17-05-2025
Australia's Matthew Denny claims powerful discus win at Diamond League in Doha
The Australian discus powerhouse Matthew Denny says he's determined to become the 'dominant' figure in his sport – and the Olympic bronze medallist has taken another step towards achieving his aim with an impressive Diamond League win in Doha.
Denny, who last month moved to second on the world all-time list with a 74.78m throw in Ramona in Oklahoma, defeated Swedish world champion Daniel Stahl and Slovenia's former global gold medallist Kristjan Ceh on Friday in the Qatari capital.
'It is awesome to win again,' said Danny, who finished third in Paris last year.
'I have been tired after a lot of travel and a bit flat from the start, but I have had a really good start of the Diamond League season and I cannot wait for the next one.'
This was the Commonwealth champion and two-time Diamond League winner's first competition since the breakthrough of Ramona, where his effort was only bettered by Lithuanian Mykolas Alekna's world record of 75.65m.
'It was pretty tough coming home after that competition if I'm honest. That 74, it levelled me. My first session back, I felt like I forgot how to throw, I was so fatigued,' Denny said.
'There's momentum there but I didn't know what to expect today in regards to distance and whether it would be enough, in terms of whether the boys would be out to prove a point to me.'
But the 28-year-old from the small Queensland town of Allora ended up proving a point to them, just a day after he had told reporters: 'My aim has always been to be the most dominant figure in men's discus.'
Denny opened up the lead in tricky, windy conditions with his first-round effort of 67.33m, which kept him ahead of Stahl (67.06m) and Ceh (66.92m) throughout until he sealed the deal with a best final-round effort of 68.97m.
'I would love to get more really big throws,' said Denny, who always seem to have the best brought out of him by the Diamond League circuit and its prizes.
'The Diamond (trophy) is mine and nobody can take it from me. I had to make sure that nobody was taking from me in that last round and I pushed myself to secure the victory so I am very grateful,' he said, having also collected $US10,000 ($A15,600) for the win.
Among the international highlights was Jamaica's Tia Clayton edging her twin sister Tina Clayton in the women's 100m in a 2025 world-leading 10.92 seconds – 0.1 seconds faster than her sister.
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, the 38-year-old double Olympic 100m champion, finished fourth.
