Biles, Kosgei & Gauff – a record-breaking weekend for three phenomenal sportswomen

You can’t have failed to notice a weekend of sporting brilliance – from a stunning sub two-hour marathon to hosts Japan lighting up the Rugby World Cup.

But there were three phenomenal sportswomen right at the heart of the action as well.

With a combined age of just 62, Simone Biles, Brigid Kosgei and Coco Gauff added their names to the history books.

Barack Obama said athlete Kosgei had shown a “remarkable example of humanity’s ability to endure and keep raising the bar”.

Three-time Olympic gold medallist Alexandra Raisman said she was “in awe” of gymnast Biles, while tennis legend Billie Jean King congratulated both tennis player Gauff and Biles on Twitter.

BBC Sport takes a look at a trio of stars taking their sports to new heights.

Simone Biles – America’s Golden Girl

On Sunday, Simone Biles became the most decorated gymnast in World Championships history, adding two more gold medals to her glittering haul.

The 22-year-old American moved clear of Belarusian Vitaly Scherbo with victories in the balance beam and floor in Stuttgart – taking her overall tally to 25 medals, 19 of them gold.

“This is really the best worlds performance I have ever put out,” she said after finishing her fifth World Championships with five titles across six events.

The Rio Olympics quadruple gold medallist plans to celebrate when she returns home to Texas, adding “my mom usually likes to throw a worlds party, whether I want one or not”.

Brigid Kosgei – Running into the history books

In 2003, Britain’s Paula Radcliffe set the longest-standing marathon world record for either men or women in the post-war era, running the London Marathon in two hours 15 minutes 25 seconds.

Fast forward to 2019, and Kenya’s Brigid Kosgei eclipsed Radcliffe’s 16-year-old record with a time of 2:14:04 as she retained her title at the Chicago Marathon.

Only 22 runners in the men’s race finished faster than the 25-year-old, whose time would have been a men’s world record in 1964.

Kosgei, who won last year in 2:18:35, admitted: “I am feeling good and happy because I was not expecting to run like this.”

Coco Gauff – From lucky loser to singles champion

Biles wasn’t the only American to make waves this weekend.

Compatriot Coco Gauff became the youngest player to win a WTA title in 15 years with victory over Jelena Ostapenko in the Linz Open final.

The 15-year-old – who only qualified for the main draw as a lucky loser after defeat in the final round of qualifying – won 6-3 1-6 6-2 and is set to move inside the world’s top 75, having started the season ranked well outside the top 600.

“It has been an amazing week, I hope to come back here again. I will remember this moment for the rest of my life,” said Atlanta-born Gauff.

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