DR1 Daily News - Dominican Republic

Dominican sprinter Marileidy Paulino qualified on Tuesday, 16 September (Dominican time) for the 400-meter final at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, clocking a time of 49.82 seconds. The time was fast enough to earn her second place in her qualifying heat, right behind Poland’s Natalia Kaczmarek, who finished in 49.67 seconds.

The final is scheduled for Thursday, 18 September 2025 at 9:24am Dominican time, which is 10:24pm in Japan. Paulino will look to defend her world title and make history for Dominican athletics.

If she wins, Paulino would join an elite group of athletes to have won back-to-back world championships in the 400-meter race, a list currently only featuring Australia’s Cathy Freeman, who won in 1997 and 1999.

Paulino is the holder of the Olympic Games record in the 400m she set in the Paris Olympic Games in 2024 when she won the first Olympic...