Le’Ezra Brown of the USA equalled the world U20 110m hurdles record at the World Athletics U20 Championships Oregon 26. His performance on Saturday marked a significant achievement on the penultimate day of the competition. Brown secured his world 110m hurdles title by clocking 12.72, matching the record previously set by France’s Sasha Zhoya in Nairobi in 2021.
This record-equalling run followed Brown’s North American U20 record of 12.89 in the heats and a wind-aided 12.82 in the semifinals. He claimed gold ahead of Japan’s Jeremy Koga, who finished with 12.97, and fellow USA athlete Zacchaeus Brocks, who equalled his personal best of 12.98.
Several national records were also established in the 110m hurdles. Anthony Johnsen achieved a Norwegian U20 record with a time of 13.00. Jahcario Wilson set a Bahamian U20 record at 13.08, while Brazil’s Odair Goncalves recorded an area U20 record of 13.15. Additionally, Koray Uygun from Turkey set a Turkish U20 record with 13.20.
Italy Sets Mixed Relay Record
The evening also saw Italy set a new world U20 mixed 4x100m record, clocking 41.21. This marked the third world U20 mixed 4x100m record of the competition in Oregon. The Italian team, comprising Edwin Fermin Galvan, Elisa Valensin, Francesco Pagliarini, and Kelly Doualla, improved upon the previous record of 41.60.
The record of 41.60 had been set by Great Britain & NI in the second heat on Thursday. Prior to that, Australia had established a world U20 record of 41.64 in the first heat, as the event made its debut at the World U20 Championships.
In the final, Great Britain also ran faster than their previous world record mark, finishing in 41.38 to secure silver. The USA team earned bronze, just one hundredth of a second behind Great Britain, with a time of 41.39.
Other teams in the mixed 4x100m final included Nigeria in fourth place with 41.77, Jamaica in fifth with 41.92, Germany in sixth with 42.03, and Poland in seventh with 42.17. Both Australia and France were unable to complete the relay.
Trinidad and Tobago Athletes Compete
Earlier in the competition, Trinidad and Tobago athletes participated in various events. Hurdler Omari Brown advanced to the semifinals of the men’s 400-metre hurdles on Thursday. Running in lane one, he finished third in his heat with a time of 51.50 seconds, securing an automatic qualification spot.
Brown demonstrated strong composure, accelerating in the final 100m to overtake competitors and secure his place. He was scheduled to compete in the third and final semifinal heat on Saturday, entering with a personal and season’s best time of 50.91.
In the men’s 400m, Zachery Frank of Trinidad and Tobago delivered a strong performance, placing third in his heat with a time of 46.61 seconds, which earned him automatic qualification for the semifinals. He was ranked 16th overall.
However, Kiile Alexander did not advance from his heat in the men’s 400m, finishing eighth with 48.99. In the women’s 400m, Kayla Charles and Kyah Hyson also did not progress from the first round, finishing 46th and 56th overall, respectively.
Kristiano Perez competed in the men’s triple jump qualification, finishing 14th in Group A with a best performance of 15.02m on his second attempt, but did not reach the final. T&T’s sprinters Alexxe Henry and Imani Mills also did not reach the final in the women’s 100m semifinals on Wednesday night.
On Friday, another Trinidad and Tobago hurdler, Jenna-Marie Thomas, was scheduled to compete in round one of the women’s 100m hurdles. Mills was also set to compete in the women’s 200m alongside Kaori Robley, while Makaelan Woods was the sole Trinidadian sprinter in the men’s 200m.
The quartet of Mills, Robley, and Woods aimed to reach the semifinal rounds in the evening session on Friday.
Source: worldathletics.org
