Jamaica’s Rohan Watson and Barbados’ Julian Forde gave strong accounts of themselves in the men’s 60m final at the 2025 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China, on Friday, finishing fifth and seventh respectively against a world-class field.

Watson, who qualified for the final with the fourth-fastest time from the heats, clocked 6.59 seconds in a tightly contested final, placing just behind China’s Zhenye Xie and South Africa’s Akani Simbine. Simbine, a perennial contender on the international stage, earned his first individual global medal with a time of 6.54 seconds to take bronze.

European champion Jeremiah Azu of Great Britain powered to victory in 6.49 seconds, equaling his personal best and holding off a late surge from Australia’s Lachlan Kennedy, who claimed silver in 6.50.

Forde, representing Barbados, crossed the line in 6.64 seconds, capping a breakthrough championship where he advanced all the way to the final and proved he belongs among the world’s elite.

Puerto Rico’s Eloy Benitez, one of the pre-race favourites, did not finish after pulling up midway through the race and eventually falling to the track.

Photo: Athletics Weekly