Kishane Thompson runs historic 100m time; Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce makes 9th world team
Thompson, edged by Noah Lyles for 2024 Olympic 100m gold by five thousandths of a second (9.784 to 9.789), ran 9.75 seconds at the Jamaican Championships in Kingston on Friday night. He had a .8 meter/second tailwind.
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It's the world's fastest time since 2015 when American Justin Gatlin ran 9.74, 9.75 and 9.75 in a two-month span.
Thompson improved his personal best by two hundredths to become the sixth-fastest man in history behind Usain Bolt (world record 9.58), Yohan Blake (9.69), Tyson Gay (9.69), Asafa Powell (9.72) and Gatlin (9.74).
Thompson, 23, is the third-youngest man to run 9.75 or faster after his fellow Jamaicans Bolt and Blake.
"I'm that confident; I don't think if I even broke the world record it would surprise me, honestly," Thompson said, adding that he could have executed his race better. "I'm just going to put that out there."
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Thompson goes into the World Championships in Tokyo in September looking to snap the U.S. streak at four consecutive men's 100m titles since Bolt won his third and final title in 2015.
Noah Lyles, the reigning Olympic and world champion, last raced April 19 and has since dealt with a minor ankle injury. Lyles earned a bye into worlds as a reigning world champion, so he does not have to be at full fitness until September.
Also Friday. Clayton ran personal bests in Friday's semifinals (10.93) and final (10.81) for her first senior Jamaican title. No Jamaican woman has ever run that fast before turning 21 years old.
"I didn't expect this time," said Clayton, the world U20 champion in 2021 and 2022. "Based on how I was going in training, I knew that I would PB, but not that fast."
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The fastest women in the world this year are American Melissa Jefferson-Wooden (10.73), the Olympic bronze medalist, and Julien Alfred (10.75) of Saint Lucia, the Olympic gold medalist.
Clayton was followed in Friday's final by world 200m champion Shericka Jackson (10.88) and then Fraser-Pryce (10.91) in what she said was her last race in Jamaica before retiring later this year.
Fraser-Pryce, a 38-year-old with a record seven combined Olympic and world 100m titles, is due to compete at a ninth world championships. Jamaica will have at least three 100m spots at worlds, plus she's automatically in the 4x100m relay pool.
"I'm grateful for that fighting spirit," Fraser-Pryce said, noting that her first worlds were also in Japan — as a preliminary round relay runner in 2007.
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Fraser-Pryce will move one shy of the record 10 worlds appearances for a sprinter shared by American Allyson Felix and Kim Collins of Saint Kitts and Nevis.
She can become the oldest woman to win a World Championships medal in any sprint event, including relays, and the oldest female or male sprinter to win an individual world medal.
The current oldest female sprint medalist is Chandra Sturrup of the Bahamas, who won 4x100m silver in 2009 at age 37. Jamaica's Merlene Ottey was a younger 37 when she won 200m bronze in 1997.
Fraser-Pryce's 10 career World Championships gold medals are third in history behind Felix (14) and Usain Bolt (11). Her 16 career World Championships medals of any color are second to Felix (20).
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Fraser-Pryce originally planned to retire after the 2024 Olympic season.
But then at the Paris Games, she withdrew before the 100m semifinals. A reason for her withdrawal was not announced.
In January 2025, Fraser-Pryce said she would come back for one more season. In a social media post in April, she said she had unfinished business.
The U.S. team for the World Championships will largely be determined at the USA Track and Field Outdoor Championships from July 31-Aug. 3 in Eugene, Oregon.
Olympic 100m silver medalist Sha'Carri Richardson earned a bye onto the U.S. team as a reigning world champion from 2023.
Faith Kipyegon
Faith Kipyegon runs 4:06 mile at Breaking 4, faster than world record
Faith Kipyegon got closer to four minutes for a mile than any woman in history.
