World Athletics Championships 2025: Dina Asher-Smith, Zharnel Hughes, Gout Gout advance in 200m heats as 'ridiculous' Bryan Levell impresses
Published 17/09/2025 at 14:14 GMT+1
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Great Britain's Dina Asher-Smith, Amy Hunt and Daryll Neita all advanced into the semi-finals of the 200m at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. Zharnel Hughes also progressed, coming second in his heat behind Noah Lyles. Australian Gout Gout, 17, reached the semis on his World Championships debut, while Bryan Levell also impressed with his performance.
‘Looking strong’ – Lyles and Hughes cruise through men’s 200m heats
Video credit: TNT Sports
Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith and Zharnel Hughes both qualified for the 200m semi-finals at the World Athletics Championships, along with highly-touted Australian 17-year-old Gout Gout.
Asher-Smith won her heat in a time of 22.40 seconds to ease into Thursday’s semis in Tokyo.
She will be joined by Brits Amy Hunt and Daryll Neita, who moved through after coming second and third, respectively, in their heats.
Neita is aiming for 200m success after missing out on a place in the 100m final.
"My main goal is to get through the rounds and qualify. I did that today so I can go and recover," she told the BBC.
"My legs feel good. It is great to be back out there. I was disappointed about the 100m final but this is what I will focus on now. I am going to take that loss as fuel, put it in a box and move on."
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Great Britain's Zharnel Hughes
Image credit: Getty Images
Women's 100m champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden also advanced into the semis along with fellow American Anavia Battle and Jamaican Shericka Jackson.
Hughes came second in his heat with a time of 20.07 seeing him finish behind Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles.
"The body is feeling good. It is waking up," said Lyles, who won bronze in the 100m in Tokyo.
"The goal was to blast the first 100m and I did that. Zharnel was showing that he was ready too so I had to show what I could do as well.
"When I get to the final, we will have to see what my plan is. When I get there."
There were plenty of eyes on Gout as he made his World Athletics Championships debut after breaking a series of records at youth levels.
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Australian sprinter Gout Gout
Image credit: Getty Images
The 17-year-old, who set a new Australian 200m record of 20.02 earlier this summer, came third in his heat to reach the semis.
The most impressive performer in the men’s heats was Jamaican Bryan Levell, who wowed with his speed as he won in 19.84.
Levell powered into a big lead around the bend and was coasting as he approached the finish line.
"What about Bryan Levell and the way he came out of the blocks," said TNT Sports commentator Tim Hutchings.
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"By 100m he had three or four metres on the rest of the field. That is ridiculous. He switched off 15m out and could have gone much quicker than 19.84."
The men’s 200m semis are on Thursday evening, with the finals of both the men's and women's 200m on Friday.
How to watch the 2025 World Athletics Championships
TNT Sports will broadcast 30 hours of live television coverage from the World Athletics Championships, available in addition to a daily highlights programme. Streaming subscribers will also be able to watch nearly 50 events live and on-demand via discovery+.
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