That shattered the mark of 38.16 held by the home athlete who recently announced her retirement, double world 400m hurdles champion Zuzana Hejnova - who was honoured earlier in this World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting in the Czech Republic.

Two years ago Bol had run this event in 38.55, and so the world best was a legitimate target - but it was clear that she had excelled her expectations once she glimpsed the digital trackside clock.

"I was crazy surprised," said Bol, still gasping with lactic.

"I was hoping to run 37 here and I hit two hurdles.

"I knew I was fit, but competition is where you see where you really are."

It augurs well for this year's World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon.

Ethiopia’s Olympic silver medallist Lamecha Girma lived up to his billing as headline athlete in the men’s 3,000m steeplechase as he won in the fastest time recorded so far this season, 7min 58.68sec, a personal best by almost three seconds and almost 11 seconds faster than the previous best time of the season, 8:09.66, run by the Moroccan who beat him to the Tokyo 2020 title, Soufiane El Bakkali.

Such was the smoothness of his action that it seemed as if the run was without effort - until the 21-year-old from Assela came into the finishing straight with a grimace as he pushed to the line.

Reece Prescod, under home fire recently after voicing support for his fellow British sprinter C J Ujah, whose positive doping test at last year’s Olympics cost the 4x100m relay team their silver medals, had a happier headline today as he won the 100m in 9.93sec.

That time, run into a headwind of 1.2 metres per second, proved beyond a classy field in which Jamaica’s 2011 world champion Yohan Blake took second place in 10.05, with Britain’s Zharnel Hughes - one of the quartet that lost a medal - third in the same time.

South Africa’s Commonwealth champion Akani Simbine was fourth in 10.06.

Meanwhile Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, who ran the anchor leg for the British Olympic sprint relay team, won the B race in 10.10.

Joint Olympic men’s high jump champion Gianmarco Tamberi of Italy, the right side of his moustache and beard shaven for competitive action as of old, cleared 2.30m for the first time this season to earn his season’s first win of note, working the enthusiastic crowd - also as of old.

The women’s 100m hurdles went, as expected, to Puerto Rico’s Olympic champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, who overcame a hesitant start to clock 12.56sec, finishing strongly to overtake world champion Nia Ali of the United States, who eventually finished third in 12.69 behind Poland’s Pia Skrzyszowska, who clocked 12.65.

Grenada’s world javelin champion Anderson Peters earned a convincing victory over a field that included the Czech athlete with whom he battled so mightily in the opening Wanda Diamond League meeting of the season in Doha.

Peters, whose Olympic ambitions were undermined by a knee injury, produced a final round effort of 93.08m in Doha with a blustering tailwind, an effort that took him to fifth on the all-time list.

The conditions were different here, but an estimable 87.88m opener from Peters proved to be the best of the competition, although he could have won with all four of his valid efforts.

Vadlejch could not find the Doha inspiration, finishing fourth on 82.38m.

Second place went to Trinidad and Tobago’s London 2012 champion Keshorn Walcott on 84.47m, with Germany’s Julian Weber finishing third on 83.92m.

World champion Joe Kovacs of the United States won the men’s shot put with 22.25 metres, ahead of former world champion Tom Walsh of New Zealand, who had a best of 21.68m.

Aminatou Seyni of Nigeria won the women’s 200m in a national record of 22.21 as with Allyson Felix, the 36-year-old multiple world and Olympic champion from the United States who is retiring this season finishing second in 22.78 - just 0.03 slower than her winning time in her only previous race on this track in 2014.

"It was good to come here for one last time and have some fun racing," Felix said.

"There are a lot of mixed emotions but I’m so grateful for all my time on the track."

The women’s 400m was won from lane eight by Poland’s Natalia Kaczmarek, who was delighted with her time of 50.16, the fifth best recorded this year.

Kenya’s 17-year-old Emmanuel Wanyonyi, last year’s world under-20 champion, earned victory in the 800m in 1:44.15, with Algeria’s Slimane Moula second in 1:44.19.

Britain’s Max Burgin, returning to the scene of his European under-20 800m record of 1:44.14 a year ago, his most recent competitive performance due to injury, finished third in 1:44.54 with London 2012 silver medallist Nijel Amos of Botswana fifth in 1:44.92.

Alexander Ogando of the Dominican Republic won the men’s 400m in 45.47, holding off Olympic finalist Liemarvin Bonevacia of The Netherlands, who clocked 45.55.

Canada’s Jerome Blake won the concluding men’s 200m in 20.14, while Maykel Masso of Cuba won the men’s long jump in 8.14m.