Canadian Damian Warner wins decathlon gold, sets Olympic record

TOKYO – Canada’s Damian Warner won gold and set an Olympic decathlon record at the Tokyo Olympics.

Warner finished the 10 discipline event with a fifth place finish in the 1,500 meters and became the first Canadian to win gold in the decathlon.

The 31-year-old from London, Ont., Smashed the Olympic record with 9,018 points. The previous Olympic record was 8,893 points, shared between American Ashton Eaton (2016) and Czech Roman Sebrle (2004).

Warner became the fourth man in history to surpass the 9,000 point mark.

World record holder Kevin Mayer of France took silver with 8,726 points while Australia’s Ashley Moloney took bronze with 8,649 points.

Canada had two men in the decathlon. Pierce LePage of Whitby, Ont., Was fifth after 10 events with a personal best 8,604.

Warner, who won bronze at the Rio 2016 Olympics, was excellent from start to finish. He set Olympic decathlon records in the long jump and the 110-meter hurdles, and tied his world record in the 100-meter decathlon. He also set a personal best in the pole vault.

Warner crossed the 1,500-meter finish line in four minutes 31.08 seconds. Time and fifth place gave him 738 points in the final, enough for the Olympic record.

The Canadian was praised by several of the athletes he dominated over the two days. Warner then draped himself in a Canadian flag and posed for the photographers with a huge smile on his face.

The athletics community considers the Olympic winner of the decathlon to be the “greatest athlete in the world”.

Warner is also a world silver medalist.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on August 5, 2021.

The Canadian Press