Photo by: World Athletics, Social
Arop Earns Bronze In 800m Final At World Championships
September 20, 2025 | Track & Field
TOKYO, Japan – Mississippi State's former All-Americans Marco Arop and Navasky Anderson both competed in the 800m final at the World Championships, with Arop taking home bronze.
Arop crossed the line in 1:41.95 for a new season's best and a third-place finish. He was followed closely behind by Anderson, who finished seventh in the field with a new Jamaican national record.
While his quest to repeat gold at the World Championships fell short, Arop leaves Tokyo with hardware and his fastest time of the season. The podium looked similar to that of the Paris Olympics, with Emmanuel Wanyonyi (KEN) and Djamel Sedjati (ALG) also finishing in the top three.
Anderson made history in the race as the first Jamaican man to ever compete in a world 800m final. Crossing the line in 1:42.76, his time is the new Jamaican national record and a new personal best, surpassing his blistering performance in the semifinal that earned him a non-automatic qualifying spot in today's race.
Arop stayed in medal contention for the entirety of the race, trailing closely behind Wanyonyi from the initial break after the first 100m. The final came down to a hard sprint in the final 100m, with Wanyonyi and Sedjati outleaning Arop at the line to finish first and second, respectively. There was a 0.04-millisecond difference between first and second place, and 0.005 milliseconds between silver and bronze.
This race marks Arop's fourth consecutive global medalist performance. He earned bronze in the Eugene Championships, won gold at the Budapest Championships, silver at the Paris Olympics and added another bronze to his collection at this year's Tokyo Championships.
Lee Eppie also competed in the men's 4x400m qualifying section, running the first leg for team Botswana in a 44.32 split. The team finished with the fastest time through both heats of the qualifying section, with the last leg crossing the line in 2:57.68. Botswana will enter tomorrow's final as the top seed in the event, with the reigning champions, Team USA, failing to qualify.
For more information on the Mississippi State track and field program, visit HailState.com and follow "HailStateTF" on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
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Arop crossed the line in 1:41.95 for a new season's best and a third-place finish. He was followed closely behind by Anderson, who finished seventh in the field with a new Jamaican national record.
While his quest to repeat gold at the World Championships fell short, Arop leaves Tokyo with hardware and his fastest time of the season. The podium looked similar to that of the Paris Olympics, with Emmanuel Wanyonyi (KEN) and Djamel Sedjati (ALG) also finishing in the top three.
Anderson made history in the race as the first Jamaican man to ever compete in a world 800m final. Crossing the line in 1:42.76, his time is the new Jamaican national record and a new personal best, surpassing his blistering performance in the semifinal that earned him a non-automatic qualifying spot in today's race.
Arop stayed in medal contention for the entirety of the race, trailing closely behind Wanyonyi from the initial break after the first 100m. The final came down to a hard sprint in the final 100m, with Wanyonyi and Sedjati outleaning Arop at the line to finish first and second, respectively. There was a 0.04-millisecond difference between first and second place, and 0.005 milliseconds between silver and bronze.
This race marks Arop's fourth consecutive global medalist performance. He earned bronze in the Eugene Championships, won gold at the Budapest Championships, silver at the Paris Olympics and added another bronze to his collection at this year's Tokyo Championships.
Lee Eppie also competed in the men's 4x400m qualifying section, running the first leg for team Botswana in a 44.32 split. The team finished with the fastest time through both heats of the qualifying section, with the last leg crossing the line in 2:57.68. Botswana will enter tomorrow's final as the top seed in the event, with the reigning champions, Team USA, failing to qualify.
For more information on the Mississippi State track and field program, visit HailState.com and follow "HailStateTF" on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
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