World Championships in Athletics: A legendary world record and German highlights

zAt the end of the eighth day of competition, there was the first world record at the World Championships in Athletics in Eugene – and what a record. In 50.68 seconds, American Sidney McLaughlin won the gold in the 400-meter hurdles. For Germans, disappointments to come in the US – but there are also some bright spots for change.

400 metres, women’s: Two-time Olympic champion Shauna Miller Uibo of the Bahamas won the world title for the first time after a silver medal in 2019 in Doha. She was 49.11 seconds, her best time of the season. Miller-Uibo was 0.49sec faster than Marillidi Paulino of the Dominican Republic. Bronze went to Sada Williams of Barbados.

400 metres, men: Olympic champion Michael Norman also won the world title. Driven by the raucous spectators at Hayward Field, he defended his lead right at home and was first after 44.29 seconds. Grenada’s Kirani James took the silver by 0.19 seconds, while Britain’s Matthew Hudson Smith took the bronze.

400m hurdles, women’s: Olympic champion Sydney McLaughlin won her first world title with a stunning world record time of 50.68 seconds. The 22-year-old American broke her old record by 0.73 seconds. And the silver went to Dutchman Vimke Paul with a time of 52.27 seconds. American Dalilah Muhammad won the bronze with a time of 53.13 seconds. This was the first world record at a World Cup Final. McLaughlin received a $70,000 bonus for world championship gold and an additional $100,000 for the world record. I have now ran five of my six best times ever recorded in the 400m hurdles.

Pole vaulting, men: 5.75 meters were needed to reach the final – fourth World Cup champion Bo Kanda Lita Baher at the third attempt and Oleg Zernickel as the best player in his group jumped that height. On the other hand, Torben Blech was suspended at an entrance height of 5.30 meters. When it comes to medals Monday night (2:25AM CET/CET), Olympic and European champion Armand Duplantis of Sweden is the man to beat – if that’s even possible. Defending champion Sam Kendricks will miss the World Cup due to injury.

4 x 100m, for women: The German quartet with Tatjana Pinto, Alexandra Burghardt, Gina Lokenkemper and Rebecca Haas finished third in the preliminary heats with a time of 42.44 seconds and rushed for the medals Sunday evening (4.30am CST/ZDF). In the same race, only four women from Great Britain sprinted in 41.99 seconds and Jamaica in 42.37 seconds. With a winning time of 41.56 seconds in the second half, the United States confirmed its gold-medal claim in the final.

German relay mistakes for men

4 x 100 metres, for men: The German men’s relay with Kevin Kranz, Joshua Hartmann, Owen Ansa and Lucas Ansa-Pebra failed in the first two club changes and finished in 38.83 seconds. Germany was ranked fourth after Japan and Nigeria were excluded, but that was not enough to advance. The four runners in this lineup improved the German record to 37.99 seconds in Regensburg at the beginning of June. The American relay was fastest in 37.87 seconds and is the favorite in Sunday night’s final (4:50AM CST/ZDF).

Javelin throwing, women: Annika Marie Fuchs finished 12th and last in the final. The 25-year-old from SC Potsdam did not cross 56.46m with her first three throws, thus staying well short of her season best of 61.06m, which would have sufficed for three more attempts. As in 2019, Australian Kelsey Lee Barber won the world title with a throw of 66.91 metres. Kara Winger of the United States took the silver in the last attempt and threw a 64.05-meter throw that celebrated the entire stadium. Japan’s Haruka Kitaguchi won bronze with a record of 63.27 metres.

800 metres, women’s: Neither Majtie Kolberg nor Christina Hering were fast enough to enter the final. Kohlberg crossed the finish line in 2:01.36 minutes, Hering was third in the slowest three semi-final runs after 500 metres, but was last at the finish line after 2:01.57 minutes. Olympic champion Athing Mo of the USA, as the fastest sprinter with a time of 1:58.12 minutes, left no doubt about her role as a favorite in Monday night’s final (3.35AM CST/ARD).

35 km walk, women: Peruvian Kimberly Garcia Leon won the premiere of the World Over 35km Walking Championships in Eugene. At 2:39:16 hours on Friday (local time) she won her second title by a clear margin. Like over 20 kilometres, Katarzyna Zdzeblu of Poland (2:40:03) and China Shiji Qiang (2:40:37) once again won the silver and bronze. The German infantry was not at first. The 35-kilometer distance replaces the 50-kilometer competitions.