Damian Warner may have earned the biggest accolade in the sport with his Olympic decathlon title last year, but his reign as king of combined events began long before that with his historic streak of victories at the Hypo Meeting in G&ouml;tzis.
The Canadian all-rounder will return to the World Athletics Combined Events Tour Gold meeting this weekend (28-29) in pursuit of a record-extending seventh victory. He&rsquo;ll take on a strong field that includes world champion Niklas Kaul and rising Swiss star Simon Ehammer, who pushed Warner all the way at the World Athletics Indoor Championships Belgrade 22 earlier this year.
World champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson, meanwhile, leads the heptathlon field. The Briton faces Olympic silver medallist Anouk Vetter, world indoor bronze medallist Kendell Williams and the returning Laura Ikauniece, among others.
Warner will be contesting his first decathlon of the year, but the vastly experienced 32-year-old rarely shows any sign of early season rust. He went into the World Indoor Championships off the back of just one low-key hurdles race, yet emerged from Belgrade with the gold medal and a national record of 6489, elevating him to No.2 on the world indoor all-time list.
He opened his outdoor season last month with a 49.07m throw in the discus, one of the best marks of his career, and a wind-assisted 20.63 run over 200m, which suggests his form is as good as it has been in the past 12 months &ndash; the same form that carried him to a 8995 victory in G&ouml;tzis last year and a 9018 triumph at the Olympics, making him just the fourth man in history to surpass 9000 points in the decathlon.
There may not be anyone else in the field who can match that overall score, but there are several athletes who&rsquo;ll push Warner in each individual discipline. Ehammer, for example, broke Warner&rsquo;s world decathlon best in the long jump earlier this month, soaring out to 8.30m en route to his triumph in Ratingen. The 22-year-old is also a strong sprint hurdler, so will likely be close to Warner in that discipline too. And the strong line-up in G&ouml;tzis could be just what Ehammer needs to improve on his recent Swiss decathlon record of 8354.
Kaul hasn&rsquo;t quite regained the form he showed when winning the world title in 2019 with 8691, but the 24-year-old has come relatively close to his PBs in the 110m hurdles, pole vault and long jump so far this year. Given the strength of the field, this is about as good a test as he&rsquo;ll get ahead of the World Athletics Championships Oregon22.
His German compatriots Arthur Abele and Kai Kazmirek are very much in the same boat when it comes to trying to recapture their best form. Abele, the European champion, last completed a decathlon back in September 2018. Kazmirek didn&rsquo;t finish in Ratingen earlier this month or at the World Indoor Championships, but he was seventh in G&ouml;tzis last year and went on to place 14th at the Olympics.
Warner&rsquo;s strongest opposition this weekend could come from his fellow Canadian Pierce LePage. The 26-year-old placed fifth at the 2019 World Championships and at last year&rsquo;s Olympics, scoring a PB of 8604. LePage, who finished second to Warner in G&ouml;tzis last year, set a discus PB of 51.38m last month and an indoor shot put PB of 15.81m earlier in the year, so appears to be in top form.
World silver medallist Maicel Uibo of Estonia and Lindon Victor of Grenada, both vastly experienced and formidable competitors, should also be in the mix this weekend. Meanwhile, world U20 champion Frantisek Doubek of the Czech Republic will contest his first decathlon since becoming a senior athlete.
A lot has happened since Johnson-Thompson won her second Hypo-Meeting title in 2019.
The Briton won the world title a few months later, battled injuries for much of 2020 and 2021 but made it to the startline of the Olympic heptathlon in Tokyo and was competitive in the first three events, only for another injury to strike at the mid-way point of the competition, forcing her to withdraw. Since then, she has also relocated to the US to join a new training group.
She accepted a wildcard invitation to compete at the World Indoor Championships but ultimately wasn&rsquo;t quite at a point where she was competitive and so withdrew before the 800m. Her early season results outdoors have been a bit more promising, including a wind-assisted 6.41m leap at the recent Wanda Diamond League meeting in Birmingham.
This weekend the 29-year-old hopes to achieve her first completed heptathlon since her World Championships victory almost three years ago, and she&rsquo;ll face a strong field.
Dutch duo Anouk Vetter and Emma Oosterwegel will be formidable opponents. Vetter, the Olympic silver medallist, has shown strong form in individual disciplines already this year, including wind-assisted marks of 13.16 in the 100m hurdles and 6.58m in the long jump, plus a 15.24m throw in the shot put.
Olympic bronze medallist Oosterwegel, meanwhile, ran a wind-assisted 13.44 in the 100m hurdles and threw well beyond 50 metres in the javelin last weekend. No Dutch athlete has ever won in G&ouml;tzis, but there&rsquo;s a chance that drought could end this weekend.
Ikauniece will also be one to watch. The 2015 world bronze medallist finished second to Johnson-Thompson in G&ouml;tzis in 2019 but was then forced to withdraw from the World Championships due to injury. She hasn&rsquo;t started a heptathlon since June 2019, but she returned to competition this year and recently threw 13.90m in the shot and 52.14m in the javelin, suggesting she&rsquo;s in good form ahead of this weekend.
Cuba&rsquo;s Yorgelis Rodriguez, like Johnson-Thompson, also crashed out of the Olympic Games last year, but she&rsquo;s usually a strong opponent in any heptathlon.
Poland&rsquo;s Adrianna Sulek and USA&rsquo;s Kendell Williams, the world indoor silver and bronze medallists respectively, will also be in action this weekend. Sulek recently won in Bydgoszcz with 6290 but she hopes to get closer to &ndash; or even beyond &ndash; the World Championships qualifying standard of 6420 this weekend. Williams, as the winner of the 2021 Combined Events Tour, has already got a wildcard entry for the World Championships.
Others to look out for include recent Multistars winner Annik Kalin of Switzerland, world U20 champion Saga Vanninen of Finland, Ireland&rsquo;s Kate O&rsquo;Connor and Britain&rsquo;s Holly Mills.
<h3>Leading entries</h3>
Women Katarina Johnson-Thompson (GBR) 6981 Laura Ikauniece (LAT) 6815 Yorgelis Rodriguez (CUB) 6742 Anouk Vetter (NED) 6689 Kendell Williams (USA) 6683 Emma Oosterwegel (NED) 6590 Annik Kalin (SUI) 6398 Ekaterina Voronina (UZB) 6346 Vanessa Grimm (GER) 6316 Adrianna Sulek (POL) 6315 Kate O&rsquo;Connor (IRL) 6297 Sophie Weissenberg (GER) 6293 Odile Ahouanwanou (BEN) 6274 Saga Vanninen (FIN) 6271
Men Damian Warner (CAN) 9018 Niklas Kaul (GER) 8691 Arthur Abele (GER) 8605 Pierce LePage (CAN) 8604 Maicel Uibo (EST) 8604 Kai Kazmirek (GER) 8580 Lindon Victor (GRN) 8539 Simon Ehammer (SUI) 8354 Pawel Wiesiolek (POL) 8333 Tim Nowak (GER) 8229 Niels Pittomvils (BEL) 8222 Joseph Delgado (USA) 8161 Risto Lillemets (EST) 8156 Rik Taam (NED) 8107

Olympic decathlon champion Damian Warner and world heptathlon champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson lead the competitive fields

