Tobi Amusan secures silver in women’s 100m hurdles at World Athletics Championships in Tokyo

Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan, on Monday at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, earned the silver medal in the women’s 100 metres hurdles, finishing just behind Switzerland’s Ditaji Kambundji, who set a new national record to claim gold.

Kambundji, aged 23, delivered an impressive performance, crossing the finish line in 12.24 seconds, breaking her own personal best and capturing Switzerland’s inaugural world title in this discipline. Amusan, the defending champion from 2022 and current world record holder, closely followed with a time of 12.29 seconds, marking Nigeria’s twelfth medal at the World Championships to date.

The bronze medal was won by American athlete Grace Stark, who finished with a time of 12.34 seconds. Another U.S. competitor, Masai Russell, came in fourth, clocking 12.44 seconds after a comparatively slow reaction time of 0.240 seconds, the slowest among the finalists.

Elsewhere in the field, Poland’s Pia Skrzyszowska matched her best seasonal time of 12.49 seconds to claim fifth place, narrowly edging out Bahamian hurdler Devynne Charlton who posted the same mark. Jamaica’s Danielle Williams, the reigning world champion from 2023, finished seventh in 12.53 seconds, while Nadine Visser of the Netherlands rounded out the top eight with 12.56 seconds.

Earlier in the semifinals, Amusan appeared dominant, winning her heat in 12.36 seconds ahead of Visser and Skrzyszowska, raising hopes that she might successfully defend her title. However, despite a strong start in the final, she could not keep pace with Kambundji’s late acceleration.

With this achievement, 28-year-old Amusan adds another prestigious accolade to her collection, following her historic gold medal victory in Eugene in 2022 when she set a world record of 12.12 seconds.