2 world records smashed in final hours of World Championships

The final night of the World Athletics Championships in Eugene kicked off with a bang in the semi-final of the women’s 100m hurdles. Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan clocked a mind-blowing 12.12, beating American Keni Harrison‘s world record of 12.20 by 0.08 seconds. The race was incredibly quick for the entire field, and even the runners seemed startled at the finishing times. (Harrison herself finished second to Amusan in their semi-final heat, in 12.27.)

As if to prove it wasn’t a fluke or timing error, Amusan won the final in what was first touted as a new world record of 12:06, but was later ruled ineligible due to a tailwind. Amusan collected Nigeria’s first-ever gold medal in a World Championship. She was 0.17 seconds ahead of silver medallist Britany Anderson of Jamaica and bronze medallist Jasmine Camacho-Quinn of Puerto Rico.

???? Tears of joy for new world record holder Tobi Amusan as she collects Nigeria's first ever World Championship gold! What a moment! ? pic.twitter.com/0oAjQZLOJb

— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_AUS) July 25, 2022

The night was far from over, though, with Sweden’s pole vault world record holder Mondo Duplantis ready to compete. Duplantis topped his own outdoor world best by successfully sailing over the bar at 6.21 metres, to the ecstatic reaction of the crowd at Hayward Field.

Duplantis is only 22, and yet is now the first pole vaulter to have won gold at the Olympics, World Championships, World Indoor Championships, World Junior Championships, World Youth Championships and European Championships. “Not so bad, eh?” said Duplantis after his global record-setting jump, before thanking the crowd for their energy.

Mondo Duplantis. World Record. We Are All Witnesses. pic.twitter.com/pDVkuyBZ3K

— LSU Track & Field (@LSUTrackField) July 25, 2022

American Chris Nilsen jumped 5.94m to take silver ahead of the Philippines’ Ernest John “EJ” Obiena, who won his nation’s first World Championships medal.

The other events of the evening included the second day of the decathlon, with Canadian Pierce LePage winning silver (8,701 points), behind France’s Kevin Mayer, who took the gold medal with 8,816 points. Olympic gold-medallist Damian Warner had been leading the event when he was forced to pull out due to a hamstring injury during the 400m on Saturday.

ON THE PODIUM ???

Canadian decathlete Pierce LePage collects silver at the World Athletics Championships, his first world championship medal and he did it with a personal-best score of 8,701 ? pic.twitter.com/WnMyh6wPd5

— CBC Olympics (@CBCOlympics) July 25, 2022

Fan favourite Jakob Ingebrigsten of Norway won the men’s 5,000 metre final in 13:09.24, with Canada’s Moh Ahmed placing fifth in 13:10.46.

The U.S. swept the stage in both men’s and women’s 4 x 400 metre relays, with the women’s 4 x 400m metre, the final event of the championship, keeping the crowd at Hayward on their feet as they ran a blistering 3:17.79, anchored by 400m hurdles world record-holder Sydney McLaughlin.

Canada finishes the 2022 World Championships with a medal count of four: one gold, two silvers and a bronze–one shy of their medal count in Doha. Camryn Rogers won silver in the hammer throw, Canada’s first medal in Eugene.

The men’s 4 x 100m relay team of Andre De Grasse, Jerome Blake, Brendan Rodney and Aaron Brown raced to Canada’s only gold medal. Marco Arop brings home a bronze in the 800m event, his first championship medal, and LePage wrapped up the 10 days of excitement with his silver in the decathlon.