**Jeremiah Azu Falls Short of Medal at World Athletics Indoor Championships** Defending champion Jeremiah Azu narrowly missed out on a medal at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Torun, Poland, after clocking 6.46 seconds in the men's 60m final. This marked a close finish in "one of the best 60m races of all time," according to two-time world 110m hurdles champion Colin Jackson. Azu, 24, had arrived at the championships as a medal contender, having claimed the first global title of his career with world indoor gold in China a year ago. He showcased his medal credentials by improving his personal best to 6.45 seconds in the semi-finals, a time that moved him to second on the British all-time list behind Dwain Chambers. However, American Jordan Anthony, who entered the championships as the fastest man this year, ran the joint-fourth fastest time in history with a gold-medal performance of 6.41 seconds. Jamaican Olympic and world 100m medallist Kishane Thompson and American Trayvon Bromell completed the podium with times of 6.45 seconds, denying Azu a return to the podium by just 0.01 seconds. "It's tough," Azu told BBC Sport. "I was very vocal about defending that [title] and I fell short. It's track and field - you win some you lose some. I'm still able to use this gift to try and inspire people. But it's tough to take right now." Other notable performances on the opening day of action included Olympic champion and indoor world record holder Keely Hodgkinson, who controlled her women's 800m heat from start to finish to win in 2:00.32 seconds and reach the semi-finals. Team-mate Isabelle Boffey also secured a spot in the semi-finals, while Ben Pattison, winner of world 800m bronze in 2023, won his heat in 1:47.48 to advance to the semi-finals of the men's event. In the women's 1500m, Olympic and world medallist Georgia Hunter Bell secured her place in the final by placing first in 4:12.09, while Jemma Reekie missed out after finishing fourth in her race.