The GLL Sport Foundation (GSF), the UK’s largest independent athlete support programme, proudly celebrates the achievements of its athletes at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan. The Championships, held from 13-21 September 2025, marked the 20th edition of the global event and saw 22 past and present GSF-supported athletes represent Great Britain & Northern Ireland on the world stage.
Across nine days of fierce competition, GSF athletes delivered personal bests, season’s bests, finals appearances, and a podium finish – underlining the Foundation’s crucial role in supporting athletes from grassroots to elite level.
Strong Representation Across Disciplines
GSF athletes featured prominently in sprints, relays, hurdles, middle-distance, field events, and combined events.
Sprints and Relays: National Ambassador Daryll Neita (Greenwich) took on the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay, joined by Ambassador Victoria Ohuruogu (Newham) in the 400m and 4x400m. Relay expertise came from Ambassadors Desiree Henry (Enfield) and Jona Efoloko (Newham), with Top Up O18 awardees Success Eduan (Manchester), Joy Eze (Newcastle), Romell Glave (Croydon), and Eugene Amo-Dadzie (Lee Valley Regional Park Authority) adding youthful strength. Alumni stars included Dina Asher-Smith (Crystal Palace), Amber Anning (Tower Hamlets), Jeremiah Azu (Cardiff), and Lewis Davey (Tower Hamlets).
Hurdles and Combined Events: Top Up O18 Tyri Donovan (Epsom & Ewell) made his debut in the 400m hurdles, joined by Alumni Lina Nielsen (Waltham Forest). Alumni Abigail Pawlett (Manchester) competed in the heptathlon.
Middle Distance & Endurance: Alumni Georgia Hunter-Bell (Lee Valley Regional Park Authority) contested the 800m, Revee Walcott-Nolan (Better Gym Basildon) and Top Up O18 Erin Wallace (Manchester) raced in the 1500m, while Melissa Courtney-Bryant (Hillingdon) and Hannah Nuttall (Manchester) competed in the 5000m.
Field Events: Alumni Scott Lincoln (York) once again represented Team GB in the shot put.
Championship Highlights
Opening Weekend (Days 1–2)
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Scott Lincoln threw 21.0m to qualify for the men’s shot put final, finishing 8th overall – the best-ever placing by a British shot putter at a World Championships.
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Lewis Davey helped the mixed 4x400m relay team into the final, finishing 5th overall.
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Daryll Neita and Dina Asher-Smith advanced through the 100m rounds, with Dina later finishing 8th in the final.
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Jeremiah Azu and Romell Glave impressed in the men’s 100m semis, both narrowly missing out on the final.
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Revee Walcott-Nolan reached the women’s 1500m semi-finals, finishing 9th in her semi.
- In the 400m, Amber Anning (49.96s), Victoria Ohuruogu, and Samuel Reardon all advanced to the semis, with Samuel clocking a strong 44.70s on debut.
Days 3–5
- Rising star Tyri Donovan announced himself with back-to-back personal bests in the men’s 400m hurdles (48.26s and 48.21s), narrowly missing the final but showing huge promise.
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Amber Anning lit up the women’s 400m semis with a season’s best 49.38s, booking her place in the final.
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Samuel Reardon clocked 45.10s in his semi, narrowly missing the men’s 400m final.
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Daryll Neita (22.59s) and Dina Asher-Smith (22.40s) progressed strongly in the women’s 200m heats.
Days 6–7
- In the women’s 400m final, Amber Anning ran another season’s best to finish 5th.
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Dina Asher-Smith reached the women’s 200m final, finishing 5th in 22.43, while Daryll Neita narrowly missed out in the semis (22.77).
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Georgia Hunter-Bell won her 800m semi-final in 1:58.82 to qualify for the final.
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Hannah Nuttall advanced to the women’s 5000m final with a gutsy 14:38.09 in the heats.
- In the heptathlon, Abigail Pawlett overcame a hurdles fall to produce a 1.80m high jump PB and a 200m win (23.25).
Days 8–9 – Closing Weekend
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Abigail Pawlett recorded 5.98m in the long jump before withdrawing due to her earlier fall.
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Hannah Nuttall finished 8th in the women’s 5000m final with 15:01.25.
- The women’s 4x100m relay team (Daryll Neita, Success Eduan, Desiree Henry, Dina Asher-Smith) qualified for the final before finishing 4th (42.07).
- The women’s 4x400m team, featuring Victoria Ohuruogu, did not advance, while the men’s 4x100m team suffered a DNF in the heats after a changeover error.
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Lewis Davey featured in the men’s 4x400m final, with the GB quartet placing 6th in 3:03.05.
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Georgia Hunter-Bell produced the standout GSF result of the Championships, winning silver in the women’s 800m final with a stunning PB of 1:54.90.
From Scott Lincoln’s record-breaking shot put finish, to Tyri Donovan’s breakthrough hurdles runs, Amber Anning’s consistency in the 400m, Hannah Nuttall’s gritty endurance performances, and Daryll Neita’s sprinting strength, GSF past and present athletes made their mark across the Championships. The crowning moment came with GSF Alumni Georgia Hunter-Bell’s silver medal in the women’s 800m, a performance that showcased both her class and the depth of British middle-distance running.
The GLL Sport Foundation is immensely proud of every athlete who represented their club, their country, and the Foundation in Tokyo. Their achievements are a testament to the dedication, hard work, and perseverance required to succeed at the highest level.
