Portugal’s Isaac Nader outpaced Briton Jake Wightman to claim a surprise gold in the men’s 1,500 metres at the World Championships on Wednesday. Nader executed a devastating attack in the home straight to snatch victory in 3 minutes 34.10 seconds, finishing just two-hundredths of a second ahead of 2022 world champion Wightman.
Kenya’s Reynold Cheruiyot took bronze in a race where Britain’s defending champion Josh Kerr finished last due to injury. The field in Tokyo was thrown wide open ahead of the final when Norway’s 2021 Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen failed to advance past the heats, having sustained an Achilles injury after sweeping to a world indoor double in March. His first outdoor outing in Tokyo proved too much for him, while Olympic champion Cole Hocker was disqualified in the semi-finals on Monday for ‘jostling’.
In the final at the National Stadium, Niels Laros of the Netherlands surged to the front of the pack, with Wightman close behind and Kerr tucked in the middle of the 14-strong pack. The Kenyan duo of Timothy and Reynold Cheruiyot moved to the front, with the former injecting a sudden surge that split the pack.
