By Zhao Yu

In the early hours of September 6, Beijing time, the 2026 Diamond League Final was held in Brussels, Belgium.

In the women's javelin final, 18-year-old Ningbo native Yan Ziyi staged a comeback, winning the title with a fifth-round throw of 68.42m — claiming her first career Diamond League Final crown and setting a new meeting record.

With the victory, Yan has now won all five Diamond League meetings she entered this season, remaining undefeated.

It was Yan's first appearance on the Diamond League final stage, and the competition was far from straightforward.

She fouled on her first attempt, managed only 62.21m on her second, and fouled again on her third. After three rounds, Paris Olympic champion and Japanese star Haruka Kitaguchi led with 64.56m, while Yan sat in third place.

The momentum shifted in the final three rounds. On her fourth attempt, Yan responded with a 64.95m throw to overtake Kitaguchi. On her fifth, she let fly even further — the javelin landing at 68.42m. That mark not only extended her lead but also broke the meeting record of 68.11m set by American Kara Winger.

In the final round, Kitaguchi threw 65.44m, a season-best for her, but it was not enough to challenge Yan's lead. Yan won with 68.42m, while Kitaguchi took second and Colombia's Flor Denis Ruiz Hurtado finished third.

After Yan's win at the Diamond League Oslo meet in June, her coach Lu Xiurong said in an interview, "I admire Yan Ziyi's quick adaptability and her stubborn, never-say-never spirit." That attitude was once again on full display at the sport's highest level — the Diamond League final.

Since her Diamond League debut this year, Yan has shown remarkable consistency beyond her years.

On May 23 in Xiamen, she launched 71.74m on her first attempt, breaking the Asian record, the world U20 record and the Diamond League record, while also setting the world-leading mark for the season. In June in Oslo, battling low temperatures and strong winds, she threw 67.11m on her first attempt, winning by a margin of over five meters. In Paris, she repeated her "one-throw-win" formula with 67.44m for her third straight victory. At the Monaco meet, she raised her winning mark to 68.75m.

Yan is scheduled to compete next at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship, which opens on September 11 in Budapest, Hungary, followed by the women's javelin event at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on September 27.