An 800m rivalry for ages?

The men’s 800m competition in 2023 was held together by a central thread of rivalry between Kenya’s next big thing, 19-year-old Emmanuel Wanyonyi, and Canada’s 24-year-old Marco Arop.

Wanyonyi, World U20 champion on home ground, Kasarani in 2021, continued to demonstrate his prodigious talent two years later as he dominated Wanda Diamond League racing, winning the final in a world-leading 1:42.80.

But it was Arop who won the biggest race of the season as he added world gold in Budapest to the bronze he had won the previous year in Oregon.

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Wanyonyi earned victories in the Rabat and Paris Diamond League meetings before heading to the World Championships, after which he set a world lead of 1:43.20 in Xiamen before meeting Arop for the last time in the season at the Wanda Diamond League Final in Eugene.

It was one hell of a race, with the younger man just finding the edge to finish ahead as Arop recorded a Canadian record of 1:42.85.

Arop’s victory in the Hungarian capital was founded on a smart switch in strategy. Known as a front-runner, he hedged his bets in the final, sitting at the back of the pack and allowing Wanyonyi to take the bell in 52.68.

As the second lap got underway, the Canadian made his ominous move forward, overtaking his rivals one by one until he arrived on the young Kenyan’s shoulder as they approached the final bend – at which point he went for broke.

Wanyonyi – who had received advice from his compatriot David Rudisha, the double Olympic and world champion and world record-holder present in Budapest as an event ambassador – did all he could to make up the gap, but had to settle for silver.

Arop crossed in 1:44.24 to become Canada’s first gold medalist in this event at the World Championships, with Wanyonyi clocking 1:44.53 and Britain’s Ben Pattison finishing in 1:44.91 to add world bronze to the Commonwealth version he had won the previous summer.

“I knew it was going to be a tactical race,” Arop said. “I was up late last night figuring out different ways to win. One scenario was to kick from behind in the way I did. I guess it was worth staying up late.”

Wanyonyi added: “I spoke with David Rudisha today, and he gave me some advice. He said: ‘Stay focused and fight until the end’. It feels great that he helped me to this silver.”

Wanyonyi’s compatriot Emmanuel Korir, the Olympic gold medallist, saw the defence of his title end in the heats, where he finished fourth in his race in 1:46.78.

Major winners

World Championships: Marco Arop (CAN) 1:44.24

Wanda Diamond League: Emmanuel Wanyonyi (KEN) 1:43.20

Asian Championships: Abubaker Haydar Abdalla (QAT) 1:45.33

South American Championships: Eduardo Moreira (BRA) 1:47.12

Pan-American Games: Jose Antonio Malta (VEN) 1:45.69

Asian Games: Essa Alis Kzwani (KSA) 1:48.05

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By World Athletics