Norwegian sprinter Karsten Warholm broke his own European record in the 400 metres hurdles at yesterday’s Diamond League event in Stockholm, clocking a time of 46.87 seconds that was just 0.09 seconds off the world record that has stood for 28 years. 
The  24-year-old improved his previous best in the discipline by five hundredths of a second but clipped the final hurdle as he came up short of the world record of 46.78 set by American Kevin Young at the Barcelona Olympics in August 1992.
Warholm ended his day by coasting to victory in the 400m, setting a time of 45.05 on a blustery afternoon that made conditions difficult for many of the athletes on show.
Warholm and his coach Leif Olav Alnes drove from Norway in a camper van and the pair slept in the vehicle before the meet to reduce health risks due to the coronavirus.
“The perfect description of our relationship would be raw, tough love,” Warholm says.
 “I like it like this. Last year he told me I was too fat, so I replied ‘you are too fat as well’. Suddenly we both lost weight.”
World 200m champions Noah Lyles said he was stunned Warholm, who reached the 2016 Olympic semi-finals, had missed out on Young’s record.
“I’m not even surprised that @kwarholm PR’d. I’m actually more shocked he didn’t break the world record,” he tweeted. Despite Warholm’s best efforts, Kenya’s Timothy Cheruiyot put a stop to the Norwegian party in the Swedish capital by spurting away from Jakob Ingebrigtsen to win the men’s 1500m in 3:30.25, with Stewart McSweyn of Australia coming in third. 
Home favourite and world record-holder Armand Duplantis destroyed the field in the pole vault, clearing 6.01 to win the competition by a margin of 28cm from Belgium’s Ben Brothers.
That jump set the season’s best time in the pole vault and broke both the competition record and the best mark achieved at Stockholm’s Olympic Stadium, which was built for the 1912 Games. Duplantis also had three unsuccessful attempts at 6.15.
Daniel Stahl added to home success by winning the discus with a throw of 69.17 metres, while compatriot Simon Pettersson set a personal best of 67.72 to grab second place.
American Donavan Brazier held off the challenge of Canada’s Marco Arop to win the men’s 800m despite a troublesome foot, and European champion Laura Muir of Britain set a world leading time of 3:57.86 as she cruised to victory in the women’s 1500m.