Simon Ehammer wins the heptathlon at the World Athletics Indoor Championships Kujawy Pomorze 26 (© Getty Images)
- Simon Ehammer scores a world heptathlon record of 6670
- Mondo Duplantis sets championship record of 6.25m to win his fourth world indoor pole vault record
- Christopher Morales Williams wins 400m in championship record of 44.76
A world record by Simon Ehammer in the heptathlon, plus championship records by pole vaulter Mondo Duplantis and 400m sprinter Christopher Morales Williams highlighted a thrilling second day of action at the World Athletics Indoor Championships Kujawy Pomorze 26 on Saturday (21).
Ehammer’s winning tally of 6670 in the heptathlon – aided by a world heptathlon best of 7.52 in the 60m hurdles – added 25 points to a world record that had stood for 14 years.
Duplantis, meanwhile, earned his ninth senior global title in the pole vault, clearing a championship record of 6.25m in a competition where he was pushed all the way by Greece’s Emmanouil Karalis.
Morales Williams, the fastest man in history for the 400m indoors, is now a world indoor champion over the same distance as the Canadian triumphed in a championship record of 44.76.
Elsewhere on a busy Saturday, hosts Poland claimed a full set of medals as Jakub Szymanski won the men’s 60m hurdles, Natalia Bukowiecka took 400m silver behind Lurdes Gloria Manuel and Poland earned bronze in the mixed 4x400m as Belgium claimed the inaugural world indoor title for the discipline.
Zaynab Dosso continued her ascent up the women’s 60m podium at the World Indoors by claiming gold in 7.00 in a competitive final, while Josh Kerr and Nadia Battocletti claimed gold in the men’s and women’s 3000m finals.
On the infield, Leyanis Perez Hernandez retained her title in the women’s triple jump.
Ehammer makes heptathlon history
Simon Ehammer, the 2024 world indoor champion, regained his heptathlon crown with a record-breaking score of 6670.
The Swiss all-rounder produced a stunning series of marks across two days and led from the first discipline. He sped to 6.69 in the 60m, then followed it with an 8.15m leap in the long jump. A 14.87m throw in the shot put was followed by a 2.02m clearance in the high jump, giving him the overall lead at the end of the first day.
He started the second day in explosive form, stopping the clock at a world heptathlon best of 7.52 in the 60m hurdles. A 5.30m clearance in the pole vault put him on track to break the world record and he duly delivered by finishing his series with a 2:41.04 PB in the 1000m.
US duo Heath Baldwin (6337) and Kyle Garland (6245) took silver and bronze.
Result: 1 Simon Ehammer (SUI) 6670, 2 Heath Baldwin (USA) 6337, 3 Kyle Garland (USA) 6245
Duplantis takes world indoor title No.4
Swedish pole vault superstar Mondo Duplantis improved his own championship record to 6.25m to secure his fourth successive world indoor title.
For the first time in history, three athletes surpassed six metres in the same indoor contest – Emmanouil Karalis of Greece cleared 6.05m for silver, while Australia's Kurtis Marschall equalled his PB by clearing 6.00m for bronze.
After entering the competition at 5.50m and clearing that on his first try, Duplantis continued to clear 5.85m, 6.00m, 6.10m, 6.15m and then 6.25m – all on his initial attempts.
He decided to call it a day at that point – earning another gold back in the arena where he cleared his first world record of 6.17m in 2020.
Result: 1 Mondo Duplantis (SWE) 6.25m, 2 Emmanouil Karalis (GRE) 6.05m, 3 Kurtis Marschall (AUS) 6.00m
Morales Williams cracks 45
Canada’s Christopher Morales Williams smashed the championship record to win gold in the men’s 400m.
In a clash between two of the three fastest short track 400m runners in history, Morales Williams clocked 44.76 to take the title ahead of USA’s Khaleb McRae, who chased him over the finish line in 45.03.
All three medallists came from the second section of the final and Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards – the 2022 world indoor champion and former championship record-holder – clinched bronze in 45.39.
Result: 1 Christopher Morales Williams (CAN) 44.76, 2 Khaleb McRae (USA) 45.03, 3 Jereem Richards (TTO) 45.39
Szymanski claims Poland’s first gold
Jakub Szymanski completed an undefeated indoor season in the best possible way – by winning gold on home soil.
