Coleman powers into 100m final

Doha (AFP) – US sprinter Christian Coleman romped into the World Championships 100m final on Saturday, winning his semi-final in 9.88sec.

Coleman, the fastest man in the world this year over the distance, took the tape ahead of Canada’s Aaron Brown, who was second in 10.12sec.

It was an emphatic display from the 23-year-old Coleman, the heavy favourite to claim gold later Saturday.

The stocky American erupted smoothly out of the blocks and led almost from start to finish, easing up well before the line.

Brown won the battle for second, with Britain’s Adam Gemili third with 10.13sec.

But while Coleman cruised, defending champion Justin Gatlin only scraped into the final as one of the fastest losers.

Gatlin squeezed in after finishing third in his semi-final behind Canada’s Andre DeGrasse and Jamaica’s Yohan Blake.

DeGrasse won in a time of 10.07sec, with Blake clocking 10.09sec. The 37-year-old Gatlin was just behind in 10.09sec.

The third semi-final was won by South Africa’s Akani Simbine in 10.01sec with Britain’s Zharnel Hughes second in 10.05.