The 2017 IAAF World Championships in London are right around the corner! Check out the breakdown of the men's 800m below.

Men's 800m

When:
August 5, 6:45 AM CT (heats)
August 6, 3:15 PM CT (semifinals)
August 8, 3:35 PM CT (final)

Top International Contenders: Emmanuel Korir (Kenya), Nijel Amos (Botswana), Kipyegon Bett (Kenya), Pierre-Ambroise Bosse (France)

Team USA: Donavan Brazier, Isaiah Harris, Drew Windle

2016 Olympic 800m Final:


Photo credit: James Lang - USA TODAY Sports

PLACE	ATHLETE	COUNTRY	TIME	BACK IN 2017?
1	David Rudisha	KEN	1:42.15	NO
2	Taoufik Makhloufi	ALG	1:42.61	NO
3	Clayton Murphy	USA	1:42.93	NO
4	Pierre-Ambroise Bosse	FRA	1:43.41	YES
5	Ferguson Cheruiyot Rotich	KEN	1:43.55	YES
6	Marcin Lewandowski	POL	1:44.20	YES
7	Alfred Kipketer	KEN	1:46.02	NO
8	Boris Berian	USA	1:46.15	NO

ANALYSIS:

What if I told you the man who finished 249th out of 251 finishers at the 2016 NCAA cross country championships would go on to win a world title less than a year later?

UTEP freshman Emmanuel Korir -- now a professional -- has had one hell of a season.

Notable Highlights:
- He won the NCAA indoor 800m title after being out with an injury for three weeks leading up to the race.
- He ran a sub-45 second open 400m twice becoming the youngest to join the sub-1:47/45.0 club.
- He ran the No. 2 NCAA all-time 800m in 1:43.73 via a negative split 52.48/51.25, becoming the third man to join the sub-1:44/45.0 club.
- He ran a 43.34 4x400 split.
- He won the NCAA outdoor 800m title.
- He won the Athletics Kenyan Trials 800m title.
- He ran a 1:43.10 800m in Monaco.

Korir, now 22 years of age, may be the next David Rudisha.

Rudisha won his first world title back in 2011 at the age of 22 and had a personal best of 1:41.01 -- the world record.

Korir has shown no signs of slowing down heading into London as the favorite, and with his current personal best of 1:43.10 and a 4x4 split of 43.34, he may be well on his way to run 1:41 in the coming years.

FUN FACT: Both Rudisha and Korir went to the same high school: Kimuron Secondary School in Iten, Kenya.

So who will challenge Korir's journey to becoming the new king of the 800?

Challenger #1: The One Hit Wonder
It's been awhile since the teenage superstar Nijel Amos has seen success at the senior level global championships. Ever since then 18-year-old Amos took silver in the greatest 800m race at the 2012 Olympic Games, fans believed we would be seeing this kid on the world stage year after year. While Amos has continued to run world class times since then, he hasn't had the best of luck at the global championships.

In 2013, he did not compete at the world championships. In 2015, he failed to make the final. And in 2016, he failed to make the semifinals.

This year, however, Amos has been on fire winning three diamond league races with two sub-1:44 performances. Hopefully we get to see the 2012 version of Nijel Amos.

Challenger #2: The Freshman No More
Ever since Donavan Brazier ran the indoor American junior record 1:45.93 as a true freshman for Texas A&M, the U.S. running world went nuts and with that came many 'Brazier hot takes':

He runs 1:45 indoors: "Holy s**t this kid is going to be amazing!"
He DNFs at NCAA indoors: "He peaked too early!"
He wins NCAA outdoors in 1:43: "I take that back this kid is going to be amazing!"
He goes pro: "Great move he should go pro!"
He gets knocked out of first round at U.S. Trials: "Bad move he should have stayed in school!"
He runs 1:44 in April: "This kid is going somewhere!"
He doesn't win his prelim at U.S. Champs: "He can't race rounds!"
He wins U.S. Champs: "I take that back he's going to be amazing!"

Brazier has had a wild two years on the big stage with many highs and lows. But one thing is for sure: Brazier is the future of U.S. middle distance running. At age 20 Brazier heads into his first world championships as a legit medal contender, something that he will be doing for many years to come.

Challenge #3: Everyone Else
- The two other Kenyans, with Rudisha pulling out due to injury someone will need to step up
- Pierre-Ambroise Bosse, he got fourth last year!
- Brandon McBride, former NCAA champion.
- Isaiah Harris: he's only 20 as well!
- Drew Windle, non-D1 800m athlete making world teams! Nick Symmonds approves.