Local star Soufiane El Bakkali wins epic 3000m steeplechase battle with Lamecha Girma, while British duo Jake Wightman and Heyward dominate 1500m

Soufiane El Bakkali, the Olympic 3000m steeplechase champion from Morocco, held off Ethiopian Lamecha Girma in a thrilling race in front of his home crowd at the Diamond League in Rabat on Sunday (June 5).

The 26-year-old had the pressure of performing in front of the partisan crowd in the final event of the night and was trailing Girma through the bell.

But he hit the front down the back straight and during a pulsating final lap he held off the Ethiopian to clock 7:58.28 as Girma also broke eight minutes with 7:59.24.

An enthusiastic crowd rose to its feet as Rabat celebrated the return of Diamond League athletics. The planned meetings in the city were cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid pandemic so this signalled a return after a three-year hiatus.

There was a brilliant British one-two in the men’s 1500m with Jake Wightman out-kicking Jake Heyward as the duo clocked 3:32.62 and 3:33.54 respectively.

After pacemaker Alberto Guerrero passed 800m in 1:53.40, Heyward found himself in pole position when Guerrero dropped out at 1000m. As he led down the back straight Heyward found his rivals bunching up a little behind him but Wightman surged into the lead at 200m and held a small lead from Heyward coming into the home straight before kicking clear to win convincingly.

“I am super happy for this win,” said Wightman. “This is my first time here and both the crowd and the weather are amazing. I really enjoyed it. My goal now is to achieve one of the top three national positions to qualify to the World Championship in Oregon.”

Abdelatif Sadiki of Morocco was third in 3:33.93 with one of the main contenders, Mohamed Katir of Spain, fading to seventh in 3:34.95.

The women’s 1500m saw similar domination but this time from Ethiopia as Hirut Meshesha won in 3:57.30 with Freweyni Hailu second with 3:58.18 and Axumawit Embaye third in 3:58.80. In 10^th, Britain’s Melissa Courtney-Bryant ran 4:04.40.

Amy-Eloise Markovc was in inspired form as she nearly won the women’s 3000m in a PB of 8:40.32. Leading for much of the last lap, the British distance runner almost held on for victory but lost out to Mercy Cherono – the 2014 Commonwealth champion from Kenya – by a mere three hundredths of a second. It lifts Markovc from 16^th to 13^th on the UK all-time rankings.

In the sprints, Elaine Thompson-Herah continued her fantastic form as she cruised to an emphatic 100m victory in a meeting record of 10.83 (0.3) as Marie-Josée Ta Lou of Ivory Coast finished second with 11.04.

“This is my third time in Rabat and I’m super excited about the new meeting record of 10.83,” said Thompson-Herah. “For the next event in Rome, I’m following the same process and keeping up the same pace.”

In his season’s opener, American 200m runner Kenny Bednarek won comfortably in 20.21 (2.0).

Karsten Warholm was also making his season’s opener but the Olympic champion did not make it to the second barrier in his 400m hurdles race as he pulled up with injury.

The Norwegian world record-holder blasted away in usual style and, as he led with his left leg over the first hurdle, his right leg clipped the barrier and he pulled up a few metres later.

As Khallifah Rosser of the United States went on to win in 48.25, Warholm walked back to the start clutching an ice bag on his right hamstring as a Norwegian official and medic approached to help.

“I am very disappointed for this injury,” said Warholm. “I think it’s a hamstring tear, I will focus on treating it and come back stronger. I also feel sorry for the crowd.”

Woah. Olympic 400m hurdles champion and world record holder @kwarholm pulls up injured, holding his hamstring, at the Rabat Diamond League ??

This was his season opener and we are six weeks away from @WCHoregon22. pic.twitter.com/Nu7qOg5KDI

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) June 5, 2022

An intriguing long jump featuring Olympic champion Miltiadis Tentoglou of Greece and decathlete Simon Ehammer was won by Tentoglou with 8.27m (1.4) with Ehammer unable to replicate his 8.45m from the previous weekend’s Götzis meeting as he settled for second with 8.13 (-0.9).

On a night of disappointment for Ukraine as the nation’s football team lost 1-0 to Wales in the FIFA World Cup play-off, there was a one-two in Rabat for Ukrainian high jumpers Yaroslava Mahuchikh and Iryna Gerashchenko.

Mahuchikh cleared 1.96m with Gerashchenko clinching second with 1.93m. In fifth, Britain’s Morgan Lake jumped 1.90m.

Yaroslava Mahuchikh – Olympic high jump bronze medallist and world indoor champion – wins the high jump at Rabat Diamond League ??

