Drama at Worlds: Duplantis with world record, Hocker DQ’d, Rogers earns gold

© Copyright – 2025 – Athletics Illustrated

The drama was high for Day 3 at the 2025 Tokyo World Athletics Championships.

Armand Duplantis bettered his own world record in the pole vault, earning gold for Sweden. Canada’s Camryn Rogers successfully defended her hammer throw title from the 2023 Budapest Championships. And American 1500 metre runner Cole Hocker was disqualified in the semi-final, for impeding a competitor.

Armand Duplantis

Armand Duplantis is far and away the greatest pole vaulter of all time. This was established a few years ago, but he continues to win dramatically.

In case you missed it 👀

6.30m 🤝 @mondohoss600 #WorldAthleticsChamps pic.twitter.com/BCIJQQ1V0X

— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) September 15, 2025

Duplantis failed in two attempts at a height of 6.30 metres. Perhaps he was playing out the drama for an exciting third and final attempt? Perhaps not, as he jiggled the bar at the top. But one can never know, as he was celebrating before he landed. And the 25-year-old took his time to run around the stadium track, through the infield and twice into the stands. He high-fived volunteers and showboated for the cameras.

Duplantis was the first person to clear 6.20m in July 2022, when he reached a height of 6.21m at the Eugene World Athletics Championships. France’s Renaud Lavillenie did one better seven months later, vaulting 6.22 in February 2023 in Clermont-Ferrand, France, and then it has been all Duplantis since.

Progression

Camryn Rogers

Camryn Rogers, the Paris Olympic and 2023 Budapest World Championships gold medallist, successfully defended her title with a hammer throw of 80.51m, which is a new Canadian and North American distance record.

The Canadian’s previous best was 78.62m thrown in Los Angeles in 2023.

"WAIT, did that just happen?”🤯

Camryn Rogers reacts to becoming a back-to-back world champion in hammer throw https://t.co/JadjiuSD4l pic.twitter.com/v7VHSIJvoZ

— CBC Sports (@cbcsports) September 15, 2025

Rogers is now the second-best thrower in history, behind her hero Anita Wlodarczyk of Poland, who has a best of 82.98m. Rogers and Wolodarcyk are the only athletes to throw 80m-plus in history.

The Richmond (Greater Vancouver) resident joins fellow Richmond athlete Even Dunfee in race walking as a gold medallist at these World Championships.

Cole Hocker

Cole Hocker, the defending Olympic champion from Paris 2024 in the 1500m event, got boxed in during the final lap of the semi-final in Tokyo. During the final 50m, he split two runners ahead of him to take second place. In the process, it was determined that Hocker impeded another athlete and was disqualified.

Hocker violated World Athletics rule TR 17.12. He obstructed German runner Robert Farken, causing Farken to lose momentum and fall out of the six automatic qualifying spots.

🚨BREAKING: Olympic 1500m champion 🇺🇸Cole Hocker DQed for "jostling" as he moved between runners on the homestretch in the semi. #WorldAthleticsChamps pic.twitter.com/TDihImY9wo

— Travis Miller (@travismillerx13) September 15, 2025

The 24-year-old American athlete finished seventh during the 2023 Budapest World Athletics Championships.

Meanwhile, Canadian Foster Malleck tripped, and Italy’s Frederico Riva fell to the track during the same incident. The two finished in good sportsmanship, jogging across the line in 4:14.09 and 4:14.39, respectively.

It appears that the final is going to be exciting. See the results below with the accompanying “Q” for qualified.

Semi-final results

Semi-Final 1

Semi-Final 2