WORLDS DAILY: The Sweep Life (Day 3)

I can’t think of many moments more thrilling in track and field history than what we just witnessed last night.

In the first World Championships ever held on U.S. soil, in a newly-refurbished and packed Hayward Field, in the most recognizable and popular event in track and field, a trio of Americans stormed down the straightaway, edging ever-so-slightly ahead of the best sprinters in the world, to take the top three spots in the men’s 100 meters. It was a definitive statement about American athleticism, about teamwork and camaraderie, and about what athletics means to a nation that often puts other sports first.

Fred Kerley, who picked up a silver medal in Tokyo after moving down from the 400m to the 100m, showed that his 2021 season was no fluke, winning each round of the competition as he did at USAs to claim his first individual global title. Behind him, the too-often-overlooked Marvin Bracy made his presence known in second, thousandths of a second ahead of Trayvon Bromell, who got the championship monkey off his back after failing to make the Olympic final.

The evening went well for Americans from start to finish, as Chase Ealey claimed the world title in the women’s shot put. Her first-round throw of 20.49m was an early statement that the world leader also was determined to be world champion, and it withstood an onslaught from the following rounds and a heroic silver-medal performance from veteran Lijao Gong to deliver the gold to Team USA.

Earlier in the day in the women’s 10,000m, the final laps of the race were a barn-burner as Letesenbet Gidey of Ethiopia held off Kenyan rivals Hellen Obiri and Margaret Kipkemboi along with defending champ Sifan Hassan to pick up her first global track title. The world record holder was known more as a fast time-trialer than a championship kicker, but her victory and 60-second final lap should put that criticism to rest for quite some time. Karissa Schweizer was the top American in 9th, notching a big personal best of 30:18.09 and moving from No. 4 to No. 3 on the U.S. all-time list (leapfrogging her coach, Shalane Flanagan).

In the 1500s, the men’s favorites advanced to the semi and the women’s favorites advanced to the final. The big casualties on the day for the Americans were Cooper Teare, who later told media he was battling a stress reaction following USAs and Elle St. Pierre who’s had a tough season since coming back from COVID. The women’s 100m heats went according to to form and we may see a sweep of the Jamaican variety again tomorrow night.

Today’s CITIUS MAG Live featured USATF President Vin Lananna, Tokyo silver medalist Raven Saunders, and 1:57 800m runner Kate Grace. If you missed it, you can watch their conversations on YouTube.

SCHEDULE AND TV DETAILS FOR DAY 3 (all times EST):

9:15 am Men’s Marathon Final

1:35 pm Women’s 100m Hurdles (Heptathlon)2:05 pm Men’s 400m Heats2:35 pm Women’s High Jump (Heptathlon)2:35 pm Women’s Hammer Throw Final3:00 pm Women’s 400m Heats4:00 pm Men’s 10,000m Final4:25 pm Women’s Shot Put (Heptathlon)

8:05 pm Men’s 110m Hurdles Semi-Final8:05 pm Men’s Discus Throw Qualification8:27 pm Women’s Pole Vault Final8:33 pm Women’s 100m Semi-Final9:03 pm Men’s 400 Metres Hurdles Semi-Final9:27 pm Men’s Shot Put Final9:38 pm Women’s 200m (Heptathlon)10:00 pm Men’s 1500m Semi-Final10:30 pm Men’s 110m Hurdles Final10:50 pm Women’s 100m Final

You’ll be doing some channel-surfing again today: the marathon will be broadcast on CNBC from 9:00-11:30am EST, and the track events will be on NBC from 2:00-4:30 pm EST, CNBC from 8:00-10:00 pm EST, and NBC from 10:00-11:00 pm EST. In addition to the TV broadcast, world-feed coverage of all competition sessions will stream live on Peacock.

Full timetable and live results | Full streaming details

MUST-WATCH EVENTS OF THE DAY: (Presented by Hayward Magic)

WOMEN’S 100 METERS

The Tokyo podium of Elaine Thompson-Herah, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, and Shericka Jackson basically jogged through the first round of the 100 meters, setting themselves up for a battle royale in the final. While Thompson-Herah is the reigning Olympic gold medalist and always performs her best in championships, Fraser-Pryce is the defending World champ and has looked untouchable all year. While U.S. fans are still reeling from the sweep of the men’s 100m, the passionate track fans of Jamaica will surely be eagerly tuning in to watch, and hopefully celebrate, their biggest stars’ attempt to sweep the podium two years in a row.

What to watch for: Jamaica swept the medals in this event in Tokyo. Can they sweep all six podium spots in two years?

What to tell your friends: The two greatest sprinters of the 21st century are going head-to-head.

Who breaks up the sweep: Dina Asher-Smith of Great Britain looked phenomenal in the first round, running 10.85 (only 0.01 off her lifetime best). If she can knock a few more hundredths off that time over the next few rounds, the sweep might not be quite the foregone conclusion it seemed a few days ago.