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Canadian sprinters shine at NACAC track & field championships in The Bahamas
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a day ago
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Lyles, Hodgkinson, Warholm, Richardson: Big wins, progressions and causes for concern at Silesia Diamond League
Timing is everything. This year's athletics World Championships, which take place in Tokyo, Japan, for eight days from September 13, are the latest in the calendar year since the 2019 edition in Doha, Qatar. While the Silesia, Poland, leg of the Diamond League meet last year was a relatively pressure-free, post-Olympics showcase, the backdrop on Saturday was very different. In a month's time, the track and field season hits its climax. Advertisement Theoretically the lucky ones are the World Champions from Budapest, Hungary, two years ago. Winning there fast-tracked them to last summer's Games and meant they qualified automatically for Tokyo this year, too. However, across the board, injuries have derailed and disrupted the seasons of many top athletes this year. With meet records in nearly half of the elite events (11 out of 23), Silesia was a melting pot and proving ground for six Olympic/World champions, who had question marks by their name ahead of Worlds. Two made big statements: Keely Hodgkinson (Olympic 800m gold) and Karsten Warholm (World 400m hurdle gold and Olympic silver). Others made progress: Noah Lyles (Olympic and World 100m and 200m gold) and Shericka Jackson (World 200m gold and 100m silver). A couple still have a lot of work to do: Sha'Carri Richardson (World 100m gold, Olympic 100m silver) and Grant Holloway (World and Olympic 110m hurdle gold). Season openers do not come much better than Hodgkinson's 800m win in 1:54.74s. The 23-year-old was watching from the sidelines this season, after setbacks came following a hamstring injury first sustained in February — when she had ambitions quashed for an 800m indoor world-record attempt. With this being a non-Diamond League event (no points were scored towards qualifying for the finals in Zurich), Hodgkinson was the clear favourite. Her run was a real statement of intent, winning by 1.78s and producing a strong second 400m after the pacemaker split 56.09s at the bell (which is 1:52-low pace). That time is Hodgkinson's second-fastest ever, only 0.13s off the British record she clocked last July at the London Diamond League. It ranks ninth of all 800m performances. The Briton now has the world lead — the fastest time in 2025. She went nearly two seconds quicker than the 1:56.65s Tsige Duguma ran back in May, dragging round second-place Lilian Odira of Kenya, who finished in 1:56.62s. 'I planned to run a fast time because I do not have five races anymore before Tokyo, I only have today and the meeting in Lausanne (next Wednesday),' Hodgkinson said. 'It had to be fast and I am happy that it worked.' Advertisement This is a 10th straight 800m win for the Manchester-born athlete, who had a perfect 2024 over two laps, winning European and then Olympic gold. 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Holloway is still yet to break the 13s barrier in 2025, something he has done in each of the past four years — his races in 2024 became more about him versus the world record than other athletes. 'It was not my best day and it has not been my best year so far,' he said after coming second. 'But I am working hard on figuring it out. These competitions are just building blocks on the way to the World Championships. I am still optimistic about doing well there.' His optimism is for good reason, having won seven of the past eight global finals, which totals three outdoor and three indoor world titles, one Olympic silver (2021) and Olympic gold (2024). Advertisement However the same Holloway who won 21 of 23 meets last season has only won twice in nine 110m hurdles races in 2025. Tinch, after winning in Silesia, spoke on this: 'In the U.S. it is sometimes hard to find yourself with all those fast hurdlers. In a field like that with Grant Holloway, you got to take on those wins and build on that.' Tinch, who finished second at U.S. trials behind Ja'kobe Tharp, is the fastest 110m hurdler in the world this year, after clocking 12.87s back in May. 'My mindset this year is: I am the best,' he added. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
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a day ago
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Diamond League 2025: Silesia schedule and start times
The Diamond League season rolls on with some of the world's top athletes competing in Chorzow, Poland at the Silesia meet. After nearly a month off, the World Athletics series resumes for a fast and furious finish to the campaign with four stops in the next fortnight culminating with the two-day finals in Zurich on 27 and 28 August. With the World Championships looming ever larger into view, a strong field has been assembled with American sprint stars including Noah Lyles and Sha'Carri Richardson among those on show. Fresh from breaking his own world record (again), Mondo Duplantis will hope to soar once more in the pole vault in a busy field programme. Here's everything you need to know. When is the Silesia Diamond League event? The Silesia Diamond League event, also known as the Kamila Skolimowska Memorial, will take place on Saturday 16 August in Chorzow, Poland. How can I watch it? Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the action live on BBC Two, with coverage on the channel from 3pm BST. A live stream will be available via the BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website. Schedule1.05pm Men's Shot put 2.01pm Men's high jump 2.16pm Women's long jump 2.20pm Women's 100m hurdles Heat A 2.29pm Women's 100m hurdles Heat B 2.33pm Men's pole vault 2.40pm Men's 110m hurdles 2.52pm Women's 800m 3.04pm Women's 400m 3.16pm Women's 3000m 3.35pm Women's 100m hurdles final 3.44pm Women's 1500m 3.53pm Men's javelin 3.58pm Men's 100m 4.08pm Women's 400m hurdles 4.18pm Men's 1500m 4.32pm Women's 200m 4.42pm Men's 400m hurdles 4.53pm Women's 100m Full live results can be found here Diamond League 2025 venues 26 April: Xiamen, China 3 May: Shaoxing, China 16 May: Doha, Qatar 25 May: Rabat, Morocco 6 June: Rome, Italy 12 June: Oslo, Norway 15 June: Stockholm, Sweden 20 June: Paris, France 5 July: Eugene, United States 11 July: Monaco 19 July: London, United Kingdom 16 August: Chorzow, Poland 20 August: Lausanne, Switzerland 22 August: Brussels, Belgium 27-28 August: Diamond League finals (Zurich, Switzerland)
