Record-Breaking Performance

American athlete Masai Russell has achieved a monumental feat by setting a new world record in the 100m hurdles. She completed the race in 12.09 seconds during the Diamond League meet in Zurich, Switzerland. This record shaves off three hundredths of a second from the previous world record established by Nigerian athlete Tobi Amusan at the 2022 World Championships.

Competitive Race

Tobi Amusan finished as the runner-up in the Zurich race, clocking in at 12.23 seconds. Russell, who hails from Washington, D.C., is 26 years old and has previously run the second and third fastest times in history. Her timings were 12.14 seconds in May 2026 and 12.17 seconds in May 2025. Additionally, she holds the joint fourth-fastest time of 12.19 seconds set in August 2025.

Following her victory, Russell made a shushing gesture, revealing, “I see what people say online… People were like, ‘Masai’s PB by the end of her career’s going to be 12.14.’ I bookmarked that. I can’t wait to quote-tweet that because I’m just like, y’all really doubted me? Every time y’all doubt me I just show y’all that I’m not like anybody else.”

No Wind Assistance

Russell’s world record performance was accomplished with zero wind assistance, enhancing the achievement’s significance. Although Amusan holds the fastest time ever recorded — 12.06 seconds at the 2022 World Championships — her performance benefited from a 2.5 meter/second tailwind, which exceeds the permissible limit for record eligibility.

Reflecting on her record accomplishment, Russell pondered, “If we get a 1.9 wind behind my back, that could have been a sub-12 race. Everything that I’ve said that I wanted to do has come into fruition, so why not say I think I can be the first one to run sub-12?”

Historic Achievement

Russell’s triumph makes her the first woman to combine Olympic gold with a world record in the 100m hurdles since Bulgarian athlete Yordanka Donkova, who won Olympic gold in 1988 and held the world record until 2016. In 2016, American Keni Harrison broke Donkova’s record.

Russell and Harrison remain the only American women to have held the 100m hurdles world record. Ja’Kobe Tharp is the only American man to hold a world record in an individual running event included in the Olympic program.