Christian Coleman cemented his status as the world’s fastest man and the Olympic favorite, winning his first world 100m title in Doha on Saturday night.
Coleman ran away from the field in 9.76 seconds, a personal best to make him the sixth-fastest man in history. He prevailed by .13 of a second over countryman Justin Gatlin in a reversal of their finish at the last worlds in 2017. Canadian Andre De Grasse took bronze in 9.90.
Coleman will finish a third straight season with the world’s fastest time, taking the mantle from Usain Bolt (retired with bronze in that 2017 final) and going into an Olympic year with the most built-up momentum for any 100m sprinter in recent memory.
In addition to his world-leading times, Coleman has in this Olympic cycle broken the indoor 60m world record and run a 40-yard dash in 4.12 seconds, one tenth faster than the NFL Combine record.
He raced in Doha for the first time in two months, having missed the end of the Diamond League season while dealing with a case of missed drug tests. He was ultimately cleared by close inspection of the rules, but felt the need to defend himself by posting a 22-minute YouTube video explanation titled “My Perspective.”
“It was such a long season, and for me to make it here and come out with a gold medal, it’s incredible,” Coleman said on the BBC. “I was just coming out of college, and I got a silver medal [in 2017], but not many people expected me to. But this time around, it’s pretty hard to up a silver medal. There’s only one spot to go.”
The U.S. won another gold medal Saturday — its first world medal of any color in the hammer throw. DeAnna Price, who came into the meet with the top three throws in the world this year, launched it 77.54 meters for the win. Price, who was eighth in Rio, improved on the previous U.S. women’s hammer finish at an Olympics or worlds of sixth.
“I didn’t even think I was going to compete this year,” Price told Lewis Johnson on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA. “I was in a lot of pain. I couldn’t even throw over 70 meters.”
In Saturday’s other track final, Ethiopian-born Dutchwoman Sifan Hassan completed what could be the first half of a 10,000m-5000m double by taking the longer distance in 30:17.62. Hassan, who broke the mile world record in July, passed Ethiopian Letesenbet Gidey just before the bell and prevailed by 3.61 seconds.
Jamaica, without Bolt at worlds for the first time since 2003, still managed to pick up a gold on the night of the men’s 100m final. It was a surprise, going to long jumper Tajay Gayle. Gayle leaped a national record 8.69 meters, best in the world this year, to relegate U.S. Olympic champion Jeff Henderson to silver.
In track semifinals, all three 400m hurdles favorites advanced to Monday’s final — defending champion Karsten Warholm of Norway (48.20), American Rai Benjamin (48.52) and home-crowd favorite Abderrahman Samba of Qatar (48.72). The longest-standing men’s track world record could fall given they rank Nos. 2-4 in history. Kevin Young set the standard of 46.78 at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
American Donavan Brazier‘s chances increased for Tuesday’s 800m final when he won his semifinal and with the withdrawal of the world’s fastest man this year — Botswana’s Nijel Amos (Achilles). U.S. Olympic bronze medalist Clayton Murphy also made the final, which will not include two-time Olympic champion and world-record holder David Rudisha. The Kenyan has been out more than two years due in part to injuries.
Americans Ajee Wilson and Raevyn Rogers won women’s 800m semis, setting up a potential one-two in Monday’s final. The event lacks two-time Olympic champion Caster Semenya, plus the Rio silver and bronze medalists, all of whom are out due to the IAAF’s new rules capping testosterone in women’s events between the 400m and the mile.
Also Saturday, all of the women’s 100m favorites advanced to Sunday, when the semifinals and final will be contested. That includes Jamaican Olympic champions Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (10.80 seconds) and Elaine Thompson (11.14). All four Americans also advanced, including defending world champion Tori Bowie (11.30).
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