Jim Spier, NSAF co-founder, is in Tokyo for the World Athletics Championships.

He will be chronicling his journey there and providing coverage of the meet.

Here is his first installment.

2025 World Championships – Day 0

Getting There

Travel to Asia is an entirely different undertaking compared to Europe—flights take more than twice as long. With the meet set to begin Saturday morning at Tokyo’s National Stadium, arriving two days in advance was the plan.

Departure began in Savannah, GA, with a connection in Chicago before heading across the Pacific. The route tracked northwest over Alaska, then along the eastern coasts of Russia and China before descending into Tokyo’s Haneda Airport.

Thanks to points, the journey was in Business Class — flatbed seat, multiple-course meals, and a smoother ride. Still, arrival wasn’t without hiccups. After landing at 9:15 p.m. Tokyo time, violent thunderstorms grounded all traffic for three hours, leaving the plane idling on the runway until midnight. Customs, despite long lines, was efficiently handled in about 45 minutes.

Finding an Uber was another adventure: conflicting reports from apps suggested ride-hailing had been banned, but with persistence (and a shuttle between terminals), a driver named Yuji eventually provided a late-night ride to the hotel. Check-in, meant to be automated, required the intervention of a hotel staffer after several failed machine attempts. Finally, at 2:30 a.m., the room key was secured.

First Morning in Tokyo

Breakfast was followed by a walk around the neighborhood. Tokyo proved as cosmopolitan as any major city—Irish pubs next to an Iowa Barbecue joint, neither exactly what comes to mind when one thinks of Japanese cuisine.

A stop at a 100 Yen Shop (Tokyo’s version of a dollar store, with prices closer to 68 cents) solved the lost reading-glasses problem that had started back in Savannah.

Anticipation Builds

The day closed with preparation to meet long-time traveling companion Paul Limmer at the airport. The pair have shared decades of trips to global track meets, most recently the World U20 Championships in Peru.

This year’s excitement centers on emerging high school talents:

• Maurice Gleaton, expected to feature in the 4x100m relay trials and perhaps finals.

• Cooper Lutkenhaus, a surprise qualifier in the 800m at just 16 years old, now facing the challenge of three rounds at the senior level.

Joining them in Tokyo is the ever-energetic Tiara “Tee” Williams. Absent, however, will be NSAF CEO Josh Rowe, whose wife Kristen is scheduled for emergency surgery on Monday. Thoughts and prayers are with her for a positive outcome.

With bodies adjusting to the time zone — noon feeling like midnight — anticipation now shifts to nine days of world-class track and field beginning tomorrow.