Defending champion Danielle Williams led the trio of Jamaicans through to the semifinals of the 100m hurdles on the second day of the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan.

Williams and national record holder Ackera Nugent won their respective first round heat while Amoi Brown was third in her heat and advanced automatically to the semi-finals set to be run Monday morning, Jamaican time.

Less then 24 hours earlier, national champion Megan Tapper was forced to withdraw from the championships with an injury.

Williams was the fastest qualifier after she ran 12.40 seconds (0.0m/s) to win the second heat ahead of American Alaysha Johnson- 12.76 seconds, and France’s Sacha Alessandrini- 12.99 seconds.

Nugent ran 12.54 seconds (0.5m/s) to beat Switzerland’s Ditaji Kambundji, who was second in 12.59 seconds, and Maayke Tjin-A-Lim of the Netherlands who was third with 12.71 seconds.

Brown clocked 12.82 seconds (0.1m/s) in the heat that was won by American Grace Stark with 12.46 seconds, with Poland’s Pia Skrzyszowska second with a season’s best 12.51 seconds.