������Ƶ

TOKYO: Former Olympic champion Daniel Stahl of Sweden won the last gold medal of the 2025 World Athletics Championships on Sunday with the penultimate throw of a men’s discus final delayed for more than two hours by rain.

World record holder Mykolas Alekna managed the only legal throw before the heavens opened at the National Stadium and the athletes were removed from the arena for safety reasons.

They returned after all the other events and the official closing ceremony had been completed, an army of volunteers wiping down the throwing circle with towels between attempts as the rain persisted.

“I have trained for many years in the rain and know that it usually rains in Tokyo in September-October,” Stahl told Swedish broadcaster SVT Sport.

“It’s important to keep the focus because there can be delays and it can take a few hours.”

Alekna lays down marker

Lithuanian Alekna laid down a marker with a throw of 67.84m on his second attempt which led the final until Stahl took to the circle for his last shot at the title.

Revving up the remaining crowd at the arena where he won the Olympic title in 2021, the 33-year-old sent the disc soaring in to the sky and past the 70-meter line for his season’s best throw of 70.47m and a third world title.

“Mentally, I was ready for the last throw. I prepared myself for it,” Stahl said.

“This is my favorite arena of all time. It was special in 2021, and it has been special again tonight.”

Alekna, 22, fouled his last attempt and finished second to add to his bronze at the last world championships and silver in 2022 but remained without a title to match the two his father Virgilijus won in discus in 2003 and 2005.

“Having the men’s discus throw as the last event of the championships, I don’t think it ever happened before,” Alekna said.

“At first, after the competition finished, I was a little disappointed. But I know I did everything I could to fight for the gold.”

Alex Rose took bronze with a throw of 66.96m on his fifth attempt to knock Australia’s Matt Denny out of third place and give Samoa a first world championship medal.

“This is one of the greatest moments of my entire life and it’s been 20 years in the making,” Rose said.

“To come back here and do what I just did, there is no feeling like it. The young Pacific Island athletes never give up. I work a full-time job and took time off to from my company to compete here.”

BARCELONA: Ferran Torres scored twice as Barcelona cruised to a comfortable 3-0 victory over Getafe in LaLiga on Sunday, with Dani Olmo adding the third goal and an assist in another impressive display by Hansi Flick’s side at their makeshift home venue.
The win keeps the unbeaten Catalans second in the standings with 13 points, trailing leaders Real Madrid by two points after Los Blancos maintained their flawless record with five wins from five matches by beating Espanyol on Saturday.
Playing in front of 6,000 rain-soaked fans at their Sant Joan Despi training ground, Barcelona controlled proceedings from the outset, showcasing their depth and resilience despite missing Lamine Yamal for the third consecutive game due to injury.
Torres, who got another chance to start in place of Robert Lewandowski in Flick’s rotation policy, opened the scoring after 15 minutes with a brilliant team move, firing past David Soria after Olmo’s clever back-heel set him up perfectly.
The Spanish forward doubled the advantage in the 34th minute, beating the offside trap from Raphinha’s through ball before delivering a tidy finish just inside the left post.
The 25-year-old Spanish international nearly completed his hat-trick before halftime but ended up striking the crossbar with the goal at his mercy after rounding the keeper.
The double takes him to four goals in five games this season, placing him second in the LaLiga scoring charts, just one goal behind Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe.
“I know I can be a starter at Barcelona and I need to take advantage of every opportunity I get. I’m confident many more goals will come,” Torres told DAZN.
“We have quality players who can find space, and we’ve done well in that regard and I’m glad that we won another one in decisive fashion.”
Barcelona continued to dominate after the break, and Marcus Rashford, who was rested following his midweek Champions League heroics against Newcastle, came off the bench to make an immediate impact.
The England international surged down the right flank in the 63rd minute and crossed to Olmo, who scored from inside the box to seal the victory.
The result continued Barca’s strong start to the campaign as they adapt to life at their cramped training ground venue as the renovations of their iconic Camp Nou have fallen nine months behind schedule.
The Lluis Companys Olympic stadium, which has been Barca’s base for the last three years, was not available on Sunday.
Barca’s next test will be an away trip to face Real Oviedo on Thursday, while eighth-placed Getafe will host Alaves on Wednesday.