Kent’s Dina Asher-Smith continued her build-up to Tokyo Olympics by winning the 100m at Diamond League meeting in Gateshead; she defied difficult conditions to beat highly-rated American Sha’Carri Richardson.

If Asher-Smith’s winning time of 11.35 seconds into a -3.5m/s head-wind was impressive enough, more pertinent was the pair of potential Tokyo rivals she left trailing in her wake.

Rising American star Sha’Carri Richardson, whose 10.72 seconds win at a meeting in Florida last month made her the sixth fastest woman in history, finished in second place in 11.44 secs, with world champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce back in fourth.

Asher-Smith said: “I was really happy to start my 100m season with a win. It was far from ideal conditions [but] this is good practice for staying in the moment.

“It is essential to race the best. The only way to get race-fit is to race the best in the world. These are the type of races you want to be in.”

It was precisely the kind of statement Asher-Smith desired after taking a prolonged absence from the track following her world 200m title win in Doha in 2019.