Samba, Bassem and Ismail sizzle on way to 400m hurdles semis at worlds

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September 15, 2025
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15-September-2025

Samba, Bassem and Ismail sizzle on way to 400m hurdles semis at worlds

TOKYO - Qatar enjoyed a landmark day in Tokyo as three of its 400m hurdlers advanced to the semi-finals on day three of the World Athletics Championships - Tokyo 2025, while Seif Mohamed earned a creditable top-10 finish in the pole vault.

Abderrahman Samba, the Asian record holder and former World Championships bronze medalist, was in imperious form topping the entire field of 44 athletes with a commanding 48.03-second run in his heat at the National Stadium on Monday.

Teammate Bassem Hemeida added to Qatar’s success by winning his own heat in 48.43 seconds, edging out Brazil’s Alison Dos Santos.

The Paris Olympic bronze medalist and ex-world champion had to settle for second, finishing five-hundredths of a second behind the Qatari star.

Youngster Ismail Doudai Abakar, only 21, provided another highlight when he clocked 48.34 seconds in a heat that featured Norway’s world-record holder Karsten Warholm.

In a surprise outcome, Brazil’s Matheus Lima took the win, but Abakar crossed the line ahead of Warholm to secure his place in the next round.

With all three through, Qatar will have a strong presence in Tuesday’s semi-finals, fueling hopes of a historic medal run in the 400m hurdles.

Meanwhile, Qatar’s rising pole vault talent Seif Heneida Mohamed wrapped up his World Championships campaign with a commendable top-10 finish in the final.

The 20-year-old cleared 5.75m to secure ninth place against the world’s best. The event was once again ruled by Sweden’s pole vault phenomenon Armand Mondo Duplantis, who raised the bar even higher by resetting the world record for an extraordinary 14th time, soaring to 6.30m.

Earlier, Qatar’s Omar Doudai Abakar came last in his heat in the men’s 110 metres hurdles, clocking a time of 14.03 secs.