The 20-year-old Ukrainian clears 1.96m while @morgan_a_lake finished fifth with 1.90m.

#RabatDL ?? pic.twitter.com/yml6xI3aQp

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) June 5, 2022

Elsewhere, Emmanuel Wanyonyi continued his impressive form with victory in the men’s 800m. Only 17, the Kenyan saw off the challenge of Nijel Amos with 1:45.47.

The women’s 800m also saw a Kenyan victory with Mary Moraa clocking 1:58.93 as Britain’s Alex Bell was sixth in 2:01.50.

Kristjan Čeh continued his fine form in the men’s discus as well as the Slovenian threw 69.68m to beat Daniel Stahl’s 67.16m as Britain’s Lawrence Okoye threw 63.42m in seventh.

Sandi Morris of the United States and Nina Kennedy of Australia both cleared 4.65m in the pole vault with Morris winning on countback as Britain’s Holly Bradshaw cleared 4.55m in fourth.

In a close women’s triple jump, Thea Lefond of Dominica jumped 14.46m to narrowly beat Shanieka Ricketts (14.43m) and Neja Filipic (14.42m).

Emma Raducanu starts her preparations for Wimbledon on the grass courts of the Nottingham Open and you can watch it live on the BBC from Monday.

At just 18, she was the youngest British women's player to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon in the Open era.

The now 19-year-old world number 12 has taken a wildcard for this year's WTA 250 event following her second-round defeat at the French Open.

The top seed is former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin, who is returning from another injury setback.

British players Dan Evans, Liam Broady and Jay Clarke will compete in the men's Challenger Tour event.

Matches will be broadcast live on BBC Red Button, BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and app.

Nottingham Open coverage schedule

All times are BST and are subject to late changes.

Monday, 6 June

11:00-20:00 - BBC Red Button, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and app.

Tuesday, 7 June

11:00-20:00 - BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and app (Red Button 11:00-19:35).

Wednesday, 8 June

11:00-20:00 - BBC Red Button, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and app.

Thursday, 9 June

11:00-20:00 - BBC Red Button, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and app.

Friday, 10 June

11:00-20:00 - BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and app (Red Button 11:00-18:50).

Saturday, 11 June

11:00-20:00 - BBC Red Button, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and app.

Sunday, 12 June

11:00-20:00 - BBC Red Button, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and app.

Further tennis events on the BBC

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Catch-up

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French Open champion Rafael Nadal says he "doesn't want to keep playing" if he continues to need anaesthetic injections to numb chronic foot pain.

The Spaniard had multiple injections during a tournament where he won a 22nd Grand Slam title on Sunday.

"It's obvious with the circumstances that I am playing, I can't and I don't want to keep going," said Nadal.

The two-time Wimbledon champion says he would not play at the All England Club, where the grass-court major starts on 27 June, if a nerve-burning treatment next week cannot solve the issue.

Nadal suffers from Mueller-Weiss syndrome - a rare degenerative condition that affects bones in the feet - and was limping at the Italian Open just 10 days before Roland Garros began.

"I have been playing with injections on the nerves to numb the foot and that's why I was able to play during these two weeks," Nadal said after his 6-3 6-3 6-0 victory over Casper Ruud.

"I have no feelings in my foot, because my doctor was able to put anaesthetic injections on the nerves. That takes out the feeling on my foot."

He added: "I'm going to be in Wimbledon if my body is ready to be in Wimbledon. That's it. Wimbledon is not a tournament that I want to miss. I think nobody wants to miss Wimbledon. I love Wimbledon.

"If I am able to play with anti-inflammatories, yes; to play with anaesthetic injections, no. I don't want to put myself in that position again."

Nadal said he would soon have radiofrequency ablation - which uses heat on the nerve to quell long-term pain - but would have to consider surgery if that treatment did not provide a sufficient solution.

"If that works, I am going to keep going. If that doesn't work, then it is going to be another story," he said.

"Then I will have to ask myself if I am ready to do a major surgery that doesn't guarantee me to be able to be competitive again and could take a long time to be back."

Injections 'only chance' to let Nadal play in Paris

Last year, Nadal feared his career was over because of the condition and cut short his season last year, including missing Wimbledon and the US Open, to deal with the problem.

A stress fracture of the rib also caused him to miss two months of the season shortly after his 21st major win at the Australian Open.

"As everyone knows in the world of tennis, my preparation was not ideal," Nadal said.

