World Athletics Championships 2025: Top athletes who pose challenge to Olympic gold medalists Noah Lyles, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and others

Olympic champions Noah Lyles, Julien Alfred, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, and Letsile Tebogo, among others, will aim to extend their legacies at the upcoming edition of the World Athletics Championships. The current edition will be held at the National Stadium in Tokyo from September 13 onwards.

Some athletes, including Lyles and Alfred in the 100 m events, have tasted victory at the recent Wanda Diamond League finals in Zurich. However, some challengers are eager to prove their mettle at the world stage in Tokyo and even cause a significant upset if needed.

To begin with, Noah Lyles' journey to another consecutive gold medal is far from a cakewalk, with a strong Jamaican challenge facing him in the men's 100m. Apart from Kishane Thompson, who is more than eager to prove his might against the American sprinter, Oblique Seville is also keen to show that he is anything but a pushover.

Likewise, even though Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is aiming for her debut gold medal in the women's 400m dash, it is anything but easy. Two of the biggest challengers, Olympic champion Marileidy Paulino and Salwa Eid Naser, are expecting her presence, and intense competition is expected among the three.

Here are some of the top challengers who are expected to make it big at the upcoming World Championships :

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7 Athletes who can upset Olympic champions like Noah Lyles, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Letsile Tebogo ft. Oblique Seville, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden

#1 Oblique Seville [Men's 100m]

Oblique Seville, the dark horse of the men's 100m event at the World Championships [Image Source: Getty]

Jamaican sprinter Oblique Seville is the first major challenger who is expected to give even Noah Lyles a run for his money. Apart from Kishane Thompson, only this sprinter has managed to overcome the challenge from Lyles not once, but twice this year.

At the London and Lausanne legs of the Diamond League 2025, Seville outpaced Noah Lyles. It would be interesting to see if the Jamaican sprinter can snatch the 100m gold medal from his American counterpart.

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#2 Melissa Jefferson-Wooden [Women's 100m]

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden aims for a golden high [Image Source: Getty]

The Olympic bronze medalist is in top form this year, having won most of her meets in style. Though Tokyo won't be a cakewalk, the American sprinter knows it better.

Jefferson-Wooden is expected to give both her teammate, defending champion Sha'carri Richardson, and the reigning Olympic champion, Julien Alfred, tough competition in the women's 100m.

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#3 Salwa Eid Naser [Women's 400m]

Expect the unexpected from Salwa Eid Naser [Image Source: Getty]

The sprinter from Bahrain is all set for one of the most intense rivalries on the field at the National Stadium in Tokyo.

On one side is Marileidy Paulino, the current Olympic and world champion from the Dominican Republic. On the other side is American legend Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, who is participating for the first time in the women's 400m dash instead of her preferred event, the women's 400m hurdles.

However, Naser is no pushover. Having lost the Olympic gold medal in Paris by a whisker, the Bahraini athlete is raring to avenge her loss in Tokyo.

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#4 Faith Cherotich [Women's 3000m Steeplechase]

Faith Cherotich, the most significant challenge to Winfred Yavi's supremacy [Image Source: Getty]

If there is one athlete Winfred Yavi would be apprehensive about, it is this Kenyan challenger.

Cherotich recently won the women's steeplechase event at the Wanda Diamond League finals for the second consecutive time since the 2024 edition, which was held in Brussels, Belgium. The Kenyan runner also won a bronze medal in the same event at the Paris Olympics last year.

Amongst the multiple contenders, Cherotich is the most significant challenger that could cause a massive upset to Winfred Yavi in the finals.

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#5 Leonardo Fabbri [Men's Shot Put]

Can Leonardo achieve the impossible in Tokyo? [Image Source: Getty]

Until 2024, two things were constant in track and field: the winners in the men's shot put and the men's pole vault for most major events. Armand 'Mondo' Duplantis would win most of the events in men's pole vault, while Ryan Crouser ruled the men's shot put.

However, everything changed with the rise of shot-putter Leonardo Fabbri. The Italian athlete placed fifth in the men's shot put finals at the Paris Olympics last year. However, he shocked the world at the Wanda Diamond League finals in Brussels, where he overcame Crouser by winning the Diamond League trophy with a best attempt of 22.98m.

Since then, Fabbri has become the most capable contender for causing a major upset at the World Championships. The Italian shot putter placed second at the Lausanne leg of the Diamond League this year.

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#6 Alison dos Santos [Men's 400m hurdles]

Alison expected to surprise the best [Image Source: Getty]

Alison dos Santos is another capable contender of a major upset at the World Championships. The Brazilian athlete won the gold medal at the Eugene edition in 2022 and is more than willing to prove himself against the likes of Karsten Warholm and Rai Benjamin, the reigning stalwarts in this field.

Dos Santos had last competed this year at the Eugene Prefontaine Classic, where he won the gold medal with a time of 46.65 seconds. It would be interesting to see if he manages to overcome the challenge from both Warholm and Benjamin this time or not.

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#7 Julian Weber [Men's Javelin Throw]

Can Julian restore the European dominance? (Image Source: Getty)

Before the Tokyo Olympics, javelin throw was traditionally a European bastion, with occasional challenges from the USA and the Caribbean nations. However, with the rise of Neeraj Chopra and Arshad Nadeem, this dominance was reduced to smithereens, especially at the Budapest World Championships in 2023.

However, Julian Weber is ready to prove himself and restore European supremacy in the javelin throw. Like Neeraj Chopra, the German runner has been showing an impressive consistency for the past few months, and recently won the Diamond League trophy with a new world lead of 91.51m.

However, the journey to the World Championship title is not going to be easy, as Neeraj Chopra is more than eager to restore his dominance, which was broken at the Paris Olympics last year, while Arshad Nadeem is aiming to prove his mettle this year after staying out of action due to a calf injury.