TOKYO, Japan — Navasky Anderson became the first Jamaican man to qualify for the final of the 800m at the World Athletics Championships after he ran a national record.

Anderson ran 1:43.72 for third in the semi-finals on day six of the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan.

He took back his national record from Tyrice Taylor who had run 1:43.74 for third at the North American, Central American and Caribbean Championships (NACAC) Senior Championships in The Bahamas in August.

Anderson will be the second Jamaican man in a global 800m final after Clive Terrelonge won the Indoor Championships gold in Barcelona, Spain in 1995 and had failed to get past the first round at successive World Championships in 2022 in Eugene, Oregon and 2023 in Budapest, Hungary as well as the Olympic Games last year in Paris.

Spain’s Mohamed Attaoui won the heat in 1:43.18, ahead of Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi—1:43.47 as Anderson just finished ahead of Botswana’s Tshepiso Masalela— 1:43.80.

Taylor who was in his first major global championships, was seventh in his semi-final in 1:46.56, after being well placed in second after 400m, slipping to third after 600m.

— Paul Reid