TOKYO — Jamaica’s Oblique Seville smashed expectations to win his first 100m world title at the World Athletics Championships on Sunday, blazing a personal best of 9.77 seconds. He beat compatriot Kishane Thompson, who ran 9.82, while USA’s Noah Lyles grabbed bronze with a season’s best of 9.89. Seville, 21, becomes the youngest male sprinter from Jamaica to claim the world 100m crown.
On the women’s side, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden of the US secured her maiden world title and set a championship record, continuing a perfect season. She held off strong competition from Jamaica’s Tina Clayton, who finished second with a personal best 10.76, and Olympic gold medalist Julien Alfred, who took bronze in 10.84.
Seville spoke afterwards about how his competitors pushed him: “These two actually pushed me to run a personal best.” It was the kind of performance that’s rare on this stage — fast, collected, and pressure-free. Jefferson-Wooden similarly praised her preparation, saying she’s “so happy and grateful” to execute the perfect race under the brightest lights.
In addition to these sprint victories, several other surprising results lit up the Tokyo Stadium. Notably, in the men’s 10,000m, European runners broke Ethiopia’s long-standing dominance: France’s Jimmy Gressier edged out Ethiopia’s Yomif Keljecha in the final stretch, with Sweden’s Andreas Almgren also making the podium.
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