Kevin Mayer bails out of pole vault, destroys medal chances in Doha
Mayer, who moved into first position after the discus throw, was unable to compete in the pole vault, having injured himself in the 110m hurdles earlier today
In a shocking development in the decathlon, defending world champion and world record-holder Kevin Mayer of France was unable to complete a pole vault, apparently having tweaked his Achilles tendon or hamstring during the 110m hurdles, killing any chance for him to win a medal at this World Championships. Canadians Damian Warner of London, Ont. and Pierce LePage of Whitby, Ont., are in second and third position as the pole vault competition begins.
Twice, Mayer approached the jump but pulled up short.
Warner, for whom the 110m hurdles are his best event, was the clear winner in that event, in 13.56, which earned him 1,032 points. Mayer had the second-fastest time (13.87), scoring 991 points, which moved him into second position overall ahead of LePage, who was sixth in the hurdles in 14.19, for 950 points.
Going into the discus event, Warner had 5,545 points, Mayer had 5,474 and LePage had 5,436. Mayer had a very successful discus and went into first place, with 6,310 points. Warner had 6,254 and LePage had 6,125.
The multi-events are particularly challenging, for obvious reasons–athletes must achieve proficiency in not just one discipline, but all three–running, jumping and throwing. Many athletes show greater skill in one or two, but rare is the athlete who excels in all three equally. Lindon Victor of Grenada, who was in fourth position going into the discus, fell out of medal contention after a disastrous discus throw. Mayer was fourth in the discus, and neither of the Canadians was in the top 10, but his inability to compete in the pole vault means he has no chance of medalling.
The remaining events are the javelin and 1,500m. (The 1,500m goes at 5:25 p.m. ET.)
You can watch the events live at cbcsports.ca.
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