[
Canadian sprinter Andre De Grasse drew even with friend and relay teammate Aaron Brown in their second meeting over 200 metres this season on Thursday at the Bislett Games in Oslo.
De Grasse reached the finish line of the Diamond League race in 20.33 seconds for third place, with Brown crossing sixth in 20.65 with a slight tailwind on a sunny evening in the Norwegian capital.
“I need to go back to training and make some changes,” said De Grasse, the Canadian record holder. “I had a good first 150 metres but then I slowed at the end.
“I didn’t tighten up but that is usually the best part of my race and it wasn’t tonight, unfortunately, so I need to go back to training and fix some things.”
Thursday was the fifth 200 of the season for the 2021 Olympic 200 champion and 2016 silver medallist.
- His season best is 20.23 from the Grand Slam Track event in Miramar, Fla., on May 4.
- De Grasse ran 20.29 into a headwind on May 18 in Japan.
- He opened his outdoor campaign on April 4 with a 20.32 clocking at the Florida Relays in Gainesville, Fla.
“This season has been ok so far, nothing special,” the 30-year-old said, “yet I’m happy enough at this stage. The [Sept. 13-21] World [Athletics] Championships [in Tokyo] are still a long way away so I have time to get sharp.”
WATCH | De Grasse runs to 3rd-place finish at Bislett Games:
Andre De Grasse of Markham, Ont., finished in third place in the men’s 200-metre race at the Diamond League event in Oslo. Fellow Canadian Aaron Brown of Toronto placed sixth, while the race was won by Cuba’s Reynier Mena.
De Grasse is looking forward to representing Canada at worlds, with the goal to appear in a final. He placed sixth in the 200 final in Budapest, Hungary, in 2023, one year after withdrawing from the event in Eugene, Ore., after testing positive for COVID-19 a second time less than three weeks before world championships.
In Oslo, De Grasse and Brown were racing against each other for the first time in the 200 this season in Diamond League action. De Grasse, from Markham, Ont., now holds an 8-5 edge over Toronto’s Brown all-time in the distance on the professional circuit.
De Grasse also prevailed in their only other matchup at Bislett Stadium on July 1, 2021, clocking 20.09 to Brown’s 20.38.
Brown had gained the upper hand in the friendly rivalry to start 2025, beating De Grasse by 8-100ths of a second at the Grand Slam Track event in Philadelphia on May 31, but it doesn’t appear they will have a chance to meet in the league’s final competition of the season later this month in Los Angeles.
According to multiple reports, the professional track league founded by four-time Olympic champion sprinter Michael Johnson has cancelled the June 27-29 event at UCLA’s Drake Stadium but remains committed to returning in 2026.
The inaugural season began in Kingston, Jamaica, in early April before meets in Miramar, Fla., and Philadelphia, which condensed its schedule to two days from three.
Strong final 60 metres
Thursday’s 200 performance from Brown was by far his slowest of the season. The reigning national champion ran a 20.35 SB on May 16 in Doha, Qatar.
Cuba’s Reynier Mena took a good lead off a tight bend and delivered a strong final 60 metres to win Thursday’s race in 20.20, with Timothé Mumenthaler of Switzerland following in a personal-best 20.27.
He said he entered the race confident and healthy.
“I was feeling good and felt I could get the win,” said the 28-year-old with a 19.63 PB. “I did think it might be a faster race but I will certainly take the win and build on it.”
Mena was thrilled to see Jamaican sprint legend Usain Bolt at the track. Bolt, who retired in 2017, holds the world records for the 100, 200 and 4×100.
“He is, of course, a hero of mine as well as a hero for our sport,” Mena said. “I would love to inspire Cuban juniors in the way he did with us.”
Canada’s Katzberg wins men’s hammer throw
On Wednesday, Ethan Katzberg of Nanaimo, B.C., wasn’t a model of consistency but he only needed one strong throw to win his fifth consecutive men’s hammer throw competition to start the 2025 season.
The reigning world and Olympic champion was the lone athlete in the field of seven in Oslo to surpass 80 metres, throwing 80.19 in his third of six attempts for his first Bislett Games title.
Katzberg, 23, came close to the 81.92 meet record by 36-year-old Wojciech Nowicki of Poland who was seventh (72.65) on a mostly sunny day at Bislett Stadium, where the temperature reached 17 C.
Hammer throw is not contested regularly on the Diamond League professional circuit, so athletes do not accumulate points toward qualifying for the Diamond League Final in late August.
Katzberg, who was third in Oslo two years ago, arrived at the stadium Wednesday fresh off an 80.15 performance at the June 3 Trond Mohn Games in Norway.
On May 31, the world’s top-ranked men’s hammer thrower was victorious at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi, Kenya, delivering a season-best and world-leading 82.73.
The Paris 2024 Olympic champion discusses her season so far, expectations leading into worlds, and what else she hopes to accomplish in the sport.
For more information on athletics events streaming live on CBC Sports this season, click here to see the full broadcast schedule.