Warner seeks seventh victory, while Johnson-Thompson returns to Götzis

World indoor silver medallist Adrianna Sulek led the Wiesław Czapiewski Memorial heptathlon from start to finish while Czech decathlon champion Ondrej Kopecky broke the 8000-point barrier for the first time at the World Athletics Combined Events Tour Gold meeting in Bydgoszcz on Sunday (15).
Sulek&rsquo;s winning score of 6290 was just 25 points shy of her lifetime best. Kopecky, meanwhile, gave himself an early birthday present &ndash; he turned 24 the day after the competition &ndash; and added more than 400 points to his PB with his 8041 tally.
Sulek was the only heptathlete to dip inside 14 seconds in the 100m hurdles, opening her account with 13.70. An outdoor PB of 1.87m in the high jump increased her lead over Dorota Skrivanova of the Czech Republic.
The Pole came within one centimetre of her PB in the shot put (13.20m) and rounded out her first day with a 24.34 clocking in the 200m, giving her a leading score of 3777, more than 250 points ahead of Skrivanova, who was just ahead of Sulek in the 200m (24.32).
Skrivanova &ndash; who finished fifth at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade &ndash; topped the long jump with a leap of 6.24m, while Sulek managed 6.14m. But Sulek increased her lead in the javelin, throwing 40.37m to Skrivanova&rsquo;s 32.91m.
Poland&rsquo;s Edyta Bielska dominated the 800m and ran 2:07.48, with Skrivanova (2:10.29) and Sulek (2:11.25) relatively close behind. Sulek&rsquo;s clocking brought her winning tally to 6290, while Skrivanova was rewarded with a PB of 5926.
&ldquo;Were it not for the fact that this was the Wieslaw Czapiewski Memorial, I would have run the 800m in about 2:15, just enough to hold on to victory, but since this competition is in memorial of my former coach, there was no room for poor results,&rdquo; said Sulek, who was coached by Czapiewski up until his death in 2019. &ldquo;I decided to run my lungs out and fight in the 800m. My score may have been just short of my PB, but I know that I gave 100% today. And in the near future I&rsquo;ll be faster and stronger.&rdquo;
Kopecky got off to a strong start in the decathlon, winning the 100m in 11.06 and the long jump with a PB of 7.47m. Poland&rsquo;s Pawel Wiesiolek (14.85m) and Lithuania&rsquo;s Edgaras Benkunskas (14.64m) applied pressure in the shot put, but Kopecky&rsquo;s 13.46m heave was enough for the Czech all-rounder to maintain his lead.
Wiesiolek took no further part in the competition, but Benkunskas took the lead after clearing 2.04m in the high jump. Kopecky managed 1.89m but rebounded in the 400m with a big PB of 48.54, giving him a first-day score of 4057, 66 points ahead of Benkunskas.
The lead duo were close in the first event of the second day, Benkunskas winning the 110m hurdles from Kopecky, 14.32 to 14.35. But Kopecky pulled ahead in the discus (44.06m) and pole vault (5.10m).
Benkunskas gained a bit of ground in the javelin, throwing 61.11m to Kopecky&rsquo;s 57.86m, but the Czech leader had a comfortable lead going into the 1500m and duly won that event in 4:43.42, gaining the overall victory with 8041. Benkunskas finished second with 7689.

Sulek scores 6290, Kopecky sets big PB of 8041

Sulek and Kopecky dominate in Bydgoszcz

Results including a world decathlon best of 8.30m in the long jump helped Simon Ehammer on his way to a Swiss record of 8354 points, while Sophie Wiessenberg maintained her lead to win the heptathlon ahead of her German compatriot Carolin Schafer at the Stadtwerke Ratingen Mehrkampf-Meeting this weekend (7-8).
On the first day of the World Athletics Combined Events Gold fixture, Ehammer returned to competition for the first time since taking world indoor silver in Belgrade and broke the Swiss long jump record that had stood for almost 20 years, giving the 22-year-old a lead that he would not relinquish.
His competition had started with a 10.65 run in the 100m &ndash; the fastest of the day &ndash; before he followed it with his record-breaking leap.
On a day when most other jumpers struggled to produce big marks &ndash; the next-best athlete, Malik Diakite, jumped 7.35m &ndash; Ehammer improved with each round, opening with 7.69m, improving to 7.97m and then finishing with his mammoth effort.
Olympic decathlon champion Damian Warner owned the previous world decathlon best with the 8.28m he jumped en route to his victory in G&ouml;tzis last year. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Simon Ehammer. 8,30 Meter. ACHT METER DREISSIG!!! Der Zehnkampf von Ratingen von Disziplin zu Disziplin: <a href="https://t.co/dyWbjfWuxQ">https://t.co/dyWbjfWuxQ</a><a href="https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WorldAthletics</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@EuroAthletics</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/decathletes?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@decathletes</a> <a href="https://t.co/uhT0jCav57">pic.twitter.com/uhT0jCav57</a>
&mdash; leichtathletik.de (@dlv_online) <a href="https://twitter.com/dlv_online/status/1522916331653419010?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2022</a></blockquote>
 Another meeting record fell in the next event, this time thanks to Nico Beckers, who heaved his shot out to a lifetime best of 16.63m. Overall leader Ehammer threw an outdoor PB of 14.68m, but world champion Niklas Kaul and 2017 world bronze medallist Kai Kazmirek &ndash; as had been the case in the first two disciplines &ndash; finished further down the field, throwing 13.73m and 13.78m respectively, some way off their best form.
German champion Tim Nowak moved up the field after the high jump, thanks to his outdoor PB clearance of 2.07m. Ehammer was close behind, scaling 2.04m to maintain his overall lead.
In the 400m, the final decathlon discipline of the first day, Kaul and Kazmirek took a few strides out of their blocks once the gun had fired but then stepped off the track. Kaul later explained that he had a headache and felt dizzy.
Ehammer clocked a solid 48.30 to bring his score to 4583 &ndash; 125 points up on the pace from his 8231 PB score from two years ago. Germany&rsquo;s Malik Diakite uncorked a huge PB of 46.76 in the 400m to break the meeting record.
Beckers finished the first day in second place overall with 4320, some 263 points adrift, while Marcel Meyer was third with 4111.
Ehammer picked up from where he left off at the start of day two, going quickest by a big margin in the 110m hurdles with 13.75.
Sweden&rsquo;s Marcus Nilsson was the dominant force in the discus, throwing 46.88m for a mark more than two metres further than any of his rivals. Another PB performance helped Ehammer to maintain his lead, the Swiss rising star throwing 39.13m to add almost three metres to his previous best.
Ehammer was then among the three athletes to soar clear at 5.00m in the pole vault, with Nowak matching his outdoor PB and Nilsson also managing the height. The leader remained on target for a Swiss record, with two events to go.
Germany&rsquo;s Jan Ruhrmann was a class apart in the javelin, adding three metres to his PB with 66.75m, as Ehammer threw 53.01m.
As they lined up for the 1500m, the Swiss record and a qualifying score for the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 remained in reach for the leader. Running 4:57.55, Ehammer crossed the finish line victorious &ndash; improving the Swiss record by more than 100 points and surpassing the standard for Oregon by four points.
Nilsson ended his strong second day with the fastest time of 4:20.02 and moved up a place into fourth (7927) behind Ehammer, Nowak (8160) and Beckers (7940).
&ldquo;Those were two incredibly beautiful days,&rdquo; said Ehammer. &ldquo;A great start to the season in a great atmosphere. The long jump was of course the best &ndash; I didn't think I could jump 8.30m at such an early stage.
&ldquo;It was my first decathlon since 2020, so of course it's awesome to start with a Swiss record and World Championships standard.&rdquo;
He will next compete in G&ouml;tzis later this month.
&ldquo;I know that I can do even more in all disciplines and that I want more."
<h2>Weissenberg reigns in&nbsp;Ratingen</h2>
In the heptathlon, 2019 European U23 silver medallist Weissenberg held a narrow lead overnight but with just 76 points separating the top three contenders, there was still everything to play for.
At the start of day one, 2017 world silver medallist Schafer&nbsp;took an early lead after running 13.57 in the 100m hurdles. France&rsquo;s Leonie Cambours was close behind with 13.58 and Weissenberg was third overall with 13.78.
Cambours then cleared 1.80m in the high jump, giving her the overall lead from Weissenberg, who managed 1.77m. A 1.71m leap from Schafer meant she dropped down the standings briefly.
USA&rsquo;s Shaina Burns entered the fray with a 14.70m heave in the shot, elevating her to fourth overall, close behind Weissenberg (who threw 13.59m), Schaefer (13.98m) and Cambours (12.04m).
Weissenberg extended her lead thanks to a 24.03 clocking in the 200m &ndash; the fastest of the day &ndash; giving her a bit more breathing room over Schafer (24.40) and Cambours (24.44). Weissenberg ended the day with 3696, while Schafer&nbsp;was second (3643) and Cambours third (3620).
Weissenberg is the 2016 world U20 long jump silver medallist and she showed her strength in that discipline at the start of day two, leaping 6.21m. That was the second-best mark behind Lovisa Karlsson&rsquo;s 6.27m &ndash; the performance moving the Swedish athlete into fifth place. Weissenberg remained at the top of the standings, while Cambours overtook Schafer&nbsp;and moved into second place.
A 48.00m javelin throw by Weissenberg was the best of the competition and Schafer regained second place with one event to go, throwing 47.81m &ndash; 170 points separating the top two.
A time of 2:17 was needed in the 800m for Weissenberg to improve her overall PB and while that was out of reach, she did more than enough for victory and ran 2:18.72 for her 6273-point score &shy;&ndash; a qualifying standard for the European Championships on home soil.
Schafer&rsquo;s 2:13.95 PB contributed to her 6170-point tally for second place, while Cambours was third with 5933.
"I'm incredibly happy, because I didn't think I would win in Ratingen,&rdquo; said Weissenberg. &ldquo;The atmosphere was incredibly good.&rdquo; Her aim now will be the World Championships standard of 6420 in G&ouml;tzis.
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-combined-events-tour/calendar-results/7174019/result" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Results</a>
&nbsp;

