Oblique Seville of Jamaica sprinted to a win in the men’s 100-meter at the 2025 World Track and Field Championships, upsetting reigning Olympic champion Noah Lyles.
On the women’s side, South Carolina native Melissa Jefferson-Wooden set a championship-record time of 10.61 seconds to top the podium in Tokyo. It was the fourth-fastest time posted by a woman ever at the distrance.
Seville finished with a personal-best time of 9.77 seconds. His teammate, Kishane Thompson, was second at 9.82, while Lyles finished third at 9.89 seconds.
Lyles, who was hampered by a foot injury this spring, won the gold last summer at the Paris Olympics in 9.79 seconds, beating Thompson in a photo finish. He will compete later this week in the 200m event, his specialty.
“It was a short season with injury, not a lot of races under my belt,” Lyles said. “But, hey, every time I showed up here, I was running faster and better than I ever have. I was very excited with the things that I saw today.”
The win by Seville was the first in the event by a Jamaican since Usain Bolt in the 2016 Olympics.
Jefferson-Wooden continued her stellar 2025 season having not lost a 100m race.
She was followed by Tina Clayton of Jamaica, who ran a 10.76, while Olympic champion Julien Alfred of St. Lucia was third with a 10.84 time.
“I felt myself get out [ahead], then I blacked out after that, thinking ‘get to the line’,” Jefferson-Wooden told BBC Sport. “I saw my time and it hit me, oh my gosh I won!
“I came in as a hunter, I’ve never been a world champion or Olympic champion in the 100m. There will be a target on my back next year so I’ll work out how to navigate that.”
American Sha’Carri Richardson, the defending world champion, finished fifth in 10.94.
–Field Level Media
