Olympic 400m silver medallist Matt Hudson-Smith revealed he felt something in his hip after finishing fourth in his heat at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.
Hudson-Smith still qualified for Tuesday’s semi-final, but faces questions over his fitness he could not immediately answer after crossing the finish in 44.68 seconds, still enough to go through as one of the six-fastest non-automatic qualifiers.
The Wolverhampton athlete sat second for the majority of the heat before losing steam on the final stretch.
“It felt flat, and my hips are a bit iffy,” said Hudson-Smith. “I was running, and I felt ‘Oh no my hips don’t feel good’. I got through it, but it hurt man. I don’t know – I really don’t know I literally had nothing. It’s weird.”
They're back for more 👏
— British Athletics (@BritAthletics) September 14, 2025
Matt Hudson-Smith and Sam Reardon clinch two of the non-automatic qualifying spots for the 400m semis after a tense wait.
Their heat runs of 44.68s and 44.70s respectively seal the deal 🙏#NovunaGBNI #WCHTokyo25 #WorldAthleticsChamps pic.twitter.com/tnCGdo0IgF
The 30-year-old’s time was still the quickest of the British trio, who all saw themselves through.
Charlie Dobson qualified automatically with a third-place finish from the first heat in 44.85s.
He said: “Comfy controlled race. I got to 200 pretty well, then sat a little bit too much on the top bend but came third so automatic Q. Happy with that. Times don’t matter here. It’s all about qualification.”
Job done for Dobson ✅
— British Athletics (@BritAthletics) September 14, 2025
Our first athlete of the evening session, Charlie is into the men's 400m semi-finals with a time of 44.85.#NovunaGBNI #WCHTokyo25 #WorldAthleticsChamps pic.twitter.com/mYctKXD0l5
Samuel Reardon also had to wait to learn his fate after coming fourth in the fourth heat in 44.70s.
“I am still in with a chance in the semis, and I can definitely go faster,” said Reardon. “It’s been a tough year mentally, lots of highs and definite lows.
“I think I am in a good spot physically. It’s just a mental battle you have to get over when you are dealing with injuries throughout the season.”
