GB's Azu fourth at World Indoors in 'one of best 60m races of all time'

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GB's Azu finishes fourth in 'one of the best 60m races of all time'

45 CommentsUpdated 1 hour agoDefending champion Jeremiah Azu narrowly missed out on a medal in "one of the best 60m races of all time" at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Poland.

Twelve months after claiming the first global title of his career with world indoor gold in China, Azu missed out on a return to the podium by just 0.01 seconds as he clocked 6.46 seconds in Torun.

The 24-year-old always faced fierce competition as he sought to defend his title but displayed his medal credentials by improving his personal best to 6.45 in the semi-finals - a time which moved him to second on the British all-time list behind Dwain Chambers.

But American Jordan Anthony, who arrived at the championships as the fastest man this year, ran the joint-fourth fastest time in history as he improved to 6.41 to take gold ahead of Jamaica's Olympic and world 100m medallist Kishane Thompson.

Thompson and American Trayvon Bromell both finished in 6.45 to complete the podium and deny Azu in a thrilling conclusion to the opening day of action.

"An electric performance - we've witnessed one of the best 60m races of all time so that's a very special thing in itself, and Jeremiah Azu was in the mix.

"Azu got out very sharp - he's one of the fastest starters in the world - but Anthony was out a little bit ahead and did what was necessary."

"It's track and field - you win some you lose some. I'm still able to use this gift to try and inspire people. But it's tough to take right now."

Earlier on Friday, Olympic champion and indoor world record holder Keely Hodgkinson controlled her women's 800m heat from start to finish to win in two minutes 00.32 seconds and reach the semi-finals, where she will be joined by team-mate Isabelle Boffey.

Ben Pattison, winner of world 800m bronze in 2023, won his heat in 1:47.48 to advance to the semi-finals of the men's event, which also take place on Saturday morning.

Olympic and world medallist Georgia Hunter Bell secured her place in the women's 1500m final by placing first in 4:12.09, but Jemma Reekie missed out after finishing fourth in her race.

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Jeremiah Azu won world and European indoor 60m titles in 2025

Azu arrived at these championships high on confidence and instilled with well-founded belief that he was "fitter and faster than ever".

The Welshman demonstrated that by running a lifetime best in qualifying for the final - but, in an event decided by hundredths of a second, it was not enough against a stellar line-up.

Azu had already shown his winter progress by running a personal best of 6.47 seconds this month, shaving 0.02 off the time which brought him indoor world and European gold last year.

He described his build-up to last year's championships as a "mess" - though it did not prevent him from recording his breakthrough gold - after he chose to end two years of training in Italy and returned to Wales to start a family.

Now reunited with childhood coach Helen James, Azu continues to progress - his new best leaves him within 0.03 secs of Chambers' 17-year British record.

It is a promising start to what he hopes will be a memorable 2026 season, as he targets international honours on home soil at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and European Championships in Birmingham.

"To run 6.45, 6.46 back-to-back, I'm in a great place. My winter was definitely good," Azu said.

"I'm coming up short to some of the all-time greats. It's a learning curve but I'm grateful to my family and I'm grateful to God for the position that I'm in. I wouldn't be here without them."

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