(Paris) Canadian Marco Arop won the silver medal in the men’s 800 meters event on Saturday at the Paris Olympic Games.
Arop crossed the finish line in a time of 1:41.20, which is an Americas record. It is his best performance of his career and the fourth best of all time.
Arop, from Edmonton, came within one hundredth of a second of winning the gold medal, just behind Kenyan Emmanuel Wanyonyi (1:14.19). Wanyonyi also had his best race of his career and the third best in history.
PHOTO SARAH MEYSSONNIER, REUTERS
Marco Arop
“It’s not the first time we have had a final like this. I knew Wanyonyi was going to have a good last 10 metres. I was just trying to match his level,” Arop said of the final metres of the race.
Algerian Djamel Sedjati won the bronze medal with a time of 1:41.50.
Arop, the reigning world champion, started the race at the back of the pack to conserve his energy. On the second and final lap, he picked up the pace and overtook several opponents.
Last in line for the 25-year-old was Wanyonyi, but after a few nudges, Arop crossed the line in second place.
PHOTO NATHAN DENETTE, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Marco Arop and Emmanuel Wanyonyi at the finish line
Arop, who was racing in the ninth lane, finished second in his heat in the first round and won his semi-final to advance to the final.
He became the second Canadian to medal in the men’s 800 metres at the World Championships, joining Gary Reed, who won silver in 2007.
“I had a great night. We’ve been fighting for this day all year and we thought we timed it well. I just couldn’t be happier with the way I raced,” Arop said. “I have a huge career high and a silver medal. I can’t be mad about it.”
Arop’s Olympic medal is Canada’s first in the event since Bill Crothers won silver at the 1964 Tokyo Games, and the fifth in the country’s history.
Alex Wilson and Phil Edwards won silver and bronze respectively at the 1932 Los Angeles Games, while Edwards won another bronze medal at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.
Ahead, the Norwegian Jakob Ingebrigtsen (13 min 13.66 s) took gold, making people forget his defeat in the 1500 m. Ingebritsen had been excluded from the podium to everyone’s surprise.
But on Saturday he saved his strength for the final two laps. Getting the better of a trio of Ethiopians who were losing speed at that point in the race, the Norwegian ultimately recorded his best time of the season.
Kenyan Ronald Kwemoi (13 min 15.04 s) managed to hold off the push of American Grant Fisher (13 min 15.13 s). The two won silver and bronze respectively.
With Jean-François Téotonio, The Press