"But Roland Garros is Roland Garros. Everybody knows how much this tournament means to me, so I wanted to keep trying and to give myself a chance here.

"That's was the only way to give myself a chance here. So I did it."

Speaking on court, Nadal said he never thought he would still be competing at the highest level at his age.

"I never believed I would be here at 36, playing in the most important court of my career one more time in a final," he added.

"I don't know what can happen in the future, but I'm going to keep fighting to try to keep going."

'What Nadal has achieved is super human'

Two days after his 36th birthday, Nadal has claimed back-to-back major titles for the first time since 2010 - when he won the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open in a row.

"To start the year by winning the Australian Open and French Open, it is astonishing," said former British number one Greg Rusedski, who was working as a BBC Radio 5 Live analyst for Sunday's final.

"In my generation, anything over 30 was bonus time and if you won a Slam over 30 it was a heck of an accomplishment. Now it seems the norm because of Nadal, [Roger] Federer and [Novak] Djokovic.

"When we first see Nadal come on the scene here in 2005, when he won for the first time, most of us thought he would be retired by the age of 27 or 28 with the physicality he plays with.

"We didn't think he would be capable to achieve what he has achieved. What he has achieved is super human.

"We will never see anybody in our lifetime achieve what he has achieved on a clay court. It is not possible."

'Statue is not enough' - tennis and sporting world hail Nadal

Nadal already has a statue outside Court Philippe Chatrier - the site of his French Open wins - but Croatian former player Ivan Ljubicic said the stadium should be renamed.

Nadal's achievements were also recognised by Spanish football club Real Madrid - who Nadal supports - and India cricket great Sachin Tendulkar.

Rafael Nadal reclaimed his crown as the king of the French Open, winning a record-extending 14th title by beating Norway's Casper Ruud in straight sets.

He moves two ahead of his great rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

Nadal, who lost to Djokovic in the semi-finals last year, has won 112 of his 115 matches on the Paris clay.

After also winning the Australian Open in January, Nadal has claimed back-to-back major titles for the first time since 2010 - when he won the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open in a row.

Two days after his 36th birthday, Nadal becomes the oldest French Open men's singles champion and surpasses fellow Spaniard Andres Gimeno, who won aged 34 in 1972.

The left-hander dropped his racquet to the court in amazement after taking his second match point to win in two hours and 18 minutes.

Nadal's achievements are even more impressive in the context of the physical issues that have hampered him in recent times.

At the end of last year the former world number one thought he would have to retire because of a chronic foot problem and was troubled by the issue at the Italian Open earlier this month.

A stress fracture of the rib also caused him to miss two months of the season shortly after his 21st major win at the Australian Open.

"It takes a lot of energy to keep going. I want to say 'merci, merci beaucoup'," Nadal said after lifting the Coupe des Mousquetaires.

"I don't know what will happen in the future but I will keep fighting to keep going."

Nadal far from best but still has too much quality

Ruud, 23, was making his debut in a Grand Slam final and facing Nadal for the first time in a professional match.

While fifth seed Nadal was far from his best, he had enough nous and quality to clinically see off his younger opponent.

A miscue from Ruud in the first point of the match perhaps indicated his nerves, but he could do little to prevent Nadal taking his serve for a 2-0 lead with a vicious forehand winner.

Nadal's serve has been far from impenetrable and he was broken in the next game after two double faults, which were perhaps indicative of the discomfort he has been feeling with his long-standing foot problem.

But he re-established his lead in the fourth game when Ruud's groundstrokes - a wide backhand, even wider forehand and a poor contact - let him down.

Nadal, often targeting his opponent's backhand and then forcing him into mistakes on his forehand, held his serve to take the opening set in 48 minutes.

Nadal had won 100 of the 101 previous matches at Roland Garros where he had won the opening set, with last year's semi-final defeat by Djokovic being the only exception.

More pressure came on the Ruud serve in the opening game of the second set, saving three break points to hold.

That allowed him to then move 3-1 ahead when Nadal produced a terrible service game, although Ruud brilliantly constructed a point for 0-40, and hit a double fault on the first break point.

Nadal instantly broke back, patiently pummelling Ruud on the baseline and punching the air when a forehand went long.

Like in the first set, Ruud could not follow up a break with a hold and lost his serve again for 4-3 when a lob went long.

After saving three set points, he produced a double fault on the fourth to hand over a two-set lead.

Nobody had ever beaten Nadal at Roland Garros from that position in 90 attempts, with few even taking him to a fourth.

That never looked likely with Ruud's confidence dropping further and Nadal ruthlessly wrapping up the third set in just 30 minutes.

