Kassanavoid, Williamson Advance to Finals at World Championships

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State alumni Janee' Kassanavoid (women's hammer) and Kimberly Williamson (women's high jump) each advanced to the finals of their respective event at the World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.

Kassanavoid advanced to the finals of the women's hammer throw on Friday afternoon (July 15) with a first-place toss of 74.46m/244-3, while Williamson tied for 10th place and grabbed one of the last spots in the women's high jump on Saturday afternoon (July 16) with a height of 1.90m/6-2.75.

The native of Lawson, Mo., Kassanavoid will now compete in the finals of the hammer on Sunday (July 17) at 1:35 p.m., CT. She will throw in the sixth position out of the 12 finalists. Williamson, a native of Kingston, Jamaica, will compete in the finals of the high jump on Tuesday (July 19) at 7:40 p.m., CT.

Kassanavoid's automatic qualifying mark was the best of the 30 competitors in the event, narrowing defeating Team USA teammate Brooke Andersen, who threw 74.37m/244-0 to finish second. Kassanavoid and Andersen were two of four entries to eclipse the automatic qualifying mark of 73.50/241-1.

Kassanavoid and Andersen were among three Team USA members (Annette Nneka Echikunwoke) to earn one of the 12 spots in the finals.

Kassanavoid has now thrown better than 73 meters in six of seven outdoor meets this season with four of her last five throws eclipsing 75 meters. She currently ranks fifth in the world in the event after posting a personal-best throw of 78.00m/255-11 at the U.S. Track and Field Throws Fest on May 21 at Drachman Stadium in Tucson, Ariz.

The 2022 Jamaican National Champion, Williamson tied teammate Lamara Distin and Slovenia's Lia Apostolovski for the last spot in the finals with a mark of 1.90m/6-02.75. She will now compete in the finals, which are set for Tuesday (July 19) at 7:40 p.m., CT.

The height was the second highest of the season for Williamson in the high jump, who qualified for the World Championships after winning the Jamaican National Championship with a mark of 1.88m/6-2 on June 23. She posted a height of 1.93m/6-4 to win the Music City Track Carnival Festival in Nashville, Tenn., on June 5.

Williamson competed for the Wildcats from 2014-16, winning the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championship in the high jump and becoming a four-time All-American, including three times a First Team honoree. She won three Big 12 Championships in the event, including the outdoor titles in 2015 and 2016.

Fellow K-State alum Laura Galvan competed on Friday afternoon (July 15), as she narrowly missed qualifying for the semifinals of the women's 1,500 meters with a time of 4:07.25. The member of Team Mexico finished 11th in Heat 2 and 21st overall. The top 6 in each heat then the next 6 fastest times advanced to the semifinals.

Galvan still has an opportunity at the World Championships, as she will compete in the women's 5,000 meters on Saturday, July 23 at 8:25 p.m., CT.

For more information on the World Athletics Championships Oregon 2022 can be found here.

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Kansas State University Athletics

Kassanavoid, Williamson Advance to Finals at World Championships

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