World indoor silver medallist leaps world decathlon best of 8.30m in long jump

Ehammer nails huge leap in Ratingen while Weissenberg wins heptathlon

Garrett Scantling scored 8867 points to move to seventh on the world decathlon all-time list, while Anna Hall also secured her heptathlon title in style at the USATF Combined Events Championships in Fayetteville on Friday and Saturday (6-7).
Scantling&rsquo;s performance adds more than 200 points to his previous best achieved when winning at last year&rsquo;s US Olympic Trials, with the 28-year-old going on to finish fourth at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
In Fayetteville he moved into the lead after the pole vault, overtaking day one leader Kyle Garland, who also impressed with a collegiate record of 8720. Zach Ziemek placed third with 8573. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
THAT DECATHLON 🤯 Garrett Scantling leaves the USATF Combined Events Championships as a CHAMP! 🥇Garrett Scantling totaled 8867 for a world lead 😳 🥈Kyle Garland set a collegiate record of 8720 🤩 🥉Zach Ziemek racked up 8573 💥<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JourneyToGold?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JourneyToGold</a> <a href="https://t.co/GfSTVBbrop">pic.twitter.com/GfSTVBbrop</a>
&mdash; USATF (@usatf) <a href="https://twitter.com/usatf/status/1523113173229793280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 8, 2022</a></blockquote>
 In the heptathlon, Hall remained strong throughout and ended her competition with a 2:03.11 800m &ndash; the fourth-fastest ever 800m as part of a heptathlon.
She improved her PB and US collegiate record to 6458 to win by 274 points over Ashtin Mahler, with Michelle Atherley third.
Garland&rsquo;s leading score at the end of the first day was 4660 points, with his results including PBs of 10.63 in the 100m and 7.86m in the long jump. Scantling had 4503 from performances including a 10.68 100m, 7.68m long jump PB and 48.38 400m.
Scantling started day two with a 13.59 110m hurdles PB, while Garland clocked a lifetime best of 13.71. Scantling then threw a big discus PB of 51.04m and was in the lead by 52 points after his 5.15m clearance in the pole vault.
Scantling topped the javelin with a 67.16m throw and then ran 4:46.37 in the 1500m to complete his 8867-point performance. Garland closed his campaign with a 4:43.21 PB.
Hall, meanwhile, set four individual PBs on the way to her 6458 US collegiate record score. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Anna Hall is a CHAMP! 🥇🇺🇸 Hall racked up a personal best of 6458 points to take a big win in the heptathlon at the USATF Combined Events Championships! 🥈Ashtin Mahler - 6184 🥉Michelle Atherley - 6154<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JourneyToGold?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JourneyToGold</a> <a href="https://t.co/cDRoeq1GhB">pic.twitter.com/cDRoeq1GhB</a>
&mdash; USATF (@usatf) <a href="https://twitter.com/usatf/status/1523073914892546052?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2022</a></blockquote>
 She opened with a PB of 13.21 in the 100m hurdles and then cleared 1.76m in the high jump, threw 12.51m in the shot put and led the 200m with a 23.14 PB on day one.
On day two, she long jumped a PB of 6.39m, threw the javelin 38.44m and then needed a time of 2:05.63 or faster to achieve the 6420 qualifying standard for the World Athletics Championships Oregon22.
She managed it by more than two seconds, running a PB of 2:03.11 to secure the standard and the title.
Mahler threw 50.07m in the javelin to move into second place and secured that with a 2:17.71 800m run for her score of 6184, with Atherley third with 6154.
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competition/calendar-results/results/7182784" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Results</a>
&nbsp;
<h2>Sisson sets&nbsp;US record</h2>
Saturday also featured USATF Half Marathon Championships action in Indianapolis and there Olympian Emily Sisson clocked 1:07:11 to break the US record, while Leonard Korir won the men's title after a battle with&nbsp;Futsum Zeinasellassie.
Sisson had gone through&nbsp;5km in 15:54 and 10km in 31:57, and had a lead of almost five minutes by the 15km point, which she passed in &nbsp;47:54. She went on to win by six minutes ahead of Andrea Pomaranski (1:13:12) and Allie Kieffer (1:13:16). The previous US record had been Sara Hall's 1:07:15 set in Houston in January.
Korir and Zeinasellassie had been part of the seven-strong leading men's group that passed 10km in 30:09 and went on to race all the way to the finish line,&nbsp;Korir eventually winning by one second in 1:02:35.&nbsp;Jacob Thomson was third in&nbsp;1:02:46.
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competition/calendar-results/results/7182821" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Results</a>

Garrett Scantling scored 8867 points to move to seventh on the world decathlon all-time list.