Ruud not Nadal's' 'first victim'

Like so many of the younger players on the tours, Ruud classes Nadal as an idol and watched the Spaniard's 2013 victory over David Ferrer from the Chatrier stands.

Ruud has trained at Nadal's academy in Majorca since he was a teenager and has modelled much of his game on him.

Ruud, who will rise to a career-high world number six on Monday, has enjoyed more success on the clay than other surfaces and leads the ATP Tour for total wins (66), titles (seven) and finals (eight) on clay since 2020.

While they have trained together many times, the real thing proved as difficult as Ruud feared.

After his semi-final win over Marin Cilic, Ruud said facing Nadal in a French Open final was the "greatest challenge" in men's tennis and said he would have to play his "best ever tennis" to win.

But the hallmarks of his game - his aggressiveness from the baseline and ability to unleash his forehand - were missing.

"We know you're a great champion and I got to feel what it is like to play against you in a final. I am not the first victim," Ruud told Nadal in his runners-up speech.

Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron has broken an NHL record by capturing the Selke Trophy for the fifth time in his career as the NHL's best defensive forward.

Bergeron, 36, was named on 194 of 195 ballots submitted by the Professional Hockey Writers Association and placed first on 160 of those ballots. Calgary Flames forward Elias Lindholm placed second (21 first-place ballots) while Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (10 first-place votes) was third.

The win moved Bergeron past Hall of Fame forward Bob Gainey of the Montreal Canadiens, with whom he was tied with four Selke wins. Bergeron previously won the award in 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2017.

This was also the 11th consecutive season Bergeron was named a finalist for the award, which set another NHL record. He had been tied with Wayne Gretzky, who was a Hart Trophy finalist for 10 straight seasons.

Bergeron led the NHL in faceoff wins for the seventh time in his career, winning 61.9% of his draws. He had 25 goals and 40 assists in 73 games for the Bruins this season.

Bergeron, who does not have a contract for next season, has played all 18 of his NHL seasons in Boston.

Here's how you can access live streams to Golf Channel's coverage this week, including those on Peacock. Click on the link for direct access to that event (all times ET).

You will also notice QR codes during Golf Channel and NBC Sports’ digital and TV coverage. If you see one pop up on your screen, open the camera app on your mobile device and hover over the code. The camera app will automatically read the code and take you to this page for the weekly rundown or directly to the stream being promoted on coverage.

Thursday

7AM-Noon: Volvo Car Scandinavian Mixed, Round 1 (DP World Tour)

Noon-2PM: BMW Charity Pro-Am, Round 1 (Korn Ferry Tour)

3-6PM: RBC Canadian Open, Round 1 (PGA Tour)

Friday

7AM-Noon: Volvo Car Scandinavian Mixed, Round 2 (DP World Tour)

9:30AM-12:30PM: Curtis Cup, Day 1 foursomes (USGA)

Noon-3PM: ShopRite LPGA Classic, Round 1 (LPGA)

2:30-5:30M (Peacock): Curtis Cup, Day 1 fourballs (USGA)

3-6PM: RBC Canadian Open, Round 2 (PGA Tour)

4:30-6:30PM: BMW Charity Pro-Am, Round 2 (Korn Ferry Tour)

TBD: American Family Insurance Championship, Round 1 (PGA Tour Champions)

Saturday

7:30AM-Noon: Volvo Car Scandinavian Mixed, Round 3 (DP World Tour)

10-11AM (Peacock): Curtis Cup, Day 2 foursomes (USGA)

11AM-1PM: Curtis Cup, Day 2 foursomes (USGA)

1-3PM: RBC Canadian Open, Round 3 (PGA Tour)

2-5PM: ShopRite LPGA Classic, Round 2 (LPGA)

4-5PM (Peacock): Curtis Cup, Day 2 fourballs (USGA)

5-7PM: Curtis Cup, Day 2 fourballs (USGA)

5-7PM: BMW Charity Pro-Am, Round 3 (Korn Ferry Tour)

TBD: American Family Insurance Championship, Round 2 (PGA Tour Champions)

Sunday

7:30AM-Noon: Volvo Car Scandinavian Mixed, Round 4 (DP World Tour)

Noon-1PM: ShopRite LPGA Classic, Round 3 (LPGA)

1-3PM: RBC Canadian Open, Round 4 (PGA Tour)

2-5PM (Peacock): Curtis Cup, Day 3 singles (USGA)

3-5PM: American Family Insurance Championship, Round 3 (PGA Tour Champions)

5-7PM: Curtis Cup, Day 3 singles (USGA)

5-7PM: BMW Charity Pro-Am, Round 4 (Korn Ferry Tour)

WINSEN, Germany — Kalle Samooja finished with back-to-back birdies and shot a course-record 8-under 64 to win the European Open on Sunday.

