Evan Jager Wins Diamond League Steeplechase in Monaco with World Lead

By Adam Kopet, DyeStat Editor

It has been a quiet few weeks for Evan Jager since he won the USATF Outdoor Championships 3,000-meter steeplechase title June 25 in Sacramento.

That all changed Friday at the Monaco Diamond League meeting. Competing in the final track event of the day, the 3,000 steeplechase, Jager won in a world-leading 8:01.29. The time was just off his American record set three years ago in Paris.

Jager pulled away over the final lap to finish six seconds clear of the second-place finisher, Jairus Birech (8:07.68). Stanley Kebenei, who finished second behind Jager at the USATF Outdoor Championships, finished third on the day in a 10-second personal-best 8:08.30.

The pace was solid throughout the race, but not of the sort that generally leads to sub-8:00 times. Nonetheless, Jager closed hard over the final two laps to make it close.

After the race, when speaking to the media, Jager talked about his goal this season is a gold medal at the IAAF World Outdoor Championships in London. The preliminary rounds of the steeplechase are scheduled for Aug. 6, giving the Olympic silver medalist 16 more days to prepare.