By Chang-Ran Kim

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Olympic and world champion Haruka Kitaguchi disappointed a bumper crowd at the World Athletics Championships on Friday when she failed to qualify for the women’s javelin final.

The 27-year-old shot to fame in 2023 when her final throw of 66.73 metres in Budapest made her the first Japanese woman to win a world title in a field event.

Her celebrity status in Japan reached new heights last year when she repeated the feat in Paris, becoming the first Japanese woman to win an Olympic track and field gold outside of the marathon.

On Friday, her every throw was greeted with a huge roar but, her preparations having been hampered by an elbow injury, Kitaguchi managed a relatively modest best effort of 60.38m, seven metres shorter than her personal bes

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