Lasitskene's streak reaches 38, Dibaba wins 22nd straight indoor race on opening night in Birmingham

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Ethiopia's Genzebe Dibaba won her third straight women's 3,000-meter gold medal Thursday at the IAAF World Indoor Championships, producing the narrowest margin of victory of any of her four career indoor titles.

As for Maria Lasitskene, the gap between the authorized neutral athlete and the rest of the field in the women's high jump just continues to grow wider.

Dibaba prevailed in 8 minutes, 45.05 seconds, the fastest winning effort of her three 3,000 championships, and she needed every bit of her closing speed to hold off Dutch star Sifan Hassan (8:45.68) and Great Britain's Laura Muir (8:45.78). Dibaba, who also captured gold in the 1,500 in 2012, joins Romania's Gabriela Szabo and fellow Ethiopian Meseret Defar as the only female athletes to win at least three straight World Indoor 3,000 titles.

Dibaba has won 22 consecutive indoor races at any distance and became the 10th athlete in World Indoor history to capture at least four gold medals.

Americans Shelby Houlihan (8:50.38) and Katie Mackey (8:56.62) finished fifth and eighth, respectively. In the 17 editions of World Indoors, the U.S. has managed one silver and five bronze medals in the women's 3,000, including a third-place finish by Shannon Rowbury in 2016 in Portland, Ore.

Lasitskene, who captured the World Indoor high jump title for Russia in 2014, cleared 6 feet, 7 inches (2.01m) to secure another gold medal and increase her winning streak to 38 consecutive meets overall, including 17 in a row indoors.

It marked the 32nd career clearance of at least 2.00 meters for Lasitskene, including the 23rd time during the streak. She is the fifth female athlete to win at least two World Indoor high jump championships.

American Vashti Cunningham, who cleared 6-5 (1.96m) to win the World Indoor title in 2016, secured silver Thursday with a 6-4 (1.93m) clearance, prevailing on fewer attempts than Italy's Alessia Trost and Great Britain's Morgan Lake. Inika McPherson finished tied for seventh for the U.S., clearing 6-0.25 (1.84m).

Cunningham became only the third U.S. high jumper to secure a pair of World Indoor medals, joining Chaunte Lowe (gold in 2012, bronze in 2010) and Charles Austin (gold in 1997, bronze in 1999).

Erik Kynard, the World Indoor high jump bronze medalist for the U.S. in 2016, placed fourth Thursday with a 7-6 (2.29m) clearance, being edged for another bronze on fewer attempts by Germany's Mateusz Przybylko.

Danil Lysenko, an authorized neutral athlete, captured gold with a 7-8.75 (2.36m) clearance to prevail against 2014 World Indoor champion Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar, who cleared 7-7.75 (2.33m). Both athletes were clean through 7-7.75, before Russia's Lysenko produced a dramatic clearance on his third attempt to win the title, earning a measure of revenge after placing second to Barshim in August at the IAAF World Outdoor Championships in London.