Andre De Grasse, of Canada, receives high fives from fans during the men's 200-metre heat at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
BUDAPEST, Hungary – A trio of Canadians are through to the men’s 200-metre semifinals at the World Athletics Championships.
Andre De Grasse, Aaron Brown and Brendon Rodney all placed no lower than second in their respective heats.
De Grasse of Markham, Ont., the reigning Olympic champion in the 200, ran 20.28 seconds to finish second behind young American star Erriyon Knighton – and last year’s worlds bronze medallist – in the sixth heat.
Toronto’s Brown was second (20.08) in a competitive first heat behind Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes (19.99), the 100 bronze medallist, that saw five sprinters qualify.
Toronto’s Brendon Rodney won the fourth heat with a season-best time of 20.14 seconds.
The semifinals are Thursday with the final taking place on Friday.
Toronto’s Jazz Shukla advanced into the women’s 800 semifinals with a personal-best time of two minutes 30 seconds. Madeleine Kelly of Pembroke, Ont., failed to qualify at 2:04.72.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug, 23, 2023.
