Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage capped a sensational season by winning the men’s javelin throw at the Diamond League Final 2026 in Brussels this morning (05), becoming the first Sri Lankan to win the title.
"I'm truly very happy about that," Rumesh said. “Coming from a small country like Sri Lanka, winning a major meet like this.”
The 23-year-old produced a best throw of 89.04m in the third round at the King Baudouin Stadium to finish ahead of Poland’s Dawid Wegner, who registered a personal best of 87.47m.
Former Olympic champion Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago completed the podium with a season-best 83.99m, while Grenada’s two-time world champion Anderson Peters finished fourth with 83.70m.
Rumesh Tharanga had a subdued start to the competition by his lofty standards, opening with 80.42m before managing 79.73m with his second attempt.
Walcott, meanwhile, took the early lead with 83.99m in the opening round before Wegner moved to the top with a massive personal best of 87.47m in the third.
Rumesh responded later in the same round with 89.04m, taking control of the competition with a throw that ultimately proved enough for the title.
The Sri Lankan followed it with efforts of 85.96m and 85.76m before fouling his final attempt. Wegner, however, was unable to improve on his third-round mark, leaving Tharanga with a winning margin of 1.57m.
"Honestly, I couldn't get a big throw today because the weather conditions were quite difficult - it was very cold... so that's why I couldn't reach a big distance," Rumesh explained.
Walcott held on to third despite Peters improving to 83.70m with his fifth attempt. Just 29cm separated the two Caribbean stars in the battle for the final podium spot.
Kenya’s former world champion Julius Yego finished fifth with 76.79m, followed by Belgium’s Timothy Herman (71.79m) and American Curtis Thompson (69.52m).
India’s Neeraj Chopra did not compete in the Diamond League Final after withdrawing from the event last week due to injury.
The victory completed a remarkable Diamond League campaign for Rumesh Tharanga, who arrived at the Final as the circuit leader
after a string of impressive performances during the season.
His biggest throw came at the Rome Diamond League in June, where he set a Sri Lankan national record and world-leading mark of 92.62m.
Tharanga also threw 88.68m in Doha and won in Lausanne with 88.14m before producing another monster effort of 92.07m in Zurich in his final outing before Brussels.
His 2026 campaign has featured two throws beyond 92m, the world-leading 92.62m mark and a rise to world No. 1 in the men’s javelin rankings.
The Diamond League crown also adds to the Commonwealth Games gold medal Tharanga won earlier this season, headlining a breakthrough year for the Sri Lankan.
Diamond League Final 2026 men’s javelin throw results
Rumesh Tharanga (SRI) - 89.04m
Dawid Wegner (POL) - 87.47m (PB)
Keshorn Walcott (TTO) - 83.99m (SB)
Anderson Peters (GRN) - 83.70m
Julius Yego (KEN) - 76.79m
Timothy Herman (BEL) - 71.79m
Curtis Thompson (USA) - 69.52m
– with Agencies inputs --
