LONDON has lost a bid to host the 2029 World Athletics Championships to Nairobi, who will become the first African hosts of the global showpiece.

Munich, one of the other 2029 bidders, was awarded the following edition, in 2031, with Rome also missing out.

The decision was made during the 242nd World Athletics Council meeting in Budapest following recommendations from a selection panel, and has left London bid organisers feeling “deeply disappointed.”

In August, organisers of the London bid reached an agreement with West Ham over use of the London Stadium, in what was seen as a vital boost to their campaign.

Later that month, images of empty seats at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham sparked concerns about the London bid, a perception Lord Coe played down when he addressed the media at those championships.

UK Athletics chief Jack Buckner, also the co-founder of bid organisers Athletics Ventures, said today: “We are deeply disappointed that the 2029 World Athletics Championships will not be held in London. We believed we had an outstanding bid which would genuinely take the sport to new levels.

“We know the world’s athletes love competing here and we’ll continue to explore further opportunities to make that happen.”