World's greatest athlete: Ashton Eaton golden again, ties Olympic record | NBC Olympics

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World's greatest
athlete: Ashton
Eaton golden again,
ties Olympic record
Ashton Eaton is arguably the best all-around athlete ever
Gold: Ashton Eaton (United States)
Silver: Kevin Mayer (France)
Bronze: Damian Warner (Canada)
Ashton Eaton is the greatest all-around athlete on the
planet – and that probably sells him short.
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August 17, 2016
at 4:51pm CT
By:
Eric Goodman
Ashton
Eaton
Age 28 |
Birthdate 1/21/1988
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)
Zach
Ziemek
Age 23 |
Birthdate 2/23/1993
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)
Jeremy
Taiwo
Age 26 |
Birthdate 1/15/1990
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USA
)
Track and Field
Rio Update: USA
relay team
granted re-run
after baton
drop

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Ashton Eaton (USA) and Kevin Mayer (FRA) embrace after winning gold and silver, respectively, in
the men's decathlon. Credit: Kirby Lee
He proved it first in London four years ago, affirmed it at
the 2013 Moscow and 2015 Beijing World Championships,
and left absolutely no doubt Thursday night in Rio, tying
the Olympic record for good measure.
Eaton joins track and field legends Bob Mathias (USA)
and Daley Thompson (GBR) as just the third man ever to
repeat as Olympic Champion in the decathlon.
The gold medal defense was convincing in the end.
Eaton needed to finish no worse than seven seconds
behind Kevin Mayer in the 1500m to win the competition,
and ended up finishing over two seconds ahead of the
Frenchman.
Eaton’s final combined score of 8,893 points ties the
Olympic record set in Athens 2004 by Roman Sebrle
(CZE).
For Mayer, it was silver, the first decathlon medal for
France since 1948.
Jeremy Taiwo
Damian Warner
Luiz Alberto de Araujo
Kevin Mayer
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Canada’s Damian Warner rounded out the podium with a
seasons-best performance of 8,666 points.
Early Wednesday morning, Eaton finished second behind
Warner in the 100-meter dash, the first event of the
decathlon.
It was the only time a name other than Ashton Eaton
topped the overall standings after an event.
Eaton placed first in the long jump, first in the 400m,
second in the 110m hurdles, and third in the pole vault to
win the competition handily.
With two events remaining, the javelin throw and the
1500m, it looked as if Eaton would have a chance to
break his own decathlon world record of 9,045 points.
A less-than-stellar performance in the javelin put that
mark out of reach, but his 1500m time of 4:23.33 was
enough to equal Sebrle’s 12-year-old Olympic record.
The full results for the Rio 2016 decathlon competition
can be found here.
For full event recaps, see below.
Thursday, 9:02pm
With a 1500m time of 4:23.33 Ashton Eaton has
tied Roman Sebrle's Olympic record in the decathlon
with 8,893 total points.
He also has successfully defended his gold medal from
London 2012, becoming just the third man ever to repeat
as Olympic decathlon champion.
Kevin Mayer of France wins the silver medal ahead of
Story
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Who is Ashton Eaton?
Get to know U.S. decathlete Ashton Eaton
Read More +
Men's marathoners hit the
streets of Rio
" Remind Me

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Damian Warner of Canada, who takes bronze.
Thursday, 7:55pm
A less-than-stellar performance in the javelin portion of
the decathlon has likely dashed Ashton Eaton’s hopes of
breaking his own world record points total.
He would need to run a near-unthinkable 4 minutes 1
second in the 1500m to set a new world record.
The Olympic record, however, is still very much in play.
Eaton would need to complete the 1500m in 4 minutes 23
seconds or better to beat the mark of 8,893 points, set in
Athens 2004 by Roman Sebrle of the Czech Republic.
Regardless, with just the one event to run, Eaton looks all
but certain to join fellow American Bob Mathias (1958/52)
and Great Britain's Daley Thompson (1980/84) as the
third man to repeat as Olympic decathlon champion.
Eaton’s farthest javelin throw of 59.77m was 18th-best of
the night, and a full 6.87m shorter than his outdoor
personal best.
Story
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How to train for a decathlon
Jeremy Taiwo explains how he schedules time to train for the 10 events of the
decathlon
Read More +
Ashton Eaton is just worried
about getting 'the W'