Scantling and Hall impress to win US combined events titles

Markus Rooth overtook compatriot Sander Skotheim in the final three disciplines to take a narrow decathlon victory at Multistars, while Annik Kalin dominated the heptathlon at the World Athletics Combined Events Tour Gold meeting in Grosseto on Sunday (1).
Rooth&rsquo;s winning score of 8307 was a Norwegian record, and Skotheim&rsquo;s runner-up tally of 8298 also exceeded the previous national mark. Kalin, meanwhile, set a Swiss record of 6398 to win by almost 400 points.
European U20 silver medallist Skotheim, still a teenager until the end of May, held the overnight lead after setting PBs in all five events in what is his first senior decathlon. But the 19-year-old was overtaken by his marginally older compatriot as both men produced huge PBs.
Kalin, meanwhile, led the heptathlon from the first event and smashed her PB by more than 200 points.
Skotheim started as he meant to go on, setting a 100m PB of 11.17, but several men were quicker. France&rsquo;s Arthur Prevost was the quickest overall in that event, clocking 10.66, while Italian indoor heptathlon record-holder Dario Dester set a PB of 10.76. Estonian champion Kristjan Rosenberg finished third in 10.85 ahead of his compatriot Risto Lillemets (10.90).
Skotheim leapt up the standings after the long jump as he produced the best marks of the day: a wind-legal PB of 7.74m (1.3m/s) and a marginally wind-aided 7.77m (2.1m/s). At the end of the event Skotheim was third in the overall standings behind Dester, who equalled his 7.61m PB, and Norway&rsquo;s Markus Rooth (7.70m).
Pieter Braun, the 2015 European U23 champion, topped the shot put after setting a PB of 15.67m, elevating him to third overall. Rooth improved his outdoor PB to 14.25m to take the lead from Dester, who improved his PB to 13.90m.
After setting a shot put PB of 13.81m, Skotheim added six centimetres to his high jump PB &ndash; substantial in decathlon terms &ndash; with a 2.16m clearance. With just two other men jumping higher than 2.00m, it gave the young Norwegian a comfortable lead of 127 points over his compatriot Rooth and Dester, both of whom cleared 1.95m. Braun cleared 1.92m and slipped to fourth.
Skotheim ended the day with a fifth PB, clocking 48.76 for 400m to bring his day-one tally to 4370. With Dester running 47.76, it meant Skotheim&rsquo;s winning margin reduced slightly to 108 points over the Italian, who currently sits in second place. Rooth and Braun, who ran 49.52 and 48.71 respectively, remain in third and fourth overall.
Prevost, as was the case in the 100m, was the fastest overall in the 400m, running 47.60 to elevate him to fifth overall in the standings.
Skotheim&rsquo;s run of PBs continued on day two as he clocked 14.81 (-0.6m/s) in the 110m hurdles, but his lead was reduced to just 41 points as Dester ran 14.40 and Rooth clocked 14.46. Brazil&rsquo;s Jos&eacute; Fernando Ferreira Santana was fastest overall with 14.27, while Braun recorded a solid 14.58 but then withdrew from the competition with a foot injury.
As was the case in the hurdles, Skotheim&rsquo;s throw in the discus (43.67m) was a PB by default as it was the first time he had contested that discipline with senior implements. It kept him afloat in the lead, but Rooth overtook Dester after throwing 45.80m to the Italian&rsquo;s 41.65m PB.
The pole vault was a turning point, namely for 20-year-old Rooth, who scaled a lifetime best of 5.05m. Skotheim managed just 4.65m, and the 40-centimetre differential proved costly for the teenager as Rooth moved into the lead.
Prevost was second best in the pole vault with 4.95m, while Dester vaulted 4.65m and remained in third place.
Skotheim narrowed the gap on Rooth after throwing a PB of 61.55m in the javelin. Rooth managed 60.83m, while Santana topped the event with 62.70m, moving up to sixth overall.
Rooth went into the final discipline with a 34-point advantage &ndash; worth roughly five seconds in 1500m terms. Skotheim went for it and, working off the likes of Dester, produced a huge PB of 4:29.11. But Rooth also uncorked the run of his life and stayed within a few seconds of his younger compatriot, setting a PB of 4:33.08.
It meant Rooth held on for victory and was rewarded with a national record of 8307. Skotheim&rsquo;s score of 8298 &ndash; the second-best mark in history by a teenager &ndash; also exceeded the previous Norwegian record of 8228, set by Martin Roe at the 2018 edition of Multistars in Florence.
&ldquo;Grosseto is my lucky place,&rdquo; said Rooth, who becomes the third Norwegian to win the Multistars decathlon after Lars Rise in 2016 and Roe in 2018 and 2021. &ldquo;I had a great decathlon with some ups and downs. I am super excited, especially with my PB in the long jump and in the pole vault. I came from behind. I am not a first-day guy, but I tried to catch up at the end. I am now qualified for the European Championships in Munich and I would be excited with a good performance there.&rdquo;
Dester finished third with 8109, improving his own Italian U23 record and moving to second on the Italian all-time list.
<h2>Heptathlon masterclass from Kalin</h2>
The 22-year-old was the fastest in the 100m hurdles, winning in 13.43 (-1.1m/s) &ndash; just 0.06 shy of her PB &ndash; to take an early lead. Italian indoor record-holder Sveva Gerevini improved her PB to 13.60 to finish second overall.
Poland&rsquo;s Paulina Ligarska topped the high jump with a PB of 1.83m, moving her from 14th to second overall. Kalin, meanwhile, cleared 1.77m which was enough to hold on to pole position.
Ligarska kept up the pressure on Kalin, winning the shot put with 14.00m. But Kalin added 62 centimetres to her PB, throwing 13.81m to maintain a 23-point lead over Ligarska. Compatriot Geraldine Ruckstuhl, the 2019 European U23 champion, threw 13.88m.
Kalin ended the day with a 24.50 run over 200m, just 0.04 shy of her PB and almost a second quicker than Ligarska&rsquo;s 25.48 effort. It brought Kalin&rsquo;s day-one score to 3715, remaining on course for a significant heptathlon PB. Gerevini&rsquo;s 23.93 was the fastest 200m clocking of the day, moving the Italian up to third place overall.
Kalin started the second day on a high note, long jumping 6.55m &ndash; just one centimetre shy of her PB and her best ever within a heptathlon &ndash; to extend her overall lead. Ligarska, however, recorded three fouls and exited the competition. It meant Gerevini &ndash; who set an outdoor PB of 6.12m &ndash; moved up into second place overall.
Kalin set a javelin PB of 49.11m to remain on course to break the Ruckstuhl&rsquo;s Swiss record of 6391. Austria&rsquo;s Chiara Schuler set a PB of 50.34m to move up into second place while Spain&rsquo;s European U23 silver medallist Claudia Conte matched Kalik&rsquo;s 49.11m and moved into fourth place overall. Gerevini slipped down to third after throwing 38.44m. Two-time Multistars winner Sofia Ifantidou was the best performer in the event with 51.39m.
Kalik&rsquo;s 2:20.45 clocking in the 800m brought her winning score to 6398. Although it was just 22 points shy of the World Championships qualifying mark, she achieved her other target of breaking the Swiss record.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s amazing. I&rsquo;ve not been able to take part in any heptathlon competition since 2020 because of a back injury,&rdquo; said Kalin, whose next heptathlon will be in G&ouml;tzis at the end of this month. &ldquo;Every event was good; I had no down event. I achieved the qualifying standard for the European Championships in Munich and this performance should be enough to qualify for the World Championships in Eugene.&rdquo;
Gerevini finished second to Poland&rsquo;s Edyta Bielska in the 800m, 2:08.66 to 2:09.81, to set a lifetime best of 6011, becoming the first Italian heptathlete since 2003 to break 6000 points. Conte completed the podium with 5914.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a step forward in my career,&rdquo; said Gerevini. &ldquo;It means a lot to add more than 100 points to my previous PB. I was not in my best shape because of a small injury problem. My goal is to break Gertrud Bacher&rsquo;s Italian record.&rdquo;
Diego Sampaolo for World Athletics

Norwegian decathlon record of 8307 for Markus Rooth, Swiss heptathlon record of 6398 for Annik Kalin

