Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
Rumesh Pathirage capped a breakthrough season by winning the men’s javelin title at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest on June 13. Before this event, Pathirage had won 11 of his 12 competitions and set a world-leading mark of 92.62m in Rome, followed by a 92.07m throw in Zurich.
The competition began with an unsteady start for Pathirage, who opened with a throw of 75.89m. European champion Julian Weber led early with a throw of 84.09m, but Anderson Peters of Grenada took the lead in the second round with 86.18m. Weber improved to 85.89m, while Pathirage threw 85.69m in the same round.
Pathirage improved in the third round, taking the lead with a throw of 87.11m. Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem recorded a season’s best of 81.49m but placed fifth, missing qualification for the final round.
In the final round, Pathirage threw 91.09m, marking the first time a javelin surpassed 90 metres in Hungary and securing his victory. Peters finished with 82.63m, and Weber with 78.75m.
Pathirage expressed pride in his achievement and stated his ambition to win Olympic gold, aiming to bring further sporting success to Sri Lanka.