Wayde van Niekerk was the star on the morning session of day two at the World Championships in London.

The Olympic champion won his 400m heat with ease, crossing the line in 45.28 to book his place in the semi-finals.

The South African, who is doubling in the 200m and 400m, looked relaxed and very much like someone who was saving their best for later rounds.

Also qualifying for the semi-finals were Britain’s Dwayne Cowan, Matthew Hudson-Smith and Ireland’s Brian Gregan, while GB’s Martyn Rooney missed out.

The other 400m heat winners were USA’s Fred Kerle, Botswana’s Baboloki Thebe and Isaac Makwala, and Steve Gardiner of the Bahamas.

In the women’s hammer, GB’s Sophie Hitchon made it through to the women’s final.

GB’s Daryll Neita won her 100m heat to automatically qualify for the semi-finals, while teammates Asha Philip and Desiree Henry went through as fastest losers.

In the men’s 800m, GB’s Guy Learmonth and Elliot Giles gained automatic qualification, while Kyle Langford went through as a fastest loser. Ireland’s Mark English missed out.

In the heptathlon, GB’s Katarina Johnson-Thompson’s ran 13.33 in the 100m hurdles, her first event of the day. The high jump was the 24-year-old’s second event, but it was a disappointing performance from Johnson-Thompson, failing to clear 1.86m in three attempts.

It leaves Johnson-Thompson in fifth place after two events, 162 points adrift Belgium’s Nafissatou Thiam.