Another five titles will be decided on day three of the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25. The programme kicks off with the men’s marathon and concludes with the women’s 100m hurdles.
Barriers and battles
Seven women have run 12.30 or faster for the 100m hurdles in 2025 and five of them will be in action on day three.
The semifinals are up first, before the final closes the evening session. Jamaica’s defending champion Danielle Williams qualified quickest for the semifinals, winning her heat in 12.40. She’ll be joined in the next round by Olympic champion Masai Russell, world record-holder Tobi Amusan and the in-form Grace Stark, Nadine Visser and Ackera Nugent as they battle for places in the final and then fight for the title.
Duplantis goes for gold again
Sweden’s Mondo Duplantis has racked up a two-year unbeaten streak of 35 competitions in the pole vault and has already set three world records in 2025. The 25-year-old has won the past seven global pole vault titles and will want to add another to that haul in Tokyo, where he won his first Olympic title in 2021.
Greek record-holder Emmanouil Karalis is in the form of his life – the 6.08m he cleared to win his national title at the start of last month places him fourth on the world all-time list. He has cleared six metres in 11 competitions so far this year and has finished in the top two in all bar two of his 26 contests in 2025.
Other medal contenders include Kurtis Marschall and Sam Kendricks.
Hammer time
After becoming the first Canadian woman to win a global throws title in Budapest, Camryn Rogers defends her hammer crown in Tokyo.
Camryn Rogers in the hammer at the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23 (© Getty Images)
She has won nine of her 10 competitions in 2025, led by the national record of 78.88m she set in Eugene, and sits second on the season top list. That top spot is filled by Brooke Andersen, who won’t join her in the final after being unable to record a mark in qualifying.
Andersen’s US compatriot DeAnna Price, the 2019 world champion, is among the contenders, as is Janee’ Kassanavoid. Zhang Jiale and Rachel Richeson will also want to make an impact, while world record-holder Anita Wlodarczyk joins them in action, making her 12th global championships appearance.
El Bakkali targets hat-trick
Morocco’s Soufiane El Bakkali targets trio of world 3000m steeplechase titles in Tokyo and he led the first round on the first day of the championships, cruising to a heat win.
World record-holder Lamecha Girma and Geordie Beamish both took a tumble in their heats but recovered to finish second, setting up a clash in the final with the Moroccan athlete, who won the first of his two Olympic titles in Tokyo four years ago.
Also hoping to be in the mix are home favourite Ryuji Miura, Frederik Ruppert, 17-year-old Edmund Serem and Getnet Wale.
Takele returns to Tokyo
The first final of the day is the men’s marathon and that features Ethiopia’s Tadese Takele as he returns to the Japanese capital following his Tokyo Marathon victory in March.
He ran a PB of 2:03:23 to clinch that crown and will be on the hunt for another when he races on day three. Among his rivals are the two athletes who finished behind him six months ago – Deresa Geleta and Vincent Kipkemoi Ngetich – plus defending champion Victor Kiplangat and home hopes Yuya Yoshida and Ryota Kondo.
Jess Whittington for World Athletics
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