!
This author remembers when Tobi Amusan ran her world document on the 100m hurdles. It was within the semi-finals of the Eugene World Championships, simply 4 years in the past. Many have been astounded by the 12.12 set by Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan; it was sudden. Tobi Amusan’s WR broke the 12.20 WR of Keni Harrison, run on July 22, 2016, on the London Diamond League, breaking the 28-year-old WR of Yordanka Donkova. The Bulgarian hurdler set the document in August 1988!
The 100-meter hurdles are often known as the dash hurdles. In 100 meters, the athlete should overcome 10 hurdles, 83.8cm (33 inches) excessive. The primary hurdle is 13.0 meters from the beginning (42.65 toes), with every hurdle following 8.5 meters aside (27.88 toes). The final hurdle is 10.5 meters (34.45 toes) from the end.
The technical necessities of the 100-meter hurdles are immense. This isn’t an occasion for the timid. The technical clearing of the limitations should be exact: hip mobility is vital, together with sturdy sprinting expertise and muscle-memory step patterns.
As in most occasions in our sport, the 100-meter hurdles requires a excessive studying curve, persistence, and focus.
Masai Russell had her begin in hurdling eight years in the past, when she ran 13.80. It took three years for Masai to interrupt 12 seconds, doing so with a 12.90 in 2021. Masai’s improvement is practical and can be a fantastic instance for younger athletes in search of inspiration: nothing nice comes in a single day. An enormous lesson for younger coaches to remind their younger hurdlers about: precision hurdling comes with a lot observe and requires persistence and focus.
Masai Russell ran 12.71 in 2022. In 2023, Masai set a collegiate document together with her 12.36, then acquired all the way down to 12.32.
Sprinting at one’s max pace and hurdling exactly are fraught with errors. Watching the dash hurdles is like watching NASCAR; the crashes are large, because the hurdlers get higher and higher. A small error takes one out of the medal combine, and a giant error takes one out of the race.
In 2024, Masai Russell received the U.S. Olympic Trials in 12.25. Her gold medal efficiency in Paris was accomplished in 12.33. Masai was the Olympic champion!
In 2025, Masai Russell continued her precision in hurdling and sprinting, working 12.19 on the Grand Slam collection and a wind-aided 12.17 on the Miami Grand Slam. On the Tokyo 2025 World Champs, Masai had an off day, ending fourth in 12.44. It was a shock to many, as Ditaji Kambundji received the World Out of doors title.
In 2026, Masai Russell has been on a tear. She ran 12.14 in China within the second Diamond League assembly.
At Zurich, her eleventh 100m hurdle race of the season, Masai Russell was competing with a stellar area: Ditaji Kambundji, 2025 World Champ, Tobi Amusan, 2022 World Champ.
Within the Zurich race, Masai Russell, who advised interviewers post-race that she didn’t bear in mind a lot, was almost flawless. A great begin, together with her dominating hurdling and sprinting taking management by the third hurdle, Masai Russell delivered her eleventh win in a row and the world document many have spoken of for her since 2025!
Masai Russell had a enjoyable interview with the Flotrack group on Athletes Lounge post-race. Within the combined zone, Masai advised the interviewer;
“Man, I can’t even bear in mind it. I simply knew that the beginning felt actually good, after which by the point I regarded up, I used to be crossing the road, and I used to be like, let me truly run via the road this time, and, um, yeah, see, see what the time is. So then, once I noticed 12:09, I simply knew, like, I acquired it, and I simply acquired so emotional. I used to be like, oh my gosh, like. I dreamed about this second, after which listening to the group, like, that is the most effective place I might have ever imagined to interrupt the world document, like what?”
Masai Russell is the world document holder of the 100-meter hurdles in 12.09 seconds. The Paris 2024 Olympic champion ran via the end and regarded as much as see her quick time, and he or she was rewarded, after eight years of hurdling, with an excellent world document!
(Particular because of Diamond League AG for flash quotes and combined zone interviews)