It was his first title on the European tour.

The 34-year-old Finn’s eight birdies in the final round — including three in the last four holes — left him 6-under 282 overall as he overturned a seven-shot deficit and secured a spot at the U.S. Open.

Samooja finished two shots ahead of second-place Wil Besseling of the Netherlands (71), who had four birdies along with a double bogey and a bogey.

“It’s been a long journey, been close a few times,” Samooja told Sky Sports. “We were pretty sure it’s going to be a playoff or that we might even miss the playoff. I was just hoping to get a solo second and get a ticket to the U.S. Open but this is a little better.”

Overnight leader Victor Perez, who was seeking back-to-back victories after winning the Dutch Open last week, carded a 2-over 74 at Green Eagle Golf Courses. He birdied the 10th and 11th to move into a share of the lead, only to bogey three of the next four holes. The Frenchman tied for third with England’s Richard Mansell (70), three shots behind Samooja.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Portugal swept to an emphatic 4-0 victory over Switzerland in their UEFA Nations League clash at the Estadio Jose Alvalade in Lisbon on Sunday.

William Carvalho and Joao Cancelo were also on the scoresheet as the hosts wasted numerous opportunities to inflict more humiliation on the visitors, who suffered their biggest defeat since losing to Germany by the same scoreline in 2008.

- World Cup: Who has qualified and who is still in contention

Portugal have four points from their opening two Group A2 matches and are ahead of second-place Czech Republic on goal difference. Switzerland are on zero after back-to-back losses and are now winless in their last four encounters since they qualified for the World Cup in Qatar.

Carvalho opened the scoring when he reacted quickest to the loose ball when Ronaldo's free kick was parried, before the latter bagged a quickfire brace to extend his record tally of international goals to 117.

Ronaldo should have had a hat trick when he wasted two excellent opportunities before half-time, the first an unbelievable miss from six yards out, but it was left to Cancelo to score the fourth for Portugal in the second half.

Portugal host Czech Republic in their next fixture on Thursday, while Switzerland entertain Spain in Geneva on the same evening.

Gareth Bale confirmed he would postpone thoughts of retirement after saying that helping Wales to World Cup qualification is "what dreams are made of."

Bale, without a club following his departure as a free agent from Real Madrid last week, saw his first-half free kick against Ukraine deflect off the head of Andriy Yarmolenko to seal a 1-0 playoff victory in Cardiff to end Wales's 64-year wait to qualify for the World Cup.

- World Cup: Who has qualified and who is still in contention

Sources told ESPN that the 32-year-old had been prepared to retire from football if Wales had failed to reach Qatar.

But with their place in Group B alongside England, the United States and Iran now secure, Bale said he would shelve plans to quit.

"Maybe for a little bit!" Bale said. "The result is the greatest in Welsh football history. We're going to a World Cup!

"It means everything, what dreams are made of, we've been working towards it since I first came in here. Words can't describe how we feel at the moment.

"It's what we've been working all our careers for and to do this for the fans, the nation, ourselves and our families is an incredible achievement, and it will be something that we will be forever proud of.

"It means everything. It is the last piece of the jigsaw that we all wanted and we're going to celebrate well tonight."

Nine saves by goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey were crucial as Wales held off fierce Ukraine pressure to win and he said it was the best game he had played for his country.

"Everyone on the pitch tonight was amazing," Hennessey said. "That's the best game I've had in a Welsh shirt, I'm buzzing.

"We're a small nation, and it's great to take everyone to a World Cup."

Lionel Messi scored five goals for Argentina in a runaway 5-0 win over Estonia in a friendly in Pamplona, Spain, on Sunday.

The Paris Saint-Germain striker put his less-than-stellar club season behind him with two goals in the first half and a hat trick after the break as Argentina enjoyed an easy win over their European foes.

- World Cup: Who has qualified and who is still in contention

The victory extended Argentina's unbeaten run in all competitions to 33 matches as the team continues their preparation for the World Cup in Qatar in November.

It was Messi's second five-goal game of his career and first for Argentina -- giving him a total of 86 with the national team -- having reached the mark on March 7, 2012, with Barcelona in a match against Bayer Leverkusen.

La Albiceleste are in Group C along with Mexico, Poland and Saudi Arabia.