Kirani James wins Zurich 400m bronze with season-best 44.83

Grenada: Kirani James delivered another best 400m performance of the 2026 season, after finishing third at Weltklasse Zürich on Thursday, August 27. He clocked a time of 44.83 seconds at the Letzigrund Stadium.

The Grenadian athlete improved on his previous season’s best of 45.04 seconds, which he recorded in Memphis last July. He finished behind Japan’s Yuki Joseph Nakajima and Italy’s Edoardo Scotti.

James started off the Zürich meet with a 2026 best time of 45.04 seconds. His 44.83 run marked a clear improvement and put him back under 45 seconds in a season that had produced slower times earlier in the year.

The 33-year-old lined up in lane six in a race that also featured Nakajima, Scotti, Norwood, and some other Swiss athletes. Norwood had recorded the fastest season’s best time of 44.58 seconds. He was followed by Scotti with a time of 44.96 seconds and James with a best of 45.04 seconds.

Despite the fact that the race was held as part of the Weltklasse Zürich meeting in 2026, the men’s 400 meters was categorized under pre-program events instead of being a Diamond League event.

James' third-place finish was good internationally, but he did not secure any Diamond League win or even Diamond League points from this event. The Zürich results officially state that Nakajima won the 400m pre-program race in 44.62 seconds.

He has a strong Diamond League record at the same stadium. James emerged victorious in the 400m race in 44.26 seconds during the 2022 Diamond League Final held in Zurich, defeating Bryce Deadmon and Vernon Norwood. This marked his third Diamond Trophy in the race.

James still holds some of the most awarded titles in the 400m category of his generation. He earned a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics in 43.94 seconds. The athlete also has a silver medal in 2016 Rio and a bronze medal in 2020 Tokyo, earning him the complete set of Olympic medals in the men’s 400m race.

He is also the 2011 world champion of and has a personal best of 43.74 seconds in the 400m race, which he achieved in 2014 in Lausanne.

Final results of the 2026 Weltklasse Zürich meet

1st place: Yuki Joseph Nakajima (Japan) – 44.62
2nd place: Edoardo Scotti (Italy) – 44.70
3rd place: Kirani James (Grenada) – 44.83
4th place: Vernon Norwood (USA) – 44.92
5th place: Lionel Spitz (Switzerland) – 45.29
6th place: Ricky Petrucciani (Switzerland) – 45.99
7th place: Manuel Gerber (Switzerland) – 46.08
8th place: Haydn Brotschi (Switzerland) – 46.16