Rumesh Tharanga wins World Athletics Ultimate Championship 2026 with 91.09m throw
By Ubaid Parkar
BUDAPEST – Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage continued his outstanding season by winning the men’s javelin throw title at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship 2026 with a 91.09m effort in Budapest on Sunday (13).
The 23-year-old Rumesh finished comfortably clear of Grenada’s two-time world champion Anderson Peters, who took second place with 86.18m. Germany’s Julian Weber completed the podium at the Gyula Zsivotzky National Athletics Centre with 85.89m.
Rumesh Tharanga did not have things his own way initially, opening with a modest 75.89m as Weber took the early lead with 84.09m. Peters moved ahead with an 86.18m effort in the second round, with Weber improving to 85.89m and Rumesh to 85.69m.
The Sri Lankan finally took control in the third round, moving into the lead with 87.11m before producing his best in the fourth and final round. His 91.09m effort put the contest beyond reach, with Peters finishing almost five metres behind in second.
“My first throw was in the 75m range,” Rumesh told Olympics.com. “I was under a lot of pressure after that because after the first few throws, low-scoring competitors get eliminated. Ultimately, I was able to secure the trophy I hoped for.”
Reigning world champion Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago finished fourth with 82.41m, ahead of Pakistan’s Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem, whose 81.49m effort was a season best.
Kenya’s Julius Yego (80.23m), Poland’s Dawid Wegner (77.21m) and the USA’s Curtis Thompson (75.80m) completed the eight-man field.
Rumesh Tharanga had arrived in Budapest as the world leader and favourite after establishing himself as the standout men’s javelin thrower of the season. His 92.62m national record in Rome in June remains the world-leading mark for 2026.
Sunday’s 91.09m was his third competition this year with a throw beyond 90m, having also produced 92.07m to win the Zurich Diamond League last month.
For Arshad Nadeem, the 81.49m season best represented an improvement after a difficult campaign. The Paris 2024 champion, whose 92.97m Olympic record remains his personal best, had finished ninth at the Commonwealth Games earlier this year.
India’s Neeraj Chopra did not compete in Budapest.
The World Athletics Ultimate Championship is a new global competition launched in 2026 as a season-ending showcase bringing together Olympic champions, world champions, Diamond League winners and the year’s leading athletes.
To be held every two years, the inaugural edition in Budapest features 28 events across three days in a compact format, with field events going straight to the final.
Rumesh Tharanga’s latest victory adds another major prize to a remarkable 2026 campaign. He won the Commonwealth Games title and dominated the Diamond League circuit with victories in Rome, Doha, Lausanne and Zurich before becoming the first Sri Lankan to win the Diamond League Final.
– olympics.com
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