The European indoor champion had entered the championships as one of the medal favourites for the men's 60m hurdles. After USA's Trey Cunningham won his semifinal in 7.35, it appeared as though Szymanski would have his work cut out in the final.
But he kept his cool and crossed the line in 7.40 to take gold ahead of Spain's Enrique Llopis (7.42). Cunningham had to settle for bronze with 7.43.
Result: 1 Jakub Szymanski (POL) 7.40, 2 Enrique Llopis (ESP) 7.42, 3 Trey Cunningham (USA) 7.43
Dosso dashes to 60m glory
After earning bronze in 2024 and silver in 2025, Italy's Zaynab Dosso made it on to the top of the women's 60m podium.
In a highly competitive final where the top seven women were separated by just 0.07, Dosso stormed to victory in 7.00 to take gold ahead of USA's Jacious Sears and Olympic 100m champion Julien Alfred, both timed at 7.03.
It was the first 60m race in history in which seven women have bettered 7.10.
Result: 1 Zaynab Dosso (ITA) 7.00, 2 Jacious Sears (USA) 7.03, 3 Julien Alfred (LCA) 7.03
Manuel takes 400m title
Rising Czech talent Lurdes Gloria Manuel upstaged her more experienced rivals to claim the women's 400m title.
Held under the new format, whereby the eight finalists are split between two races and the three fastest performers awarded medals, Manuel triumphed in the second heat in an indoor PB of 50.76.
Norway's Henriette Jaeger, the 2025 silver medallist, stumbled on the final bend and dropped from second to fourth. The two other medallists came from the first heat, where home favourite Natalia Bukowiecka set a Polish indoor record of 50.83 to take silver ahead of Lieke Klaver (51.02).
Result: 1 Lurdes Gloria Manuel (CZE) 50.76, 2 Natalia Bukowiecka (POL) 50.83, 3 Lieke Klaver (NED) 51.02
Kerr regains 3000m gold
Two years after winning gold in this discipline on home soil in Glasgow, Josh Kerr repeated his 3000m triumph in Kujawy Pomorze.
The Briton bided his time throughout as Olympic 1500m champion Cole Hocker led through the first 1000m before Ethiopian duo Getnet Wale and Addisu Yihune took up the running in the latter stages. Kerr hit the front on the final lap and held off a strong challenge from Hocker and French record-holder Yann Schrub.
Kerr crossed the line in 7:35.56 – the second-fastest time in World Indoor Championships history – to win his third global title as Hocker closed well to take silver in 7:35.70, just 0.01 ahead of Schrub.
Result: 1 Josh Kerr (GBR) 7:35.56, 2 Cole Hocker (USA) 7:35.70, 3 Yann Schrub (FRA) 7:35.71
Battocletti triumphs over 3000m
Nadia Battocletti earned her first global gold with consummate ease in a tumultuous women’s 3000m final. The 25-year-old Italian secured her place atop a world podium with a perfectly judged move to the front over the final 100 metres, floating home in 8:57.64.
Australia’s Olympic 1500m silver medallist Jessica Hull had led at the bell with Battocletti at her shoulder. But after the Italian had moved past her, she was beaten to silver as Emily Mackay of the United States, world indoor 1500m bronze medallist in 2024, proved even more determined over the final few strides, clocking 8:58.12 to Hull’s 8:58.18.
Result: 1 Nadia Battocletti (ITA) 8:57.64, 2 Emily Mackay (USA) 8:58.12, 3 Jessica Hull (AUS) 8:58.18
Pérez Hernández rises to the occasion once more
Cuba's Leyanis Pérez Hernández equalled the world lead to retain her triple jump title.
Soaring 14.95m in the second round, she matched the best mark in the world so far this year that had been set by world record-holder Yulimar Rojas last month. The Venezuelan star continued her comeback by securing silver this time with a best of 14.86m.
Senegal's Saly Sarr had the performance of her life for bronze, jumping 14.70m to claim her first global medal.
Result: 1 Leyanis Perez Hernandez (CUB) 14.95m, 2 Yulimar Rojas (VEN) 14.86m, 3 Saly Sarr (SEN) 14.70m
