Diamond League: Avinash Sable finishes fifth in 3000m steeplechase in Stockholm

Mumbai, July 2 India's Commonwealth Games medallist Avinash Sable finished in the men's 3000m steeplechase event in the Stockholm Diamond League 2023 meeting in Stockholm, Sweden on Sunday.

Indian Army's Sable, who won a silver medal in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 2022, clocked 8:21.88 to finish fifth in the event behind Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco who clocked 8:09.84 to win the gold medal in the Olympic Stadium in the Swedish capital.

Gabriel Wale of Ethiopia finished second in 8:12.27 while his compatriot Abrham Sime finished third in 8:16.82.

Sable, who was ranked 14th before the start of the race, had clocked 8:17.18 to finish 10th at the Rabat leg of the Diamond League last month.

It was a slow race for Sable as he could not come anywhere close to his personal best of 8:11.20, which the 28-year-old set in Birmingham last year and is also the National Record for men's 3000m steeplechase.

A spell of rain before the start of the race too might have played a role in the poor timing.

--IANS

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