Frenchman Keven Mayer put slight pressure on Eaton
with a throw of 65.04m worth 814 points.
The gap between Eaton and Mayer is just 44 points, the
lowest Eaton’s lead has been since the third event of the
competition. 44 points translates to roughly a seven-
second difference in the 1500m.
Eaton has the better personal best and season best in
the 1500m, so for he to lose the race at all, let alone by
seven seconds, would be a massive shock.
Mayer holds the silver medal position by 172 points over
Damian Warner of Canada, who leads Germany’s Kai
Kazmirek, also by 44 points.
Therefore, the race for bronze will mirror the race for
gold, with seven seconds representing the key figure.
Zach Ziemek currently sits in the fifth overall spot, but
has a very large gap to overcome to contend for a medal.
The field of athletes will be split into two heats for the
1500m, taking place at 8:45pm and 8:56pm ET. Eaton,
Mayer, and the rest of the leaders will race in the later of
the two heats.
Once more, for clarity:
Eaton’s time needed for world record: 4:01.62
Eaton’s time needed for Olympic record: 4:23.25
Eaton’s time needed for gold medal: no worse than seven
seconds behind Kevin Mayer
Overall top 10 as of javelin throw
1. Ashton Eaton (USA) – 8,104 points
2. Kevin Mayer (FRA) – 8,060
3. Damian Warner (CAN) – 7,888
4. Kai Kazmirek (GER) – 7,844
5. Zach Ziemek (USA) – 7,730
6. Leonel Suarez (CUB) – 7,704**
7. Larbi Bourrada (ALG) – 7,672
8. Thomas Van Der Plaetsen (BEL) – 7,615
9. Kurt Felix (GRN) – 7,582

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10. Alberto Luiz de Araujo (BRA) – 6,883
** Suarez’s javelin throw of 72.32m blew the field away.
Kurt Felix had the second farthest throw, a full 2.4 meters
shorter than Suarez.
Thursday, 3:10pm
Ashton Eaton has definitively separated himself from the
field of athletes in the men’s decathlon. Now eight
events in – most recently the pole vault – Eaton’s margin
is a massive 124 points.
Essentially, all he needs to do is complete both
remaining events and he will become the first man since
Daley Thompson in 1984 to repeat as Olympic decathlon
champion.
Don’t expect him to jog through those last two events,
though. Ashton Eaton will be competing stride-for-stride
with the only man in the world who can match his pace:
Ashton Eaton.
Hardee: Ashton Eaton
'greatest decathlete that's
ever lived'

UPDATE: @AshtonJEaton is still leading after 8 events!
#Rio2016
3:21 PM - 18 Aug 2016
144 616
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At the track and field World Championships one year ago,
he set the world record aggregate points total in the
decathlon with 9,045 points.
He is now on pace to exceed that total.
With a pole vault of 5.20m worth 972 points, he brought
his overall score to 7,370.
If he averages better than 837.5 points over both the
javelin throw and the 1500m run, he will break his own
world record.
5.20m came in dramatic fashion. Twice, at both 4.90m
and 5.10m, Eaton needed a third and final attempt to
clear the bar and move on to the next height. He chose
not to attempt a vault at 5.30m, instead skipping straight
to 5.40m. He then failed to clear the bar on three
attempts, making the 5.20m vault and corresponding 972
points his official score for the event.
A javelin throw of 66 meters and a 1500m time of 4:15 –
both near but not better than Eaton’s personal bests –
would be good enough to break the record.
As for some of the other athletes, Damian Warner could
only manage a vault of 4.70m, good for just 819 points.
He falls from second to third overall, with France’s Kevin
Mayer now in the silver medal position thanks to a

