Katir was second in a European record of 7:24.68, with both men running inside the mark of 7:24.90 set by Kenya’s Daniel Komen at Budapest in 1998.

The 22-year-old Ethiopian, who already has one Olympic and two world silver medals in the 3,000m steeplechase, was shadowed by Katir for the final five laps without ever giving him the chance to move past him.

"I am so happy with this result," Girma said. "I was talking about this world record attempt for the past three days. 

"My brother is my coach. He told me I had it in me and of course I believed him. I felt really good in training and it was my best form ever plus the crowd was very supportive today.

"The pacers and the Wavelight were perfect - it all clicked. I have raced here several times in this meeting. The atmosphere and the crowd never disappoint. I hope the record stays for a long time."

It was the eleventh world record to have been set at the Arena Stade Couvert since home runner Bruno Marie Rose won the European indoor 200m title in 20.36sec and it provided the highlight of this season’s fifth World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting.

Elsewhere, six athletes - Keely Hodgkinson, Jakob Ingebrigtsen, Gudaf Tsegay, Miltiadis Tentoglou, Liadagmis Povea and Katie Moon - set season’s world bests in front of an enthusiastic capacity crowd of 5,000.

Both 400m meeting records were re-written by 400m hurdles specialists as Femke Bol of The Netherlands clocked 50.20 in the women’s race and Norway’s Karsten Warholm rounded off the night with a typically barnstorming effort to clock 45.51 in the men’s race.

And there was defeat in the men’s 60m for Italy’s Olympic 100m champion Marcell Jacobs, who had to give best to an effervescent Ferdinand Omanyala of Kenya.

Ingebrigtsen, returning to the track where he set the world indoor 1500m record of 3:30.60 last year, had suspected he would not be operating in that region after missing more than a month’s training because of a viral infection.

But after working hard for a victory in 3:32.38 that took him past the 3:33.22 set by Yared Nuguse of the United States at the top of this year’s world rankings he had the look of a relieved and happy man.

"It was a tough race, but it’s good to get one race in and I am very happy with it," the 22-year-old Norwegian said. 

"So now I’m looking forward to defending my 1500 and 3,000m titles at the European Indoors."

Tsegay, as expected, was in a race of her own on the track where she had set the current world indoor 1500m record of 3:53.09 in 2021, but the Ethiopian found the going harder and had to settle for a time of 3:57.47.

Britain's Hodgkinson disposed of the challenge of Kenya’s Mary Moraa, who beat her to the Commonwealth title in Birmingham last summer, to win in 1:57.71, bettering her own world lead of 1:57.87 set in Torun seven days ago.

The 22-year-old world and Olympic silver medallist had said she was "a bit disappointed" in her time in Poland, and she looked thoughtful rather than triumphant after a victory that was effectively established as the pacemaker peeled away shortly before the 600m mark.

Moraa finished well back, but still earned a personal best of 2:00.61.

Tentoglou, Greece’s Olympic champion and world silver medallist in the men’s long jump, had his world 2023 best of 8.40m annulled earlier in the day after it was discovered he had been wearing spikes that did not conform to official measurements for the event.

He responded with a sequence of three new 2023 world-best marks, finishing on 8.41m.

The women’s triple jump produced a similar turn of events as Cuba’s Povea improved the season’s world lead of 14.64 she had managed in the opening Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe with a third-round effort of 14.81.

Omanyala, a smiling winner of his men’s 60m heat, maintained his happy mood by defeating Olympic 100m champion Marcell Jacobs in the final in a personal best of 6.54, with the Italian equalling his season’s best of 6.57 in second place ahead of Arthur Cisse of the Ivory Coast, who clocked 6.59.

Four days after reducing the Dutch record to 49.96 in Metz, Bol was in dominant form once again - but just unable to get under 50 seconds once more as she came home more than a second clear of Poland’s Anna Kielbasinska in a meeting record of 50.20.

Warholm, who opened his season with a 45.31 clocking at his home meeting in Ulsteinvik, had thoughts of bettering the European record of 45.05 he shares with East Germany’s Thomas Schoenlebe, but after passing 200m in 21.3, bang on target, he was unable to find the required pace over the second lap in what was nevertheless another highly encouraging pointer for the Olympic and world record holder’s prospects at this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Budapest.

Meanwhile Olympic, world and European men’s pole vault champion Mondo Duplantis of Sweden maintained his winning momentum in his third event of the season but cut short his activities after clearing 6.01 at his second attempt, leaving an attempt at bettering his world record of 6.21 for another day.

Katie Moon, the Olympic and world women's pole vault champion from the United States, set a 2023 world leading mark of 4.83m.

Grant Holloway’s incredible unbeaten indoor run in the 60m hurdles, stretching back to 2014, when he was 16, abides.

The double world champion from the United States, a peerless starter, was first to hurdle one once again and proceeded to win in 7.39, just 0.01 outside his current season-leading mark.