Anna Hall in the heptathlon at the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25 (© World Athletics 
Dan Vernon)
The penultimate day of the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25 is the busiest one yet, with seven more titles to be decided.
Clash of the heptathlon greats
The three-way showdown between defending champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson, Olympic champion Nafi Thiam and world leader Anna Hall has so far lived up to expectations in the women’s heptathlon.
Hall goes into the second day with a comfortable lead, but Thiam has some strong events to come. And Johnson-Thompson won’t want to give up her title without a fight.
Two-lap showdown
The men’s 800m has witnessed unprecedented depth in recent years, but Saturday’s final will be more about medals and places than fast times.
Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi and defending champion Marco Arop both advanced, but Spain’s Mohamed Attaoui and Ireland’s Cian McPhillips both looked good in the semifinals.
Kipyegon and Chebet chase second golds
Teammates and close friends Faith Kipyegon and Beatrice Chebet have already won the 1500m and 10,000m titles respectively at these championships. Both toe the line for the women's 5000m final on Saturday seeking another gold medal.
But it won’t be just a two-woman race. Gudaf Tsegay, winner of this title in 2022, will provide stiff opposition, as will Italy’s double Olympic medallist Nadia Battocletti.
New champion crowned in women’s javelin
World and Olympic champion Haruka Kitaguchi, having struggled with injury in recent months, missed the cut from qualifying and won’t feature in the women's javelin final. But it means a new global champion will be crowned.
Adriana Vilagos threw farthest in qualifying with 66.06m. Australia’s Mackenzie Little, European champion Victoria Hudson and 2023 world silver medallist Flor Denis Ruiz Hurtado all made it through to what looks set to be a wide-open final.
Strong medal chances for hosts in 20km race walk
Japan may have waved goodbye to the chance of a medal in the women’s javelin, but they’ll start Saturday with strong prospects of a podium finish in both the men’s and women’s 20km race walks.
World record-holder and two-time world champion Toshikazu Yamanishi leads the men’s field. Maria Perez, winner of the 35km at the start of the championships, is targeting another double in the women’s 20km and will be up against Italy’s Antonella Palmisano and Japan’s Nanako Fujii.