Rooth and Kalin break national records at Multistars

As the year draws to a close, we look back at the key moments of 2021 in each area of the sport.&nbsp;
The series continues with a review of the combined events and will be followed over the coming days by reviews of all the other event groups.&nbsp; 
<h2>Decathlon</h2>
<h3>Season top list</h3>
<table style="border: 1px solid #999999; width: 80%; height: 110px;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">9018</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Damian Warner 🇨🇦 CAN</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Tokyo</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">5 August</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd; padding-left: 5px;">8726</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Kevin Mayer 🇫🇷 FRA</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Tokyo</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">5 August</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">8649</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Ashley Moloney 🇦🇺 AUS</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Tokyo</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">5 August</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd; padding-left: 5px;">8647</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Garrett Scantling 🇺🇸 USA</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Eugene</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">20 June</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">8604</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Pierce LePage 🇨🇦 CAN</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Tokyo</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">5 August</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/records/toplists/combined-events/decathlon/outdoor/men/senior/2021?regionType=world&amp;windReading=regular&amp;page=1&amp;bestResultsOnly=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full season top list</a> <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/records/toplists/combined-events/heptathlon/indoor/men/senior/2021?regionType=world&amp;page=1&amp;bestResultsOnly=true&amp;oversizedTrack=regular" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full indoor heptathlon season top list</a> 
<h3>World rankings</h3>
<table style="border: 1px solid #999; width: 50%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">1</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Damian Warner 🇨🇦 CAN</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">1473</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd; padding-left: 5px;">2</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Kevin Mayer 🇫🇷 FRA</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">1400</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">3</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Garrett Scantling 🇺🇸 USA</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">1351</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd; padding-left: 5px;">4</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Ashley Moloney 🇦🇺 AUS</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">1347</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">5</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Pierce LePage 🇨🇦 CAN</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">1347</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/world-rankings/decathlon/men?regionType=world&amp;page=1&amp;rankDate=2021-12-21&amp;limitByCountry=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full rankings</a> 
<h3>Olympic medallists</h3>
<table style="border: 1px solid #34495e; width: 80%; background-color: #eee; fff; border-style: solid;" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="3">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #e9c968; text-align: center;">🥇</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #e9c968;">Damian Warner 🇨🇦 CAN</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #e9c968;">9018 OR</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #ced4d9; text-align: center;">🥈</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #ced4d9;">Kevin Mayer 🇫🇷 FRA</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #ced4d9;">8726 SB</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #bd895e; text-align: center;">🥉</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #bd895e;">Ashley Moloney 🇦🇺 AUS</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #bd895e;">8649 AR</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="background-color: #34495e; text-align: left; width: 100%;" colspan="3">&nbsp;&nbsp;<a style="color: #ffffff;" href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/olympic-games/the-xxxii-olympic-games-athletics-7132391/results/men/decathlon/1500-metres/points" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full results</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<h3>&nbsp;</h3>
<h3>Major winners</h3>
Olympic Games: Damian Warner 🇨🇦 CAN 9018 points South American Championships: Andy Preciado 🇪🇨 ECU&nbsp;8004 points Oceania Combined Events Championships:&nbsp;Daniel Golubovic 🇦🇺 AUS&nbsp;8336 points European Indoor Championships (heptathlon): Kevin Mayer 🇫🇷 FRA 6392 points World Athletics Challenge: Kai Kazmirek 🇩🇪 GER&nbsp;24,500 points overall World U20 Championships: Frantisek Doubek 🇨🇿 CZE&nbsp;8169 points 
<h3>Season at a glance</h3>
Damian Warner broke all sorts of decathlon records in 2021.
The Canadian surpassed the 9000-point mark on his way to winning the Olympic title with 9018 in Tokyo, breaking the Games record in the process.
He equalled his own world decathlon best of 10.12 over 100m in Tokyo, while earlier in the year in G&ouml;tzis he set world decathlon bests of 8.28m in the long jump and 13.36 in the 110m hurdles.
And to cap his incredible season, Warner became the first man in history to produce a season average in excess of 9000 points from two or more decathlons. 
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/61c5c79ad265e17a6027fd26.jpg" alt="" width="100%" />
 In fact, with five men exceeding 8600, 12 men scoring 8400 or higher, and 44 men surpassing 8000 points &ndash; depth last witnessed in 1996 &ndash; it was a strong year all round for the decathlon. Which, of course, makes Warner&rsquo;s achievements all the more remarkable, as he beat some quality opponents to land his first global title.
World record-holder Kevin Mayer, having recovered from the injuries that forced him to withdraw from the 2019 World Championships, put up a strong fight in Tokyo, but ultimately he had to make do with his second successive Olympic silver medal, almost 300 points adrift of Warner. Australian youngster Ashley Moloney, meanwhile, gave his more experienced rivals a run for their money and took Olympic bronze with an Oceanian record of 8649.
Top-flight decathlon action returned in 2021 in the Combined Events Challenge &ndash; now renamed the World Athletics Combined Events Tour &ndash; and the series got under way in Lana, where Norway&rsquo;s Martin Roe won with 8055.
One month later, Warner won a record sixth Hypo Meeting title in G&ouml;tzis with a Canadian record of 8995, agonisingly missing out on becoming the fourth man in history to surpass 9000 points. Compatriot Pierce LePage took second place in G&ouml;tzis with 8534.
After the Canadian 1-2 in G&ouml;tzis, there was a Czech 1-2 in Arona as Jiri Sykora (8122) won from Adam Sebastian Helcelet (8058). Most of the leading German athletes, meanwhile, were in action in Ratingen, where Kai Kazmirek came out on top with 8184, effectively securing his place on the Olympic team.
Garrett Scantling impressed at the US Trials in late June. Having taken a break from the sport after narrowly missing the US Olympic team in 2016, Scantling returned to the decathlon last year and is now better than ever. He won the US Trials with a lifetime best of 8647 in a competition where four men exceeded 8400. 
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/60d06545953a9cd50196b965.jpg" alt="" width="100%" />
 Elsewhere in the States, Estonia&rsquo;s Karel Tilga dominated the collegiate scene. The 23-year-old won the NCAA indoor heptathlon title with a PB of 6264, then set a decathlon PB of 8484 in April before going on to land the NCAA title with 8261.
Mayer may have missed out on the Olympic title in Tokyo, but he added another gold medal to his collection earlier in the year when winning the European indoor title. The French all-rounder scored 6392 to win in Torun, just 87 points shy of his own European indoor record.
Canadian decathletes may have featured prominently at the top of the 2021 world list, but USA ends the year with the best depth, packing 20 athletes into the world top 100 &ndash; 10 of whom scored 8000 points or more. Germany is next best with 12 in the top 100, followed by Estonia (eight).
&nbsp;
<h2>Heptathlon</h2>
<h3>Season top list</h3>
<table style="border: 1px solid #999; width: 80%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">6791</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Nafissatou Thiam 🇧🇪 BEL</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Tokyo</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">5 August</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd; padding-left: 5px;">6703</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Annie Kunz 🇺🇸 USA</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Eugene</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">27 June</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">6689</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Anouk Vetter 🇳🇱 NED</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Tokyo</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">5 August</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd; padding-left: 5px;">6683</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Kendell Williams 🇺🇸 USA</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Eugene</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">27 June</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">6667</td>
<td style="width: 35%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Erica Bougard 🇺🇸 USA</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Eugene</td>
<td style="width: 25%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">27 June</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/records/toplists/combined-events/heptathlon/outdoor/women/senior/2021?regionType=world&amp;windReading=regular&amp;page=1&amp;bestResultsOnly=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full season top list</a> <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/records/toplists/combined-events/pentathlon/indoor/women/senior/2021?regionType=world&amp;page=1&amp;bestResultsOnly=true&amp;oversizedTrack=regular" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full indoor pentathlon season top list</a> 
<h3>World rankings</h3>
<table style="border: 1px solid #999; width: 50%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">1</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Nafissatou Thiam 🇧🇪 BEL</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">1423</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd; padding-left: 5px;">2</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Anouk Vetter 🇳🇱 NED</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">1360</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">3</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Noor Vidts 🇳🇱 NED</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">1317</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd; padding-left: 5px;">4</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">Kendell Williams 🇺🇸 USA</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #ddd;">1305</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 22px;">
<td style="width: 15%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee; padding-left: 5px;">5</td>
<td style="width: 65%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">Annie Kunz 🇺🇸 USA</td>
<td style="width: 20%; height: 22px; background-color: #eee;">1295</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/world-rankings/heptathlon/women?regionType=world&amp;page=1&amp;rankDate=2021-12-21&amp;limitByCountry=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full rankings</a> 
<h3>Olympic medallists</h3>
<table style="border: 1px solid #34495e; width: 80%; background-color: #eee; fff; border-style: solid;" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="3">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #e9c968; text-align: center;">🥇</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #e9c968;">Nafissatou Thiam 🇧🇪 BEL</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #e9c968;">6791 WL</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #ced4d9; text-align: center;">🥈</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #ced4d9;">Anouk Vetter 🇳🇱 NED</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #ced4d9;">6689 NR</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #bd895e; text-align: center;">🥉</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #bd895e;">Emma Oosterwegel 🇳🇱 NED</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #bd895e;">6590 PB</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="background-color: #34495e; text-align: left; width: 100%;" colspan="3">&nbsp;&nbsp;<a style="color: #ffffff;" href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/olympic-games/the-xxxii-olympic-games-athletics-7132391/results/women/heptathlon/800-metres/points" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full results</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<h3>&nbsp;</h3>
<h3>Major winners</h3>
Olympic Games:&nbsp;Nafissatou Thiam 🇧🇪 BEL 6791 points South American Championships: Evelis Aguilar 🇨🇴 COL 6165 points Oceania Combined Events Championships:&nbsp;Taneille Crase&nbsp;🇦🇺 AUS&nbsp;5773&nbsp;points European Indoor Championships (pentathlon): Nafissatou Thiam 🇧🇪 BEL 4904 points World Athletics Challenge:&nbsp;Kendell Williams 🇺🇸 USA 19,574 points overall World U20 Championships: Saga Vanninen 🇫🇮 FIN 5997 points 
<h3>Season at a glance</h3>
Nafissatou Thiam re-established herself as the world&rsquo;s No.1 heptathlete in 2021, winning two major honours and becoming the first woman since Jackie Joyner-Kersee in 1992 to successfully defend an Olympic title. 
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/610c0d3840557cf38863c824.jpg" alt="" width="100%" />
 The 27-year-old Belgian competed in just two combined events competitions this year, but she made both of them count. The first was the pentathlon at the European Indoor Championships, where she won with a national record score of 4904.
She opted against doing a heptathlon before the Olympics and had a relatively quiet season up to that point. For much of the first day, she renewed her rivalry with world champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson, but the Briton was forced to withdraw from the 200m at the end of the first day after sustaining an injury.
It then left a relatively clear path to gold for Thiam, though she was challenged by 2016 European champion Anouk Vetter of the Netherlands. A 54.68m javelin throw from Thiam effectively sealed the title and she went on to win with 6791. Vetter set a Dutch record of 6689 to take silver, while compatriot Emma Oosterwegel enjoyed a breakthrough moment to take bronze with a lifetime best of 6590.
No world or Games records were broken in Tokyo, but the heptathlon was one of the deepest ever at an Olympics with five women exceeding 6500 and eight beating 6400 &ndash; depth bettered only at the 2016 edition of the Games. 
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/61c5c88bd265e17a6027fd29.jpg" alt="" width="100%" />
 In fact, the season as a whole was a strong one with 23 women scoring 6300 or higher and 6291 being good enough for 25th on the world list &ndash; both markers of record depth.
Interestingly, the five meetings in the Combined Events Challenge &ndash; now renamed Combined Events Tour &ndash; produced five different winners, all of different nationalities.
Spain&rsquo;s Maria Vicente won at the first meeting of the year in Lana, scoring 6304 to hold off a challenge from Ireland&rsquo;s Kate O&rsquo;Connor (6297). Xenia Krizsan won in G&ouml;tzis with a Hungarian record of 6651, while China&rsquo;s Zheng Ninali triumphed in Arona with 6358, and Canada&rsquo;s Georgia Ellenwood was the victor in Ratingen with 6314.
But the highest quality heptathlon of the year, outside of the Olympic Games, came at the US Olympic Trials. Annie Kunz made a remarkable breakthrough with a lifetime best of 6703 to take the title ahead of Kendell Williams (6683) and Erica Bougard (6667). It&rsquo;s just the second time in history that three women have broken 6600 in a national-level heptathlon.
World Athletics

