BUDAPEST, Hungary — American jumper Noah Lyles dominated the 100m at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest as Canada’s Ethan Katzberg took a stunning World hammer gold with a massive national record throw of 81.25 metres in the fifth round.
It was a blanket finish behind Lyles as Letsile Tebogo of Botswana took silver by one thousandth of a second from Briton Zharnel Hughes. Fourth-placed Oblique Seville of Jamaica was three thousandths of a second off the podium as all three men clocked 9.88.
Former champion Christian Coleman was also in the mix after a great start but was just overhauled to finish fifth in 9.92.
Tebogo, 20, is the first African to win a world 100m medal, while Hughes, the fastest in the world coming into the championships with 9.83, is the first Briton on the men’s 100m podium since Darren Campbell took bronze 20 years ago.
It is the United States though who are firmly top of the sprinting tree again as Lyles’ victory makes if four world titles in a row, following four in a row for Jamaica before that.
It had been billed as a wide open final and at 50 metres most of the field were locked together in a line.
Lyles, though forged his way to the front in the last 30 metres, just, and the event’s biggest showman had to delay his celebration until the big screen confirmed his triumph. He had predicted he would run 9.65 but a personal best of 9.83 proved enough.
“I needed to make sure that I was accelerating and when I was at 60 metres I took the lead,” Lyles said.
“I have taken a lot of losses, even in 100m and going to the U.S. trials with COVID I got bronze medal but a lot of people cut me off right there.
“But I knew what I had to do. I came here for three golds, ticked off one, others are coming. The 100m was the hardest one, it is out of the books. I will have fun with the event I love now.”
The two-times world champion in the 200m will now go for the sprint double, last achieved by Usain Bolt in 2015, before hoping to sign off with a win in the sprint relay.
Hughes, who was disqualified for a false start in the Tokyo Olympics final, was delighted with his medal to cap a season where he has captured the British 100 and 200m records that had both stood for 30 years.
“I’m super, super grateful right now,” he said. I wanted the gold, but I’m happy to leave with a medal.
“When they had a false start in the semi, it made me sit in my blocks a bit. I thought I’s got Lyles. When I saw the results and saw Tebogo’s name I thought ‘where did he come from?'”
Defending 100m world champion Fred Kerley of the US failed to qualify for the final after running 10.02 in the semis.
Halasz brings hammer bronze to hometown crowd
In Hungary, hammer thrower Bence Halasz will always be remembered for coming through when it counted the most.
Halasz, one of the country’s few medal hopefuls at the world championships being held in a sparkling new stadium in Budapest, took bronze on home turf with the prime minister watching on one of the country’s most important holidays.
“It´s a wonderful feeling,” Halasz said after his throw of 80.82 meters proved enough to secure third place.
“The crowd gave me such strength that I really felt it was coming from beyond me, that it wasn´t even inside myself,” Halasz added according to AP.
The 26-year-old Halasz came into the worlds ranked fourth. His first throw was good for the lead through most of the hot, humid evening.
Every time he stepped into the circle, chants of “Ria – Ria -Hungaria!” rained down. It’s a common chant during international sports events, one made even more meaningful on the anniversary of Hungary’s founding.
Not until the fifth of six rounds did someone beat Halasz’s throw. Canadian Ethan Katzberg’s 81.25 meters set a national record and ultimately carried him through to the gold. Poland’s Olympic gold medalist, Wojciech Nowicki, finished second with a throw of 81.02.
But as far as the Hungarian fans in the 35,000-seat stadium were concerned, Halasz, now a three-time bronze medalist in the championships, was the day’s big winner. Stony-faced after his first throw – his best of the season – he gave in to the excitement and ran to the stands for handshakes with his trainers.
Five-time world champion Pawel Fajdek, Nowicki’s Polish teammate, kept the competition tight in the final with a season-best throw of 80 meters flat.
But three faults and two sub-78 meter throws kept him short of matching pole vaulter Sergey Bubka’s record of six individual world titles in the same discipline.
With bronze secured, Halasz said he now wants to spend time with his family, who were in the stands cheering him on.
“I’d like to say that I’m sorry I didn’t look at them,” he said, “I didn’t want to make myself nervous.”
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