World Athletics Championships 2025: Botswana strikes gold amidst USA domination in relays; Stahl stalls others to win discus title
Botswana produced a brilliant performance to win the men’s world 4x400m relay in atrocious conditions on Sunday, edging out the United States and South Africa in a blanket finish to become the first African winner of the event.
As rain hammered down, the U.S – who had scraped into the final after beating Kenya in a run-off on Sunday morning – led the way at the final changeover. However, Collen Kebinatshipi, the 21-year-old winner of the individual title, ran a fantastic leg to snatch gold in two minutes, 57.76 seconds.
The U.S., winners of nine of the last 10 world titles, changed all four athletes for the final from its morning run-off, and took silver from South Africa by two thousandths of a second after both being timed at 2:57.83.
The U.S. resumed normal service in the women’s final that followed on the drenched track with individual 400m champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone anchoring it to gold in 3.16.61.
The Jamaicans held onto to second place in 3.19.25 despite the efforts of 400m hurdles gold medallist Femke Bol over the final leg for the Dutch defending champions, who finished third in 3.20.18.
Through the 4x100m relay finals, Noah Lyles and Melissa Jefferson-Wooden completed memorable individual weeks by helping the United States to emphatic golds.
Jefferson-Wooden became the second woman to sweep all three sprint titles at one World Athletics Championships. The 24-year-old, who won the 100-200m double in Tokyo, helped the United States to a lead at the last exchange and Sha’Carri Richardson brought the baton home in 41.75 seconds.
Jamaica finished second in 41.79 to send sprint queen Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, whose 2013 sweep Jefferson-Wooden emulated, into retirement with a 17th world championship medal. Germany came third in 41.87 for bronze on the back of a blistering final leg from Gina Lueckenkemper to see off Britain, which finished fourth in 42.07.
In the men’s race, the final track event of what has been a fantastic nine days of action, the U.S. was slick in its handovers despite the testing conditions.
Kenny Bednarek got a gold to cheer him up after yet another silver in the 200m, but it was Lyles taking the spotlight again as he brought them home in 37.29 for his second gold after he won a fourth successive 200m following his bronze in the 100m.
Fast-finishing Canada took silver in 37.55, with the Netherlands delighted to take bronze in a National Record 37.81.
Stahl throws it far
Former Olympic champion Daniel Stahl of Sweden won the last gold medal of the 2025 World Athletics Championships with the penultimate throw of a men’s discus final delayed for more than two hours by rain.
Lithuanian Mykolas Alekna laid down a marker with a throw of 67.84m on his second attempt which it led until Stahl took to the circle for his last shot at the title. Revving up the remaining crowd at the arena where he won the Olympic title in 2021, the 33-year-old sent the disc soaring in to the sky and past the 70-metre line for his Season’s Best throw of 70.47m and a second world title.
Alekna, 22, fouled his last attempt and finished second to add to his bronze at the last World Championships and silver in 2022 but remained without a title to match the two his father Virgilijus won in discus in 2003 and 2005. Alex Rose took bronze with a throw of 66.96m on his fifth attempt to knock Australia’s Matt Denny out of third place and give Samoa a first World Championship medal.
In women’s high jump, Australia’s Nicola Olyslagers won the gold, but only after a nervous wait during a long rain suspension. Olyslagers, the world indoor champion for the last two years, was faultless through to 2.00 metres, with Poland’s Maria Zodzik the only other athlete to clear it – at the third attempt – for a lifetime best.
Ukraine’s Olympic champion Yaroslava Mahuchikh passed at two metres but failed twice at 2.02 to take the bronze on 1.97, ahead of Serbia’s Angelina Topic on countback. Neither Zodzik or Olyslagers could get over 2.02 and so it was all over with a flash, with silver for Poland and gold for Australia – their first of the championships.
In men’s decathlon, Germany’s Leo Neugebauer stepped up from his Paris Olympic silver to take the Worlds gold, as a huge javelin Personal Best set him up for a 1500m that he paced perfectly. Puerto Rico’s Ayden Owens-Delerme took silver and American Kyle Garland the bronze.
Kenya’s Lilian Odira produced a storming finish to win an astonishing women’s 800m Worlds gold, smashing her Personal Best by almost two seconds and erasing the 42-year-old championship record.
Briton Georgia Hunter-Bell squeezed past her compatriot Keely Hodgkinson to take silver in a Personal Best 1:54.90, with Hodgkinson adding bronze to two previous Worlds silvers in 1:54.91.
Cole Hocker, who was disqualified from the 1500m, earned redemption in the 5000m, timing his run to the line to perfection to clinch a first world title. He crossed the line in 12 minutes 58.30 seconds.
Belgian Isaac Kimeli took silver in 12:58.78, while Frenchman Jimmy Gressier claimed bronze to add to his stunning gold in the 10,000m in Tokyo.
Norway’s double defending champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who has been struggling with an Achilles injury and barely qualified for the final, briefly led the race but finished 10th in 13:02.00.
Published on Sep 21, 2025