When Track & Field News, one of athletics’ oldest publications, released its pre-world championship predictions on Sunday, Team Canada was left reeling. The magazine snubbed Canadian stars, leaving defending world 800m champion Marco Arop and the men’s 4x100m Olympic champions entirely off the podium.
The magazine, which calls itself “The Bible of the Sport,” predicts just four medals for Canada, with none coming from the track. Evan Dunfee is forecast to take bronze in the 35K race walk, while Canadian throwers are expected to maintain their dominance: Camryn Rogers and Ethan Katzberg for hammer throw golds, and Sarah Mitton for bronze in the shot put.
The men’s 800m event is highly competitive this year, featuring reigning Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi, 2019 world champion Donavan Brazier and newly-crowned U18 world record holder Cooper Lutkenhaus. Track & Field News predicts Wanyonyi will claim gold, Brazier silver and Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati (the Olympic bronze medallist) taking bronze. Omitting Arop–the reigning world champion and Olympic silver medallist, still ranked fifth globally even while also juggling the 1,500m–is a glaring oversight.
Relay champions left off the podium
Canada’s men’s 4x100m relay team received a similar brush-off. The magazine predicts the Canadian men’s quartet will return from Tokyo medal-less–despite medalling at three of the last four global championships, including a historic gold at the Paris Olympics last August. The squad also claimed bronze at April’s World Athletics Relays. But according to Track & Field News, the Tokyo 2025 podium is forecast to feature Jamaica, South Africa and the U.S., even though Team Jamaica didn’t qualify for the 4x100m Olympic final.
Selected by “a team of experts”
Founded in 1948 by brothers Bert and Cordner Nelson, Track & Field News focuses on U.S. athletics from high school to the international level. The monthly publication produces national and world rankings and predictions for major championships, with selections made by magazine editors and, according to Wikipedia, “an international team of experts.”
