Le’Ezra Brown of the USA equalled the world U20 110m hurdles record, and Italy improved the world U20 mixed 4x100m record on the penultimate day of the World Athletics U20 Championships Oregon 26. These performances took place on Saturday, the eighth day of the championships.
Brown secured his world 110m hurdles title with a time of 12.72, matching the world U20 record previously set by France’s Sasha Zhoya in Nairobi in 2021. This achievement followed Brown’s earlier North American U20 record of 12.89 in the heats and a wind-aided 12.82 in the semifinals. His victory earned him a gold medal, with Japan’s Jeremy Koga taking silver at 12.97 and USA’s Zacchaeus Brocks securing bronze, equalling his personal best of 12.98.
Record-Breaking Performances
The event also saw several national records being set. 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 established an area U20 record with 13.15. Additionally, Koray Uygun from Turkey recorded a Turkish U20 record of 13.20.
The mixed 4x100m relay also produced a world U20 record, with Italy clocking 41.21. This marked the third world U20 mixed 4x100m record of the competition in Oregon. The Italian team comprised Edwin Fermin Galvan, Elisa Valensin, Francesco Pagliarini, and Kelly Doualla. Their performance surpassed the previous world U20 record of 41.60, which had been set by Great Britain & NI in the second heat on Thursday.
The Great Britain & NI team’s time of 41.60 had itself broken the world U20 record of 41.64, set by Australia in the first heat. The mixed 4x100m event made its debut at the World U20 Championships this year. In the final, Great Britain also ran faster than their previous world record mark, finishing in 41.38 to claim the silver medal. The USA team was close behind, securing bronze with a time of 41.39, just one hundredth of a second behind Great Britain.
Other teams in the mixed 4x100m relay final included Nigeria, who finished fourth 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 race.
Early Rounds and Qualifications
Earlier in the championships, Le’Ezra Brown had already made an impact by breaking his own American U20 record in the men’s 110-meter hurdles during his first-round heat, despite hitting the final barrier. His time in that heat was 12.89 seconds. Zacchaeus Brocks also won his heat with a time of 13.11, with both athletes advancing to the semifinals.
In the women’s 100 hurdles, Madeline Cooper and Tori Goodson both recorded identical times of 13.36 in their respective heats, qualifying for the semifinals. The first round of the 200 meters saw Mia Maxwell (23.30), Mariah Maxwell (23.37), Tate Taylor (21.02), and Blake Hamilton (20.54) all advance to the semifinals. Amir Thompson of Barbados, who recently transferred from Arizona State to Texas A&M, also won his first-round heat with a time of 20.49.
In other events, Jamaican sprinter Gary Card, the silver medallist in the 100 meters, was initially disqualified for a lane infringement but was later reinstated and listed for the Friday night semifinal. His teammate Nathaniel Martin was also disqualified. Great Britain’s Jake Odey-Jordan advanced on time after finishing fourth in his heat with 20.69.
In field events, American javelin throwers Emily Harbach and Sophia Mazzoni both qualified for the finals. Burklie Burton from Oklahoma State achieved the longest throw in the qualification round of the women’s hammer with 68.03m (223-2), and Meagan Ewers of the U.S. also advanced. Quincy Isaac qualified for the final of the men’s long jump with a mark of 7.91m (25-11).
The records set by Le’Ezra Brown and Italy are subject to the usual ratification procedure.
Source: worldathletics.org