Andre De Grasse left behind at Prefontaine Classic

Canadian sprinter Andre De Grasse struggled in his first major test of the season, finishing last in the Eugene Diamond League meet. But Canadian distance runners Mohammed Ahmed and Genevieve Lalonde ran the races of their lives.

In a showdown featuring many prospective finalists for the Olympic men's 100 metres, the Eugene, Ore., meet was billed as a chance to see how De Grasse stacks up against American stars Justin Gatlin and Tyson Gay, as well as Jamaica's Asafa Powell. 

Gatlin took the win, rather convincingly, in a wind-aided 9.88 seconds. Powell followed in 9.94, with Gay third in 9.98. De Grasse was slower out of the blocks, finishing last in 10.05.

After the race, there was a report that some of the runners may not have heard the starting gun.

​The Prefontaine Classic is the only North American stop on the Diamond League circuit.

The most impressive performance by a Canadian, however, was from Mohammed Ahmed of St. Catharines, Ont., in the men's 5,000. Ahmed finished third in 13:01.74, destroying his previous national record of 13:10.00, set in Brussels in 2015.

Muktar Edris of Ethiopia won the race in 12:59.43, the fastest time in the world this year. Cam Levins of Black Creek, B.C., was 14th in 13:26.79.

Other notable results:

• Canadian Shawn Barber finished second in the pole vault, clearing 5.81 metres. It was the same height that winner Renaud Lavillenie made, but the French vaulter had fewer misses.
• The women's 3,000 steeplechase featured a rare sub-9 performance as Ruth Jebet of Bahrain won the race in 8:59.97. Genevieve Lalonde or Moncton, N.B., was 10th in 9:32.17, breaking the Canadian record.
• Sheila Reid of Newmarket, Ont., was ninth in the women's 1,500 in 4:03.57.