Kirani James through to 400m final

Olympic champion Kirani James has qualified for the 400m final in comfortable fashion with victory in his semi-final at the World Athletics Championships.

The Grenadan, who won the world title in 2011 before a shocking seventh-place finish in his defence two years ago, held on with apparent ease as his rivals closed the gap in the final 100m.

It was a time of 44.16 for James, while Luguelin Santos of the Dominican Republic set a new national record to claim second place.

Isaac Makwala and Yousef Ahmed Masrahi were the top two in the second semi-final, but there was good news for the British team as Rabah Yousif clocked a personal best of 44.54 seconds to qualify for the final as a fastest loser.

However, it was a disappointing finish for Martyn Rooney, who was forced to settle for sixth place as defending champion LaShawn Merritt booked his spot behind South Africa's Wayde Van Niekerk.