The host nation had won only two medals going into the competition’s final day, claiming men’s and women’s race walk bronzes.
Japan had not been expected to set the championships alight but their low-key performances left them 36th in the medal table, behind countries such as Grenada and Latvia.
Lifting the gloom has been the atmosphere in the stadium, with mostly sold-out crowds making up for lost time after being locked out of the Tokyo Olympics because of Covid.
Hiroki Yanagita, a member of the Japan men’s 4x100m relay team that qualified for Sunday’s final, said it was “electrifying” to be running in front of almost 60,000 screaming fans.
– Noise ‘like an earthquake’ –
“Everyone has been saying that the noise in the stadium is like an earthquake, like having tinnitus, and today I finally understood that for myself,” he said.
“It felt great to hear that noise as I was running and it allowed me to give a performance that was greater than myself.”
The atmosphere could not have been more different from the Tokyo Olympics, which were delayed a year because of the pandemic.
Swedish pole vaulter Armand “Mondo” Duplantis said the ghostly empty stands had given the competition an “apocalyptic” feel, while US sprinter Noah Lyles said he could hear his “own thoughts echoing off the wall”.
There has been no such problem at the world championships, with organisers on Saturday announcing a total attendance of more than half a million heading into the competition’s final day.
But while the picture in the stands has been healthy, Japan’s performances on the track have left much to be desired.
Olympic and world women’s javelin champion Haruka Kitaguchi was the host nation’s main medal hope but she failed to reach the final.
An elbow injury restricted the 27-year-old to just two competitions in the build-up to the world championships, and her best throw of 60.38 metres placed her 14th in qualifying.
“My run-up felt really good but I wasn’t able to put everything together well with my technique,” said a tearful Kitaguchi.
Rachid Muratake was seen as Japan’s best bet for a medal on the track, having finished fifth in the 110m hurdles final at the Paris Olympics.
The 23-year-old said the cheers for his first appearance went “beyond anything I imagined”, and he looked sharp in qualifying for the final third fastest.
It was a different matter when it really counted though, as Muratake replicated his Paris Games result with another fifth-placed finish.
He was inconsolable in TV interviews after the race, breaking down in floods of tears.
“Where did I fall short? What have I been doing wrong?” he said.
“I’ve been training hard to get a medal in the year since the Paris Olympics. I wanted to celebrate with everyone.”
Muratake might have failed to meet his expectations but his likeable nature and anime-inspired poses have captured the imagination of the Japanese public.
The championships also brought recognition to bronze-medal winning race walkers Hayato Katsuki in the men’s 35km and Nanako Fujii in the women’s 20km.
Javelin thrower Kitaguchi believes the championships have been a success for Japan off the track, if not on it.
“I don’t think my life is over just because I didn’t make it to the final,” she said.
“I was so happy to see a stadium full of spectators in Japan.”
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