A look back at the key moments of 2021 in the combined events

2021 review: combined events

It was June 2020 in Bernay, Normandy, and French decathlete Axel Hubert was preparing for a very unusual decathlon.

Axel Hubert: me versus me

Roughly one year before the Tokyo Games, Damian Warner feared his Olympic dream was over.

High school teachers and a disused ice hockey arena – Warner’s unorthodox path to Olympic gold

USA&rsquo;s Kendell Williams and Germany&rsquo;s Kai Kazmirek topped the end-of-season standings in the 2021 World Athletics Challenge &ndash; Combined Events.
Williams, who finished third in the 2019 edition of the series, won the overall title for the first time, tallying 19,574 points. Kazmirek, winner of this series back in 2016, landed his second title with a score of 24,500.
Rewarding season-long consistency at the highest level, the scoring system takes each athlete&rsquo;s three best marks from the series and combines the points into an overall score. Prize money is awarded to the top eight finishers at the end of the challenge. The athlete with the highest score wins US$30,000 and a wildcard entry to the World Athletics Championships Oregon22.
Williams, 26, started her season with her first ever podium finish at the prestigious Hypo Meeting in G&ouml;tzis, scoring 6383. She followed it with a lifetime best of 6683 to take second place at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene. She went on to place fifth at the Olympic Games with 6508 &ndash; her highest ever score at a major championships.
&ldquo;Plenty to smile about this season,&rdquo; she said after the Olympic Games. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s always an honour to compete on the biggest stage and I&rsquo;m proud of the way I fought through two hard days of competition.&rdquo;
Williams has now secured a wildcard entry for next year&rsquo;s World Championships on home soil, so won&rsquo;t have to compete for a place on the team at the US Trials.
Spain&rsquo;s rising combined events star Maria Vicente finished second in the standings, following her national record of 6304 to win at the Multistars meeting in Lana, along with her 6274 score in Arone and 6117 performance at the Olympics.
Germany&rsquo;s Vanessa Grimm and Ratingen winner Georgia Ellenwood of Canada were close behind Vicente in the standings with just 60 points separating the trio. Benin&rsquo;s Odile Ahouanwanou, runner-up in Ratingen with a national record of 6274, was fifth.
Kazmirek&rsquo;s top score of the season came in his first decathlon of 2021 when he tallied 8190 to place seventh in G&ouml;tzis. He came close to matching that when winning in Ratingen with 8184, a performance which effectively sealed his place on Germany&rsquo;s Olympic team. He went on to place 14th at the Olympic Games in Tokyo with a score of 8126.
&ldquo;This win means a lot to me, because the victory brings with it a wildcard for the World Championships,&rdquo; said Kazmirek.
As he is one of two German athletes with a wildcard, along with world champion Niklas Kaul, it will be down to the German Athletics Federation to decide which wildcard entry to accept for the 2022 World Championships.
Adam Sebastian Helcelet of the Czech Republic achieved runner-up finishes in Lana (8025) and Arona (8058) before placing 16th at the Olympic Games in Tokyo with 8004, giving him second place overall in the challenge standings.
Norway&rsquo;s Martin Roe beat Helcelet in Lana to take victory with 8055, then placed fourth in Arona (8016) and 19th in Tokyo, finishing third overall in the standings. Sweden&rsquo;s Fredrik Samuelsson and Estonia&rsquo;s Taavi Tsernjavski took fourth and fifth respectively. 
<h2>Final standings</h2>
Women 1 Kendell Williams (USA) 19,574 2 Maria Vicente (ESP) 18,695 3 Vanessa Grimm (GER) 18,661 4 Georgia Ellenwood (CAN) 18,635 5 Odile Ahouanwanou (BEN) 18,284 <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-challenge-combined-events/standings/2021/women" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Complete standings</a>
Men 1 Kai Kazmirek (GER) 24,500 2 Adam Sebastian Helcelet (CZE) 24,087 3 Martin Roe (NOR) 23,934 4 Fredrik Samuelsson (SWE) 23,421 5 Taavi Tsernjavski (EST) 23,114 <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-challenge-combined-events/standings/2021/men" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Complete standings</a>

USA’s Kendell Williams and Germany’s Kai Kazmirek topped the end-of-season standings in the 2021 World Athletics Challenge – Combined Events.

