Joseph Deng wins 800m, Stewart McSweyn impresses at Birmingham

Joseph Deng showed class and poise beyond his years to win a rough-house 800m while Stewart McSweyn continued to impress as the pair broke Australian indoor records.

Joseph Deng of Australia celebrates as he wins the men's 800 Metres race during the Muller Indoor Grand Prix IAAF World Indoor Tour event at Arena Birmingham on February 16, 2019 in Birmingham, England. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)

Australia’s two Tokyo Olympic wildcards on the track, Joseph Deng and Stewart McSweyn, continue to impress on the world stage.

The pair broke Australian indoor records in Birmingham on Saturday night, Deng winning the 800m in 1min47.27sec while McSweyn finished third (3:35.10sec) in the 1500m behind a world-record breaking performance from Ethiopia’s Samuel Tefera.

All the talk leading into the Muller Indoor Grand Prix was about Yomif Kejelcha breaking the long-standing record after he came within 0.001 of the world indoor mile record last week at the Millrose Games.

But it was his compatriot Tefera who stole the show to win in 3:31.04sec — taking 0.14 off the previous record set by Hicham El Guerrouj in 1997.

King Island’s McSweyn, 23, again showed how he belongs among the world’s best, claiming third place with the Oceanian indoor record which had been set by his training partner Ryan Gregson two years earlier at the same event.

Gregson finished sixth this year in 3:37.52sec.

Stewart McSweyn showed he belongs among the world’s best.

For Deng this European trip was more a fact-finding mission given the national 800m record holder had never previously raced indoors.

But the 20-year-old showed class and poise beyond his years to win a rough-house affair which saw two runners fall shortly after the start.

Deng went to the front and was never headed to claim the national record which had been set by Ryan Foster (1:47.48) back in 2010.

McSweyn and Deng have easily been Australia’s most improved athletes over the past 12 months and will be the leading medal hopes at next year’s Tokyo Olympic Games.