MEN’S 110M HURDLES

One of the most closely-contested events in the entire championships is the men’s 110m hurdles. I previewed the event for newsletter readers already, but the update from the first round is that Americans Grant Holloway, Devon Allen, and Trey Cunningham sailed through easily along with Olympic champ Hansle Parchment of Jamaica. The final tonight will surely be must-see TV.

What to watch for: How close does the winner of this race come to the 12.80 world record?

What to tell your friends: Sub-13 seconds is very rare in this event and we might get 3 or more in one race.

How about the rookie: NCAA champ Trey Cunningham looked good in his World Championship debut. How does he fare against the steepest competition he’s ever faced?

MUST-WATCH ATHLETE OF THE DAY: RYAN CROUSER (Presented by Hayward Magic)

The indoor and outdoor world record holder, two-time Olympic champ, and undisputed GOAT of the men’s shot put is only missing one thing from his impressive resume: a World Championships title. He took silver in 2019 by one centimeter, and despite his dominance over the last few years, he was upset at World Indoors this year by Brazil’s Darlan Romani. Nobody wants to perform big in front of the home crowd more than Crouser, the Oregon native who is something of a hometown hero.

Crouser looked extremely casual throwing 22.28m, the farthest throw of the qualifying round by a good margin, on Friday, and he’s already bettered 23 meters twice at Hayward Field this year. If he keeps breaking his own world record of 23.37m, they’re going to need to build a bigger pit…

What to watch for: Can Crouser snap his Worlds curse?

What to tell your friends: The hometown hero could test whether Hayward Field’s shot put space was actually built big enough.

Will the U.S. go 1-2: Crouser’s teammate and rival Joe Kovacs is no slouch himself, with two global golds and three silvers in this event. Can he pick up another silver - or even dethrone the king, like he did in 2019?

TWEET OF THE DAY: Inspirational Words from SAFP

“We’re not limited,” says Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who is seeking her 12th World championship medal at age 35, “and we have time. A lot of people think that every dream we have should be accomplished in our 20s, but you can still do it in your 30s. You can still chase your goals.”

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

All the emotions of a World final on display at the finish line of the women’s 10,000m.

Photo captured by: Justin Britton

Marvin Bracy tackles Trayvon Bromell after the pair take silver and bronze in the men’s 100m.

Photo captured by: Justin Britton

Nothing but smiles and a big thumbs-up from Olympic champ Jakob Ingebrigtsen after cruising through the first round of the men’s 1500m.

Photo captured by: Johnny Zhang

FOLLOW ALONG WITH CITIUS MAG:

CITIUS MAG LIVE AT WORLDS: Every day of the World Championships, we will invite athletes, coaches and fellow media members to kick back for fun interviews with Chris Chavez, Kyle Merber, and ESPN SportsCenter host John Anderson. Today’s show will air live at 5:30 pm EST with a whole new group of entertaining guests.

CHAMPS CHATS ON THE CITIUS MAG PODCAST DAILY: The CITIUS MAG team of Chris Chavez, Kyle Merber Jasmine Todd, and Katelyn Hutchison unpack all of the day’s biggest surprises and offer up their insights and analysis from being at Hayward Field and interviewing athletes each day.

DAILY MORNING RUNS: If you’re in Eugene, catch some miles with The CITIUS MAG team in partnership with Garmin and Tracksmith Running. We’ll have giveaways, coffee and treats for people in town. On most days, we will meet in front of the CITIUS MAG House at 1981 Moss Street and go for some easy miles along Pre’s Trail, the Amazon Trail. We’ll also have a special day at Dorris Ranch. We’ll plan to start these runs at 8:30 am each day.

Tracksmith is a presenting sponsor of CITIUS MAG’s coverage of the World Championships. CITIUS MAG Newsletter readers get a special offer only during the World Championships. Visit Tracksmith.com and use code WORLDS at checkout for 20% off. That’s for all readers - whether you’re new to Tracksmith, or if you’re like me and already have a whole wardrobe in your closet. New customers who spend $150 or more can receive a free Van Cortlandt Singlet in Navy. Go to Tracksmith.com/vcpromo to add your singlet to your cart. When your total cart from other items has reached or exceeded $150, the price will reduce to $0 in cart.

In addition to our content, Tracksmith partnered with Puma to produce a six-episode podcast series with Pushkin Industries as best-selling author and Revisionist History podcast host Malcolm Gladwell explores the story of the 1960s San Jose State Track and Field team that excelled on the track but also led the protest at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. “Legacy of Speed” features conversations with athletes, journalists, coaches, and documentarians who made it happen. Listen to Legacy of Speed on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your shows. Get tickets to his live show in Eugene here.

Hayward Magic has a lot slated for the World Championships with Demitra Carter returning with her mini mic for Tiny Talks on the track, Real Talks interviews with Tiara Williams, always-entertaining content from the 2 Black Runners Podcast, and a few other surprises throughout the week. Tap into Hayward Magic's coverage of the action in Eugene. Follow them on Instagram: @HaywardMagic.

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