Athletics-Kejelcha goes close to world indoor mile record

Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha missed tying the world indoor mile record by one-hundredth of a second and Kenya's Michael Saruni clocked the third fastest indoor 800m of all-time as young Africans highlighted the NYRR Millrose Games in New York on Saturday. Kejelcha raced home in three minutes, 48.46 seconds as the 21-year-old almost took down Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj's 1997 world record.

Saruni won the 800m in a national record 1:43.98. Only Kenyan-born world record holder Wilson Kipketer of Denmark has run faster with times of 1:42.67 and 1:43.96 in 1997.

The 23-year-old Saruni sprinted past American Donavan Brazier in the closing straight to claim victory. Brazier beat Johnny Gray's 1992 U.S. record with a time of 1:44.41, the seventh-fastest ever. Gray had clocked 1:45.00. (Reporting by Gene Cherry in Raleigh, North Carolina, editing by Ed Osmond)