by Alfonz Juck
QUOTE OF THE DAY
Andy Díaz Hernández: “My plan was never to jump only once. I felt strong to set a new record, but it didn’t happen this time. There was a very long wait in between jumps, so I was quite inactive for too long and this led to the decision of skipping the following attempts. But, I feel strong, and this is indicative that good jumps could happen this summer. Jumping 18 metres us is a benchmark that all triple jumpers aspire and aim for – 18 metres and a bit further than that, of course. To be honest, when the competition is tighter your body reacts differently. There is a different feeling to it, a different type of emotion. There is no doubt that we were missing some of the global elite athletes – like Pedro [Pichardo] and Jordan [Díaz], but had they been here today, I would have still taken this world indoor title. That was what I came here for, but I am looking forward to competing against them in the summer.”
RESULT OF THE DAY
European Indoor champion Andy Díaz Hernández leaped to Italian national record and world lead of 17.80 in the triple jump first series and clearly won also the World Indoor title, with his only successful attempt (posting two fails and three skipped). He moved to tenth position in the European all-time lists.
SURPRISE OF THE DAY
23-year-old Jamaican Raymond Richards won the bronze medal in the high jump, clearing 228 – his second best performance all-time, at his first ever global championships. He started the 2025 season with a lifetime best of 225 and improved to 230 earlier this month at an outdoor meet in Jamaica.
MEDALS (14 countries)
CAN, FIN, GBR, ITA, KOR 1-0-0
POINTS (24 countries)
USA 27; CHN 20; JAM 15; ITA 11
TITLE DEFENDERS
Yes (1): Mitton
No (2): Zango, Kerr
NC (2): Vidts, Coleman
TOP MARKS
WL (1): 17.80 A.Díaz
AR (1): 1 – South America
AGENTS (individual titles)
1 – Younghoon Chung, Caroline Feith, Eric Lilot, Hans Üürike
Vanninen has no agent
STATS
W Pen: Vanninen won her second medal at WI and with 1-1-0 moved to tied third behind Vidts and Dobrynska; 188 points is the biggest difference between 3-4; first title for FIN, first medal for IRL.
W SP: Mitton won her second WI title and moved behind three-time champions (Adams and Krivelyova), third medal for Jackson (0-1-2), and second for Schilder (0-1-1); CAN moved to 3rd with second gold (behind RUS and NZL).
M 60: 0.01sec. is the (tied) second lowest victory margin; fourth title for GBR (second behind USA), first medals for AUS and RSA.
M HJ: 231 by Woo Sanghyeok is the lowest winning height at WI; third medal for Woo (2-0-1) and Kerr (1-1-1).
M TJ: Andy Díaz’s 17.80 is the third best performance at WI; 47cm is the biggest victory margin, also 65cm is the second biggest difference between 1-3; second medal for Zango (1-0-1).
M 1500: 3:36.60 by Neil Gourley is the fastest 1st round time at WI, 3:37.94 by Ruben Verheyden is the fastest non-qualifier for the final.
M 400: 45.70 by Christopher Bailey is the fastest 1st round time at WI.
NANJING (CHN): There were rare medals at the World Athletics Indoor Championships for both Finland and Ireland in the pentathlon. Saga Vanninen became just the second Finnish gold medallist in championship history while Kate O’Connor, who won silver, picked up Ireland’s first medal of any colour since Derval O’Rourke in Moscow 2006.
NANJING (CHN): Finland’s Saga Vanninen (pentathlon), Great Britain’s Jeremiah Azu (60m) and Italy’s Andy Diaz (triple jump) all completed European Indoor Championships and World Indoor Championships doubles in their respective events.
NANJING (CHN): At 35, Raphael Pallitsch made the 1500m final at the World Athletics Indoor Championships. In doing so, he becomes the first Austrian to make a global men’s 1500m final since the 1900 Olympics.
NANJING (CHN): South Africa’s Akani Simbine has finally won a global medal, after making it to seven 100m finals at the 2013-2024 Olympics and World Championships. Xie Zhenye of China finished fourth in the men’s 60m at the World Indoor Championships for the third time, after 2016 and 2018.
NANJING (CHN): For the first time in the history of any championships it was decided after the competition that an athlete will not get a medal due to a shoe situation. The spikes of Brazilian triple jumper Alison dos Santos (initially third 17.22) were not according to the rules and he was subsequently disqualified.
NANJING (CHN): The athletics track for the World Indoor Championships is equipped with Mondo’s Sportflex Super X 720 K39, a sport surface with a long and well-established reputation. Mondo has also produced and customized the high-competition equipment that will be used during the Nanjing 25. The extensive list of equipment includes hurdles, uprights, landing areas for jumps, carts, indicators, and relay batons.
The spectacular range of World Athletics-Mondo equipment will also be showcased in the pole vault and high jump uprights (both equipped with LED technology that synchronizes with the event proceedings), starting blocks, weight carts, and chalk containers. All Mondo equipment is personalized with the branding of the championship.
NANJING (CHN): For first time at World Indoors new competition regulation for long jump, triple jump and shot put. After three rounds, the top ten athletes will advance. After four rounds top 8 and after five rounds top 6 for the final round. Another change is for the 4×400 m relay, the line-up for 2nd, 3rd and 4th leg by the judges will be based on position of the runners after the first lap of each leg.
NANJING (CHN): Some national records achieved during the first day. BRA (400m, Lima 45.79, also AR), CHI (400m, 51.67 Weil), IRI (1500m, 3:43.37 Zamanpour), ITA (TJ, 17.80 Díaz), PUR (60m, Benitez 6.49), SGP (60m, Louis 6.68, equaled).
