If there's one mouthwatering event to anticipate at the 2022 World Championships, it is the 200m finals in both categories, with Niger Republic's Aminatou Seyni and Liberia's Joseph Fahnbulleh, aiming for glory for their respective countries.
Schedule | Results | Medals | TV Guide | Watch on DStv
Already, these two athletes have entered their country's historic records, becoming their first athletes to make the final of any sprinting event at a global championship.
Seyni has run the races of her life en route making the women's 200m final in Oregon. The African champion ran a Niger Record of 21.98s in the heats and then clocked another fast 22.04s to make the final. She will have to be at her very best and possibly surpassing that NR to make the podium.
"I am very happy with my performance. I will try harder and go all out to aim for a medal. Any color will be fine. It's my first time running against Shelly-Ann (Fraser-Pryce). She helped me run fast today so I am very happy," Seyni said.
The women's 200m final is not going to be an easy contest, and while Jamaican duo of Shericka Jackson and Fraser-Pryce are the favourites for top two, the third spot is really up for grabs.
Tamara Clark (21.95s), Dina Asher-Smith (21.96s), Elaine Thompson-Herah (21.97s) these are the times posted by the other contenders for a medal. If the Niger athlete, produces another fine race like she did in the semis, she could really challenge for Bronze.
In the men's category, Fahnbulleh could ignite an overnight party in Monrovia, if he wrestles a medal off the Americans. He had already taken out one, claiming the scalp of Fred Kerley in his heat, winning an automatic spot to qualify for final.
The interesting aspect of Fahnbulleh's running technique is that most times he is not in contention at the bend, and he relies mostly on his home straight, but he is so talented that if he catches his opponents before they make it out of the bend, he will be in with a big chance.
Fahnbulleh this season became the first Liberian athlete to run sub 20s, running a National Record of 19.83s to win the 200m title at the NCAA Championships. He has done it three times legally this season, with his most recent coming in the semis in Eugene, just one-hundredth of a second off Alexander Ogando who ran 19.91s
"It was good and I am glad that it is done (making the final). I went on really focused on the first half” Fahnbulleh said.
Luxolo Adams makes it two Africans competing in men's 200m final, and having made it through with one of the next best two times, the South African will be looking at making the best of this opportunity. This season, Adams has run a PB of 19.83s, and if he improves on that time, he do be thrilled.
"It feels good to be here representing my country and thank God I am injury free. We are picking up in the right time- taking it step by step, no pressure, running my own race," Adams said.
In the long distance events, World Record holder Joshua Cheptegei will be chasing history, looking to win both the 5000m and 10 000m events at the same championship for the first time in his career. Coming off his recent 10 000m title, the Ugandan athlete will be the favourite for the 5000m, but it is not assured as he will be up against his Ethiopian rivals.
Selemon Barega will be seething after finishing outside the podium in the 10 000m, an unusual place for the Ethiopian, who swapped winning places with Cheptegei last year in Tokyo. There's also the defending Mukhtar Eedris who seems to keep his best for the World Championships.
This season, Nicholas Kipkorir leads the field with 12:46.33, and with only the top five guaranteed an automatic spot in the final, it could come down to a dogfight in a battle for those positions.
But Cheptegei is not fazed by the challenges "Title defended...Thank you all for the support, to God be the glory. Unto another challenge guys," he wrote on his Twitter page.
One other event to keep a close eye on is women's 800m, with Kenya's Mary Moraa starting from heat 6 and hoping to challenge for a medal. Moraa has shown great promise this season, running a PB of 1:57.45 to be ranked number 3 in the world.
20-year-old Prudence Sekgodiso is making her first senior world championships appearance, aiming to emulate Caster Semenya. It might be still be early days for the young South African to start performing in the class of Semenya, but she has gone under 2mins this season, running a PB of 1:58.41. If she goes through the rounds and makes the final, it will be a big leap.
On the field, African Record holder, Hugues Fabrice Zango will start his quest for a medal for Burkina Faso, competing in men's Triple Jump. Zango is the first athlete to win a medal for Burkina Faso, clinching Bronze in Doha.
On his day, he is a world beater, and Zango is one of only four men to have jumped over 18m out of the 30 Triple Jump entrants. If he produces anything close to that, he will be on the podium again.
Story by Charles Jerome
ATHLETICS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS BROADCAST DETAILS
Times are SA, CAT, GMT+2
22 July
Day 7 Afternoon Session | 01:45-05:15 | SS Variety 3
Day 8 Morning Session | 15:15-18:30 | SS Variety 3
23 July
Day 8 Afternoon Session | 01:55-05:20 | SS Variety 3
Day 9 Morning Session | 18:50-21:55 | SS Variety 3
24 July
Day 9 Afternoon Session | 01:10-05:35 | SS Variety 3
Day 10 Morning Session | 15:15-00:10 | SS Variety 3
25 July
Day 10 Afternoon Session | 01:50-06:00 | SS Variety 3