With another dominant victory, javelin prodigy looks set to go the distance

A year out from the Beijing worlds and two away from LA28, China’s javelin prodigy Yan Ziyi has already emerged an undisputed favorite for gold at the two major meets after making a strong debut in the Diamond League this season.

The young phenom, who just turned 18 last month, continued her winning streak in her first senior international season by securing a third straight Diamond League series win in Paris on Sunday with a winning throw of 67.44 meters on her first attempt.

In front of 19,000 spectators at the Stade Sebastien Charlety, Yan delivered another explosive performance from the get-go, launching a world-class first attempt that proved too good for the rest of the field to match, including Japan’s 2020 Tokyo Olympics champion Haruka Kitaguchi and Poland’s Olympic medalist Maria Andrejczyk.

In her maiden full season on the senior circuit, Yan has achieved an inspiring sweep of all three Diamond League stops she’s entered — her season-opening win on home soil in Xiamen, Fujian province, on May 23, Olso on June 10, and now Paris — qualifying for September’s series finale in Brussels with six legs remaining.

Yan’s jaw-dropping, title-clinching 71.74-meter throw in Xiamen set a new Asian and world U20 record, posing a serious threat to the current world mark of 72.28 set by Czech Republic’s Barbora Spotakova in Stuttgard, Germany, in September 2008.

It’s also been Yan’s sixth straight meet that she has won with her first attempt, and by a considerable distance compared to of the rest of the field, signaling the arrival of a generational talent with the potential to win it all at the 2027 world championships in Beijing and the 2028 Los Angeles Games.

All three of her Diamond League-winning performances this season have cleared the 67-meter barrier, underscoring a world-class consistency beyond her years.

Yan’s tactical and mature performance in Paris spoke volumes about her rapid adaptation to senior elite competition. Notably, she was the youngest athlete in the 13-woman Paris final and is the only competitor this season to register a throw beyond 70 meters.

Although still a work in progress, the baby-faced Yan has already drawn comparisons with China’s track icon and 2004 Olympic champion hurdler Liu Xiang, convincing fans with her similarly dominant performances.