Marcell Jacobs on the rise, but it’s not enough: he’s out of the Worlds final

Growth is there, but it is not enough.

Marcell Jacobs will not be in the 100-meter final at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest. In fact, the Italian athlete, who entered the legend thanks to the gold medal he won at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, failed to go beyond fifth place in the semifinals. But compared to recent trials, the improvements continue to be evident.

In fact, the time Jacobs recorded was 10″05, far more competitive than he has shown lately and finally close to the not only psychological limit of 10 seconds. It should not be forgotten that in the batteries he had stopped the clock on 10″15, qualifying for the semifinals by only one hundredth. Even worse had been the 10″21 at the Diamond League leg in Paris, the first and so far only race of the 2023 season run by the Olympic champion.

Ahead of Jacobs and his 10″05 were the U.S. Lyles (9″87) and Japan’s Sani Brown (9″97). Also faster than the Italian were Omanyala (10″01) and Amo-Dadzie (10″03), for whom the 100-meter final may still be possible with a repechage.

Marcell Jacobs is not only the reigning Olympic champion in the 100-meter flat: he is the current holder of the European record (9″80), and he is also the 150th athlete in the history of the sport to go under 10 seconds in the queen of track disciplines.