Canada’s Sarah Mitton claimed second place in the women’s shot put competition at the Diamond League Final held at King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels. Mitton, aged 30, registered her top throw on her initial attempt, reaching a distance of 20.64 meters to secure the runner-up spot behind American athlete Chase Jackson.
The 32-year-old Jackson clinched victory, achieving a best throw of 21.14m, setting new American, Diamond League, and meet records, in addition to attaining a world-leading mark. Jackson, a double world champion, surpassed her personal best by 0.012 meters to emerge triumphant.
Mitton gracefully acknowledged Jackson’s exceptional performance, stating, “How can you be upset to lose to one of the best throws since 2013? We had two girls go over 21 in the last, I guess it’s been four months. Shot’s really on the rise, and I think, you know, we get those two over 21, I believe I can throw 21 meters.”
World champion Jessica Schilder from the Netherlands secured third place with a throw of 20.57m on her third attempt. Mitton, who had previously defended her Commonwealth Games title in July, was aiming to secure her second Diamond League Trophy within three years.
In the men’s 800m event, Edmonton’s Marco Arop initially held the second position but ultimately dropped to fourth with a time of 1 minute 43.50 seconds. Arop had finished in third place the previous year before claiming bronze at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.
The men’s 100m race saw Jamaica’s Oblique Seville seizing victory with a time of 9.90 seconds, followed by Emmanuel Eseme from Cameroon (9.93) and Kayinsola Ajayi from Nigeria (9.97).
Notably, the men’s pole vault event experienced a setback as Swedish star Armand Duplantis withdrew from the competition for undisclosed reasons. Emmanouil Karalis of Greece emerged as the event’s winner. Additionally, Canadian sprinter Andre De Grasse, who had qualified for the men’s 200 meters, withdrew due to personal commitments focused on the Ultimate Championship.
The women’s 200m race saw Gatineau’s Audrey Leduc finishing sixth with a time of 22.95 seconds. Julien Alfred from Saint Lucia clinched victory in 21.79 seconds, followed by Kayla White from the United States (22.00) and Amy Hunt from Great Britain (22.16).