Williams and Kazmirek win 2021 World Athletics Challenge – Combined Events

Damian Warner, one of the world&rsquo;s best decathletes for the best part of a decade, fulfilled two of his lifelong goals in one go in Tokyo, winning decathlon gold with an Olympic record of 9018.
The Canadian became just the fourth man in history to break the 9000-point barrier, joining decathlon legends Roman Sebrle, Ashton Eaton and Kevin Mayer. Warner also landed his first global title, having finished in the top five at the past six outdoor global championships, picking up Olympic bronze in 2016 as well as world silver in 2015 and world bronze in 2013 and 2019.
The 31-year-old won in style, too, leading from the very first event and setting three Olympic decathlon bests along the way. The first of those came in the 100m, the opening discipline, as Warner sped to a 10.14 clocking.
He then extended his lead with an 8.24m leap in the long jump &ndash; another Olympic decathlon best and farther than the bronze-medal-winning leap in the individual event.
His main rival, world record-holder Kevin Mayer, also got off to a good start, clocking 10.68 in the 100m and leaping 7.50m in the long jump. But he was behind 21-year-old Australian Ashley Moloney, who had an impressive start with 10.34 in the 100m and 7.64m in the long jump, and Canada&rsquo;s Pierce LePage.
Warner continued the series of his life on the first day with 14.80m in the shot, 2.02m in the high jump and 47.48 in the 400m, ending the day still in first place with 4722.
Moloney briefly dropped to third after the shot put (14.49m) but moved back into second place after producing the best marks of the day in the high jump (2.11m) and 400m (46.29). LePage ended the first day in third, helped by a 15.31m shot put and a 46.92 run in the 400m.
Mayer, who always excels on the second day, was fifth after the first five events, just two points ahead of US champion Garrett Scantling.
The second day started in much the same way as the first &ndash; with Warner setting an Olympic decathlon best.
He sped to a 13.46 clocking in the 110m hurdles &ndash; a time that would have been good enough to reach the semifinals of the individual event. Mayer (13.90), Scantling (14.03) and Moloney (14.08) were next best, maintaining their top-five positions.
Warner, Moloney, LePage and Mayer held on to the top four spots respectively after the discus and pole vault. The 30-centimetre difference between Warner (4.90m) and Mayer (5.20m) in the pole vault effectively meant the Canadian was on his way to victory as Mayer would not realistically be able to make up 361 points on Warner in the remaining two events.
World silver medallist Maicel Uibo was the top performer in the pole vault, clearing 5.50m, but the Estonian was never really in medal contention in Tokyo.
A 63.44m throw in the javelin put Warner on course for a 9000-point score as it meant he only needed to run about 4:33 in the 1500m to achieve his goal. Mayer wasn&rsquo;t done, though; he launched his spear to a lifetime best of 73.09m to move into second place. Scantling moved into fourth, between Moloney and LePage, after throwing 69.10m.
Warner started conservatively in the 1500m, but on the final lap he realised he was at risk at letting his target time slip by. He dug in and started a long kick for home, navigating his way through the field to clock 4:31.08.
Within seconds, his performance was confirmed on the scoreboard: gold with a 9018 national and Olympic record.
It took a few more moments before the full field&rsquo;s scores appeared, then it was confirmed: silver for Mayer with 8726, and bronze for Moloney with 8649, an improvement on his own Oceania record and the first Olympic decathlon medal by an athlete from his continent.
For Mayer, it was his second successive silver medal, having won a world title and broken the world record since his last silver in Rio. For 21-year-old Moloney it was a huge breakthrough moment, producing a score that no younger athlete has ever bettered.
In one of the highest-quality Olympic decathlons of all time, five men exceeded 8600 points and eight bettered 8400. Scantling finished fourth with 8611 and LePage placed fifth with a PB of 8604.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s crazy,&rdquo; said Warner. &ldquo;Ever since I was kid watching track and field on TV with my mom, I&rsquo;ve wanted to be an athlete. In grade six I wrote a school project, saying I wanted to be at the Olympics one day. Who knew I&rsquo;d go on to be an Olympic champion?
&ldquo;You have to have a lot of confidence in yourself. In 2016 I finished third. While I was happy with the bronze medal, I was disappointed that I didn&rsquo;t finish on top of the podium. I used that as motivation these past two days. I couldn&rsquo;t be happier for myself or my team.&rdquo;
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 75%; border-color: #ffffff; border-style: solid;" border="1" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="3">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="background-color: #fd5249; text-align: center;" colspan="3">MEN'S DECATHLON MEDALLISTS</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #e9c968; text-align: center;">🥇</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #e9c968;">Damian Warner 🇨🇦 CAN</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #e9c968;">9018 OR</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #ced4d9; text-align: center;">🥈</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #ced4d9;">Kevin Mayer 🇫🇷 FRA</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #ced4d9;">8726 SB</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #bd895e; text-align: center;">🥉</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #bd895e;">Ashley Moloney 🇦🇺 AUS</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #bd895e;">8649 AR</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="background-color: #34495e; text-align: left;" colspan="3">&nbsp;&nbsp;<a style="color: #ffffff;" href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/olympic-games/the-xxxii-olympic-games-athletics-7132391/results/men/decathlon/1500-metres/points" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full results</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
&nbsp;

Damian Warner, one of the world’s best decathletes for the best part of a decade, fulfilled two of his lifelong goals in one go in Tokyo, winning decathlon gold with an Olympic record of 9018.

Warner fulfils lifetime goal by winning Olympic decathlon title with 9018 Games record