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massive 5.40m vault worth 1035 points.
Americans Zach Ziemek and Jeremy Taiwo are ﬁfth and
sixth overall, respectively. Ziemek matched Eaton’s vault
of 5.20m while Taiwo wasn’t far off at 5.00m.
The javelin throw will take place at 5:35pm ET, and
decathlon will conclude at 8:45pm at Olympic Stadium
with the 1500m.
Top 10 as of pole vault:
1. Ashton Eaton (USA) – 7,370
6. Jeremy Taiwo (USA) – 6,894
7. Alberto Luiz de Araujo (BRA) – 6,883
8. Thomas Van Der Plaetsen (BEL) – 6,846
9. Larbi Bourrada (ALG) – 6,836
10. Leonel Suarez (CUB) – 6,779
Thursday, 11:50am
Story
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Brianne and Ashton Eaton’s Christmas ornament collection
Brianne and Ashton Eaton collect Christmas ornaments from every trip they take
together
Read More +
Ashton Eaton, Brianne
Theisen-Eaton help each
other shine

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Seven events are now in the books, and Ashton Eaton’s
lead is significant.
Eaton posted the eighth-farthest discus throw of the
competition, the same event in which he placed 22nd
four years ago en route to his first Olympic decathlon
gold medal.
Damian Warner of Canada, Eaton’s biggest challenger, did
not have a good performance in the event. His recorded
throw of 44.93m was over five meters shorter than his
personal best, which he threw back in March of this year.
Eaton’s throw of 45.49m earned him 777 points, his
second-lowest score of the competition so far. Still, the
result was good enough to increase his lead over Warner
and the rest of the field to 115 points.
Fellow American Zach Ziemek had the third-farthest
throw of the day, vaulting him into the sixth position
overall.
Lindon Victor of Grenada destroyed the field in the event
with a staggering throw of 53.24m, 3.34m better than the
next farthest throw. He jumps to 14th overall.
Ukraine’s Oleskiy Kasyanov, who entered the discus
event in seventh place, fouled on all three throws. He
was given a score of 0 for the event and drops to 26th.
Three events remain in the decathlon: the pole vault,
javelin throw, and 1500m run.
Ashton Eaton on the
brotherhood of the
decathlon

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The pole vault will begin shortly at 12:25pm ET. The
javelin throw will follow later on at 5:35pm, and the
1500m will conclude the competition under the lights at
8:45pm.
Overall top 10 as of discus throw:
5. Larbu Bourrada (ALG) – 6,046
7. Luiz Alberto de Araujo (BRA) – 6,003
10. Leonel Suarez (CUB) –5,899
Thursday, 9:15am
Damian Warner reclaimed the silver medal position and
closed the gap between he and defending champion
Ashton Eaton with a ﬁeld-best time of 13.58s in the 110m
hurdles.
Story
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Who is Ashton Eaton?
Get to know U.S. decathlete Ashton Eaton
Read More +
Day 1: Ashton Eaton's quest
for decathlon gold

Eaton, running alongside Warner in Heat 4, finished just
behind the Canadian with a time of 13.80s.
Warner and Eaton earned 1,029 and 1,000 points for their
respective performances. Eaton entered the event with a
132-point cushion over Warner, and therefore still
maintains a very healthy lead in the overall competition
standings.
Germany’s Kai Kazmirek, who ended the first day in
second place, finished last in Heat 4 and falls to fourth
overall.
American Jeremy Taiwo also dropped a spot, finishing
third in Heat 3.
The athletes will start the seventh event of the
decathlon, the discus throw, momentarily. Warner will
hope to further close the gap on Ashton Eaton in what is
decisively Eaton's weakest event. He
finished 22nd among the field in London.
Overall top 10 as of 110m hurdles:
7. Oleskiy Kasyanov (UKR) –5,240
10. Cedric Dubler (AUS) – 5,155

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Wednesday: 8:55pm
Ashton Eaton is in prime position to become the first
man to successfully defend an Olympic decathlon gold
medal since Daley Thompson in 1980.
The reigning "Most Athletic Man in the World" responded
from a lackluster performance in the high jump with a
superb run in the 400-meter dash, expanding his overall
decathlon lead to 121 points at the halfway mark of the
competition.
Eaton's time of 46.07s was the best of the night by over a
half-second, topping his 400m time of four years ago –
also best of the competition – by nearly a full second.
Germany's Kai Kazmirek posted the second-best time of
the field, shooting him into second position overall with
an even 4,500 points.
Canada's Damian Warner placed third, but drops a
spot in the overall standings to third place.
Jeremy Taiwo of Team USA drops as well, finishing over
2.5-seconds behind Eaton. Taiwo had climbed as high as
the third overall spot after winning the high jump event.
Story
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What is Ashton Eaton wearing on his head?
Ashton Eaton has a secret weapon to stay cool during the decathlon
Read More +
Hardee: Ashton Eaton needs
'breakout performance'
Thursday

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Overall top 10 after day 1:
7. Oleskiy Kasyanov (UKR) – 4,309
10. Zachery Ziemek (USA) – 4,270
Wednesday, 7:00pm
A massive jump from Jeremy Taiwo catapulted the
Seattle native from ninth place to within a point
of second place overall in the men's decathlon.
On his third and ﬁnal attempt, Taiwo lept 2.19 meters,
greater than the height of NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal.
Taiwo's jump was the highest out of all the decathlon
competitors by three centimeters.
At 2.01m, Ashton Eaton ﬁnished the high jump tied for
14th, a relatively poor performance considering that
Eaton tied for second in the event four years ago in
London. The defending Olympic champion still holds the
top spot in the overall standings, but his lead over
Canada's Damian Warner shrinks from 95 to 68 points.
Overall top 10 as of high jump:
Rio Update: Ashton Eaton
takes early lead in decathlon

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10. Thomas Van der Plaetsen (BEL) – 3,393
Wednesday, 4:45pm
The 100-meter dash, long jump, and shot put events of
the men’s decathlon took place earlier this morning. The
high jump event is currently underway and 400-meter
dash will follow at 8:20pm ET this evening to round out
the ﬁrst half of competition.
London 2012 gold medalist Ashton Eaton of Team USA sits
atop the standings with 2,803 points, 95 points ahead of
Canada’s Damian Warner. Kevin Mayer of France sits just
seven points behind Warner with 2,699, and Brazil’s Luiz
Alberto de Araujo rounds out the top four with 2,648
points after three events.
Story
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How to train for a decathlon
Jeremy Taiwo explains how he schedules time to train for the 10 events of the
decathlon
Read More +
Jeremy Taiwo takes up
father's Olympic legacy

Four years ago, Eaton dominated the field on the first day
of competition, winning three of five events – the 100m,
long jump, and 400m.
He got off to another strong start in Rio this morning,
winning the long jump by a massive 25 centimeters and
placing second in the 100m, .16 seconds behind Warner.
Eaton placed 10th in the shot put, one of his weaker
events. Mayer had the farthest throw of the day at
15.79m.
Other Team USA members Jeremy Taiwo and Zachery
Zeimek sit ninth and tenth respectively in the overall
standings. Zeimek finished third behind Eaton in the
100m, and Taiwo’s sixth-place, 14.92m shot put throw was
tops among the Americans.
The decathlon continues at 8:20pm ET with the 400-
meter dash.
Overall top 10 as of shot put:

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World's greatest athlete: Ashton Eaton golden again, ties Olympic record | NBC Olympics

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