The World Athletics Championship, formerly the IAAF World Championships in Athletics, is a biennial track and field competition organized by the sport’s global governing body, World Athletics (previously IAAF). Held every two years, the event serves as the highest level of senior international outdoor competition in the sport, along with the Olympic Games. World Athletics also organizes separate World Championships for marathon running, race walking and other events.
During her third and final World Athletics Championship, USA sprinter Melissa Jefferson-Wooden was on the verge of making history. If she can win the women’s sprint treble in Tokyo, she will join Jamaican legend Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce as one of only two females to achieve the feat.
She was already the world’s leading 100m and 200m runner. But by the end of Sunday’s evening session, she had added a fourth gold medal to her collection when she ran the opening leg of the US women’s 4x100m relay team, which won ahead of Jamaica.
Other highlights of the day included Leo Neugebauer winning the men’s decathlon after a competition full of twists and turns, and Daniel Stahl becoming a three-time champion in the discus. And in the women’s 10k, Kenyan Faith Kipyegon did what she does best as she clinched a gold medal, while Nadia Battocletti and Guduf Tsegay earned silver and bronze respectively.
There were a number of surprise winners in the final session as well, including Clayton Young’s remarkable victory in the 800m. He was the first American to win a world title since 1983, and his victory over Amanal Petros and Illiass Aouani crowned him as a new world champion.