<h2>Women's heptathlon</h2>
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/olympic-games/the-xxxii-olympic-games-athletics-7132391/athletes?competitionGroup=olympic-games&amp;countryCode=&amp;disciplineCode=HEP&amp;sexCode=W&amp;urlSlug=the-xxxii-olympic-games-athletics-7132391" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Entries</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/olympic-games/the-xxxii-olympic-games-athletics-7132391/timetable/bydiscipline/women/heptathlon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">timetable</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/world-rankings/heptathlon/women?regionType=world&amp;page=1&amp;rankDate=2021-07-13&amp;limitByCountry=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world rankings</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/records/toplists/combined-events/heptathlon/outdoor/women/senior/2021?regionType=world&amp;windReading=regular&amp;page=1&amp;bestResultsOnly=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2021 world list</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/records/all-time-toplists/combined-events/heptathlon/outdoor/women/senior?regionType=world&amp;windReading=regular&amp;page=1&amp;bestResultsOnly=true&amp;firstDay=1900-01-01&amp;lastDay=2021-07-19" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world all-time list</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/disciplines/combined-events/heptathlon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">how it works</a>
Neither world champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson nor Olympic champion Nafi Thiam has contested a full heptathlon since their clash at the World Athletics Championships Doha 2019 almost two years ago.
Both heptathletes have had to contend with injuries on their road to Tokyo, Thiam last year and Johnson-Thompson earlier this year, but they now appear to be rounding into some kind of form, just in time for the Games.
Thiam, whose big breakthrough moment came five years ago at the Rio Olympic Games where she struck gold, showed she was back to her best when winning the European indoor title in March with a national record of 4904. That was her most recent combined events competition, but she has performed well across a range of disciplines outdoors, leaping 1.89m and 6.62m in the high jump and long jump, throwing 14.99m in the shot, and clocking 24.48 in the 200m.
Johnson-Thompson, who won in Doha with 6981 to break the British record set by Jessica Ennis-Hill at the 2012 Olympics, suffered a ruptured achilles earlier this year, but returned to competition at the end of June with a 1.84m high jump clearance. After long jumping 6.10m at the recent Wanda Diamond League meeting in Gateshead, she contested a few disciplines at a low-key meeting in the South of France and her performances including a 13.55 clocking in the 100m hurdles.
Based on their recent performances, Thiam and Johnson-Thompson will likely be evenly matched in the first two disciplines of the heptathlon, the 100m hurdles and high jump. Expect Thiam to bank some good points in the shot, but the Briton will likely claw back the deficit in the final event of the first day, the 200m.
Johnson-Thompson is usually the better long jumper, but Thiam may have the upper hand this time round. And while Thiam is one of the best javelin throwers in the world &ndash; she actually holds the Belgian record at 59.32m &ndash; a persistent elbow injury in recent years has prevented her from producing truly huge marks in this discipline. 
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/0f2886eb-fad1-45f7-9d9a-4d4cd605193d.jpg" alt="" width="950" height="667" />
 Johnson-Thompson, meanwhile, has one of the fastest 800m PBs of the field at 2:07.26, so whatever the standings going into the final event, she can be confident in banking some good points at the end of the contest.
It may not be a two-woman competition, though.
USA&rsquo;s Annie Kunz heads to Tokyo as the somewhat surprising world leader. The 28-year-old smashed her PB by 550 points to win the US Trials with 6703, producing a series that including a 12.95 run in the 100m hurdles, a 15.73m throw in the shot and a 6.50m leap in the long jump.
Teammates Kendell Williams and Erica Bougard, who scored 6683 and 6667 respectively at the US Trials, make up a formidable US trio. Should they come close to replicating their scores, they will be in the hunt for medals; only twice in global championships history &ndash; at the 1992 and 2016 Olympics &ndash; has a score of 6600 not been sufficient for a medal.
Xenia Krizsan broke her own Hungarian record to win at the prestigious Hypo Meeting in G&ouml;tzis earlier this year, scoring 6651. Earlier this year the 28-year-old took bronze at the European Indoor Championships, her first podium finish at a major senior event. Strong in the javelin and 800m, look out for Krizsan in the closing stages of the competition to make a late charge up the leader board.
Anouk Vetter, the 2016 European champion, is back to her best and scored 6536 to place second in G&ouml;tzis, her best ever score outside of a major championships.
World bronze medallist Verena Mayr (nee Preiner) heads to Tokyo with a best this year of 6254, but cannot be discounted. Likewise, 2017 world silver medallist Carolin Schafer of Germany isn&rsquo;t in the kind of form that carried her to a 6836 PB four years ago, but she may not need to be at her absolute best in order to be competitive in Tokyo.
Cuba&rsquo;s Yorgelis Rodriguez, China&rsquo;s Zheng Ninali, Spain&rsquo;s Maria Vicente and Colombia&rsquo;s Evelis Jazmin Aguilar should all feature in the top half of the leader board.
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics
&nbsp;
<h2>Men's decathlon</h2>
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/olympic-games/the-xxxii-olympic-games-athletics-7132391/athletes?competitionGroup=olympic-games&amp;countryCode=&amp;disciplineCode=DEC&amp;sexCode=M&amp;urlSlug=the-xxxii-olympic-games-athletics-7132391" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Entries</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/olympic-games/the-xxxii-olympic-games-athletics-7132391/timetable/bydiscipline/men/decathlon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">timetable</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/world-rankings/decathlon/men?regionType=world&amp;page=1&amp;rankDate=2021-07-13&amp;limitByCountry=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world rankings</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/records/toplists/combined-events/decathlon/outdoor/men/senior/2021?regionType=world&amp;windReading=regular&amp;page=1&amp;bestResultsOnly=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2021 world list</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/records/all-time-toplists/combined-events/decathlon/outdoor/men/senior?regionType=world&amp;windReading=regular&amp;page=1&amp;bestResultsOnly=true&amp;firstDay=1900-01-01&amp;lastDay=2021-07-19" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world all-time list</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/disciplines/combined-events/decathlon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">how it works</a>
A decathlon can be unpredictable at the best of times.
Hold one on the biggest sporting stage on the planet, throw in 24 athletes with mind-boggling all-round talent &ndash; many of whom have wildly contrasting personalities &ndash; and the battle to be crowned the world&rsquo;s greatest sportsman is set to be quite some spectacle.
When Kevin Mayer competed at the 2016 Olympic Games, he headed to Rio as something of an underdog, but ended up pushing world record-holder Ashton Eaton all the way, eventually claiming silver with a French record of 8834, a PB by more than 300 points.
In the wake of Eaton&rsquo;s subsequent retirement, Mayer established himself as the world&rsquo;s No.1 decathlete, winning the world title in London in 2017.
And then came his rollercoaster 2018 season. He was forced to take an early exit from the European Championships after recording three fouls in the long jump,&nbsp; but rebounded a few weeks later to break the world record in Talence with 9126.
He didn&rsquo;t line up for another decathlon until the 2019 World Championships, where disaster struck once more. Struggling with injury for much of the competition, he was forced to retire during the pole vault, the eighth of the 10 disciplines.
After taking time to recover, he secured the Olympic qualifying standard with 8552 in December last year, then won the European indoor heptathlon title with 6392 earlier this year. He opted against contesting a decathlon in the months leading up to Tokyo, instead wanting to save himself for the Games. But the form he has shown in his rare individual outings this season &ndash; a 7.35m long jump and a 48.18m throw in the discus &ndash; has been solid. Barring disasters, Mayer will start as the favourite.
But consistency can count for a lot too, and Canada&rsquo;s Damian Warner has that in spades. He has finished in the top five at the past six outdoor global championships, picking up Olympic bronze in 2016 as well as world silver in 2015 and world bronze in 2013 and 2019.
Despite his longevity, the 31-year-old only just looks to be hitting his peak, too. Earlier this year he secured a record sixth victory at the Hypo Meeting in G&ouml;tzis, coming just shy of the 9000-point mark with a world-leading national record of 8995. 
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/4261f1e9-5fff-4382-a3f6-ebe7ab68b23a.jpg" alt="" width="950" height="680" />
 Within that series, he set world decathlon bests in the 110m hurdles (13.36) and long jump (8.28m), the latter also breaking the Canadian record. He also clocked 10.14 in the 100m, just 0.02 shy of his own world decathlon best from two years ago.
To underline Warner&rsquo;s consistency, he has finished 28 of his 30 career decathlons, while the average of his top 10 decathlons is 8668. Mayer, meanwhile, has finished 12 of his 26 career decathlons and has a top-10 average of 8597.
Mayer, however, has two global titles while Warner has yet to win one. Six was Warner&rsquo;s lucky number in G&ouml;tzis earlier this year; perhaps his sixth global medal will be a golden one?
Both men will know not to underestimate Niklas Kaul, who surprised everyone &ndash; himself included &ndash; to take the world title in Doha two years ago, aged just 21 at the time.
The German, who scored 8691 in the Qatari capital, has completed just one decathlon since then, scoring 8263 in G&ouml;tzis earlier this year. It&rsquo;s difficult to gauge if he is struggling for form or if he&rsquo;s simply saving himself for Tokyo. Either way, it&rsquo;s safe to assume that he&rsquo;ll peak when it counts; he has scored a decathlon PB in all six of his championship appearances to date.
He may not feature highly on the first day of competition, but look out for Kaul creeping up the leader board on the second day &ndash; especially after the javelin.
Garrett Scantling narrowly missed out on making the US Olympic team in 2016 and so pursued a career in the NFL. He returned to athletics last year, though, and it&rsquo;s as though he has never been away.
He won the US indoor heptathlon title last year, then followed it by winning the US Trials with a PB of 8647. A solid sprinter, jumper and thrower, Scantling has few weaknesses.
Steve Bastien improved his PB by 400 points at the US Trials to book his place on the team, while Zach Ziemek &ndash; one of the best decathletes in the world when it comes to the jumps events &ndash; overcame cramps and sickness to qualify for his second Olympics with a PB of 8471. Both men should feature in the top half of the leader board.
Warner is joined on the Canadian team by Pierce LePage, who finished fifth at the World Championships last year and second in G&ouml;tzis earlier this year with a PB of 8534.
World silver medallist Maicel Uibo, another who is strong in the jumps, leads a formidable Estonian squad. Karel Tilga, the NCAA indoor and outdoor champion, and Johannes Erm, who finished a close second to Kaul at the 2019 European U23 Championships, make up the Estonian team.
Others who should be in contention throughout the two days of action include Germany&rsquo;s 2017 world bronze medallist Kai Kazmirek, European silver medallist Ilya Shkurenyov, world U20 champion Ashley Moloney and his Australian teammate Cedric Dubler, Commonwealth champion Lindon Victor of Grenada and Poland&rsquo;s Pawel Wiesiolek, who started four decathlons within the space of a month in pursuit of qualification for the Games.
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics