The men's sprints: Noah Lyles and the Jamaican challenge. Noah Lyles arrives in Tokyo as the reigning world champion in both the 100m and 200m. The American star is also the reigning Olympic 100m champion, but he hasn't won a final in this event in 2025.

In the 100m, Lyles will face tough competition, including Kishane Thompson, who finished just 0.005 seconds behind him in the 2024 Paris Olympics final. Oblique Seville is another big name, having beaten Lyles at the 2025 London Athletics Grand Prix and the 2025 Athletissima in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Lyles is considered the favorite in his specialty, the 200m. His main rival is Letsile Tebogo, the reigning Olympic champion. However, Lyles has won both of their Diamond League meetings this season.

The 100m final is scheduled for 8:20 PM on 14/9, Hanoi time, while the 200m final will take place at 8:06 PM on 19/9.

The women's 100m battle: Alfred, Richardson, and "queen" Fraser-Pryce. The women's 100m at this year's World Championships promises to be one of the most dramatic showdowns. Olympic champion Julien Alfred will face reigning world champion Sha’Carri Richardson. American star Melissa Jefferson-Wooden is also a strong contender for the gold medal.

Jamaican athletics remains a force to be reckoned with. "Sprint queen" Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce returns to the track at 38, after withdrawing from the 2024 Paris Olympics semifinals. This will be her final season in an illustrious career with seven major titles (two Olympic gold medals and five world championship gold medals).

The women's 100m final is scheduled for 8:13 PM on 14/9.

The men's 400m hurdles battle: Warholm, Benjamin, and Dos Santos. Karsten Warholm, the world record holder and reigning champion, will enter the track in Tokyo determined to reclaim his position after his defeat at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The Norwegian athlete is the only person in history to run under 46 seconds, with a time of 45.94 seconds when he won the gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. But he hasn't been in top form, losing three finals last year. In 2025, Warholm returned strongly with five wins, including a new world record in the unofficial 300m hurdles (32.67 seconds).

However, whenever he faces his two biggest rivals - Olympic champion Rai Benjamin (USA) and Alison dos Santos (Brazil) - Warholm has yet to dominate. He lost to both in the Stockholm Diamond League, then won again in Oslo. This makes the race in Tokyo even more unpredictable.

The men's 400m hurdles final is scheduled for 7:15 PM on 19/9.

Women's high jump: Mahuchikh versus Olyslagers. The women's high jump in Tokyo 2025 is hotter than ever thanks to the competition between Yaroslava Mahuchikh and Nicola Olyslagers.

Mahuchikh, the reigning world and Olympic champion, set a world record last year with a jump of 2.10m. This season, she also held the lead for nearly four consecutive months thanks to a 2.02m jump in Doha in May.

At the end of August, Olyslagers surprised everyone by clearing 2.04m to win the Diamond League Final in Zurich. She achieved the best performance in 2025, while breaking the Oceania record and the Australian national record. Olyslagers is determined to get revenge after finishing behind Mahuchikh in both the 2023 World Championships and the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The women's high jump final is scheduled for 5:05 PM on 20/9.

Men's 1500m: Ingebrigtsen and the battle to overcome injury. Jakob Ingebrigtsen returns to the Japan National Stadium - where he won the 2020 Olympic gold medal - but this time, his form is a big question mark.

Over the past three years, the Norwegian athlete has repeatedly failed at major events: finishing second at the 2022 World Championships (behind Jake Wightman) and 2023 (behind Josh Kerr), then missing out on a medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics when he collapsed in the final stretch. In 2025, the challenge is even greater as he suffered an Achilles tendon injury in May and will only make his outdoor season debut in Tokyo. If he's fit enough, Ingebrigtsen is still a strong contender, but the competition will certainly not be easy.

The men's 1500m is currently one of the fiercest events, with the last four major championships having four different winners: Ingebrigtsen (2021), Wightman (2022), Kerr (2023), and Cole Hocker (2024). Besides, a series of rising names are also ready to challenge, such as Yared Nuguse (USA), Niels Laros (Netherlands, 2024 Olympic bronze medalist), former champion Timothy Cheruiyot (Kenya), and Azeddine Habz (France) - the winner of two Diamond League races this year.

The men's 1500m final is scheduled for 6:50 PM on 18/9.

Women's 400m: McLaughlin-Levrone versus Paulino and Naser. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone - the female athlete who made history with a sub-51-second record in the 400m hurdles - has decided to switch directions in 2025. At 26, she put aside her specialty to focus on conquering the 400m, a long-held dream that was once interrupted by an injury at the 2023 World Championships.

This change immediately created a dream matchup. McLaughlin-Levrone will face two of the biggest current stars: Marileidy Paulino (Dominican Republic, 2024 Olympic gold medalist) and Salwa Eid Naser (Bahrain, Olympic silver medalist and former world champion).

This trio also holds the three fastest times of the 2025 season: Naser leads with 48.67 seconds, followed by Paulino with 48.81 seconds, and McLaughlin-Levrone with 48.90 seconds. All promise a fiery race in Tokyo, where just a moment can decide the gold, silver, and bronze medals.

The women's 400m final is scheduled for 7:50 PM on 20/9.

The 2025 World Athletics Championships Tokyo will take place from 13/9 to 21/9 at the Japan National Stadium in Tokyo. This is the third time Japan has hosted this event, following Tokyo 1991 and Osaka 2007. This year's event attracts more than 2,000 athletes from about 200 countries and territories, competing in 49 events.

The Japan National Stadium, built for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, is the venue for track and field events. Street events such as the marathon and 20km walk will be held on the streets around Tokyo.

Notably, this year's event applies mandatory SRY gene testing for female athletes to determine biological sex. Currently, more than 95% of female athletes have completed the test, with the rest expected to do so in Japan due to legal restrictions in some countries.

Hong Duy

Photo: Reuters, AP