Nakajima Places 6th in 400m at World Athletics Championships

Jiji Press

11:42 JST, September 19, 2025

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Yuki Joseph Nakajima placed sixth in the men’s 400 meters at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo on Thursday, achieving the best-ever finish by a Japanese male athlete in the event at the biennial meet.

Nakajima, 23, recorded 44.62 seconds in the final for the 400-meter event.

The previous best finish by a Japanese man was seventh, achieved by Susumu Takano in the 1991 World Athletics Championships in the Japanese capital.

“I really wanted to win a medal,” Nakajima said after the race. “I tried to show a better performance, but I wasn’t strong enough. I will work hard to win a gold medal next year and the year after that.”

Meanwhile, Takano, who watched the men’s 400 meters final in the spectator stand, said that the sixth place for Nakajima was “excellent.”

“I thought he would get a medal if he ran at his best,” Takano said, adding, “He is still 23 years old, so I want him to keep pushing himself for a medal.”

Among other Japanese athletes in the ongoing championships at the Japan National Stadium, Nozomi Tanaka, 26, reached the women’s 5,000 meters final, recording 14:47.14 in Heat 1 in the qualifying round. She qualified the final for the fourth consecutive time. The final is set for Saturday.

Towa Uzawa, 22, failed to reach the men’s 200 meters final. Abbygail Fuka Ido, 24, was also eliminated in the women’s 200 meters semifinal.