Two Olympic medallists capped off an incredible track and field season with podiums in the final Diamond League meet in Brussels, Belgium on Saturday.
In the men’s 800m, it was Olympic silver medallist Marco Arop who won bronze on Saturday, finishing with a time of one minute, and 43.25 seconds.
He cleared the podium time by 0.4 seconds, and finished just behind Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati in second place (1:42.86), and Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi (1:42.70) who won gold.
“I really hoped to take the win here, but the guys are so strong this year and it was not my perfect race,” Arop told Diamond League media following the race.
“This was my last race of the season. I am really happy about that. It was a long year, but I am motivated to come back stronger next season.”
It’s been a good week for Arop, who raced to a new Canadian record in the 1000m on Sunday at the Boris Hanžeković Memorial meet in Zagreb, Croatia.
READ: Marco Arop clocks new Canadian record in 1000m
Arop set his new season and personal best during his silver medal race in Paris 2024 with a time of 1:41.20. He was also beat out by Wanyonyi in that race, as the Kenyan raced to Olympic gold, while Sedjati took bronze.
In the women’s shot put, Alysha Newman capped off her season with yet another podium appearance.
After bronze in Paris a little over a month ago, Newman capitalized off of that momentum by winning silver at the Weltklasse Zürich Diamond League event in Zurich, Switzerland last week.
READ: Another pole vault podium for Alysha Newman
On Saturday, she cleared 4.80 metres on her second attempt to finish in third place. Australian Nina Kennedy, who took home gold in Paris, was atop the podium after clearing 4.88 metres on her first attempt.
Sandi Morris of the U.S. finished in second after clearing 4.80 in her first attempt.
Sarah Mitton is golden in the women’s shot put at the Diamond League Final — a result that is all the sweeter after a bumpy Olympic experience.
Mitton entered the Paris 2024 Games ranked second in the world, and threw the furthest of the field in qualification. But rainy conditions on the day of the final foiled the Canadian record holder’s efforts to step on to the Olympic podium. Gracious in defeat, Mitton cheered on the rest of her competitors for the duration of the final.
Snagging the gold medal at the Diamond League Final, often called the “crown jewel of athletics,” is a positive way to end what, overall, was an extremely successful season for Mitton, one that saw her further the Canadian record to 20.86m.
In Brussels, Mitton threw to a distance of 20.25m to capture the win. She is joined on the podium by American Chase Jackson (19.90m) and German Yemisi Ogunleye (19.72). Ogunleye took the gold medal at Paris 2024 with a throw of 20.0m.
“It was a really good competition, it was really hectic down there and I think that´s what produced my performance today.There were a lot of frustrations and emotions going around and it worked in my favor–but it isn´t always like that, and overall it was a really good competition. I think I could have gone further but I am happy with the win!,” Mitton said post-competition. “Overall, I am really happy with my season I had some ups and downs but I won a title in March and now the Diamond League title, so this is really great. I am just going to keep going and do better next season. But for now a few weeks of rest!”
This Diamond League victory also guarantees Mitton a spot at the 2025 World Athletics Championships, to be held in Tokyo, Japan. Mitton is the reigning indoor world champion, and took silver at the 2023 World Athletics Championships.
READ: Team Canada’s Newman, Arop and Mitton set to take on Diamond League Final
Two more Canadians, both Paris 2024 medallists, are in action in Brussels. Alysha Newman will compete in the women’s pole vault on Saturday, September 14 at 1:51 pm ET, and Marco Arop will take on the men’s 800m field at 3:40 pm ET. Newman took bronze at Paris 2024, and Arop took silver. Both athletes established new Canadian records in their finals at the Games.
