A Japanese men's 4x400 m relay had only made a World Championships final once before in 2003, but this year's squad of Fuga Sato, Kaito Kawabata, Julian Walsh and Joseph Nakajima exceeded expectations, running the 2nd-fastest time in the heats to make the Oregon 22 World Championships final. Sato put the team into contention with Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago for 2nd, Kawabata and Walsh kept them there, and Nakajima surprised by holding off Jamaican Anthony Cox by just 0.06 in a season best 3:01.53. That was better than any team in Heat 2, and, granted, over two and a half seconds behind the United States, but not even Japanese TV announcers seemed to have expected the squad to make the final let alone have a medal within the realm of possibility. Another big run in the final will do a lot to make up for the disappointment of a second-straight 4x100 m exchange failure.
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Both Japanese women in the 100 m hurdles went on to the semifinals on time, Mako Fukube taking 4th in Heat 5 in 12.96 +0.5 and Masumi Aoki 5th in Heat 6 in 13.12 -0.4. No such luck for Sumire Hata, 20th in women's long jump qualifying with a jump of 6.39 m +0.4.
Roderick Genki Dean came up just short of making top 8 in the men's javelin throw final, tying his 2012 London Olympics final position of 9th at 80.69 m. Replicating his 82.34 m throw in the qualifying round would have put Dean at 7th. After a participation run in the women's 800 m heats, Nozomi Tanaka was 20 seconds off her best in the 5000 m final, falling off the large lead group by halfway with a 3:08 third kilometer and finishing 12th of 14 in 15:19.35.
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