Yego to open Diamond league account in Rabat
The 37-year-old, who is fresh from the Senior African Athletics Championships in Accra, had earlier hinted at retiring from the continental competition, saying his focus will now shift to global events.
Six-time African javelin champion Julius Yego is set for the third leg of the Wanda Diamond League series scheduled for May 31, 2026, at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, Morocco, marking his first Diamond League appearance of the season.
The 37-year-old, who is fresh from the Senior African Athletics Championships in Accra, had earlier hinted at retiring from the continental competition, saying his focus will now shift to global events.
“I think I am done now. Initially, I did not want to come to Ghana for this championship, but the federation convinced me to come, and I am glad to have defended my title and also won a record sixth title,” Yego said in Accra, adding that he was using the African Championships as preparation for major global events.
In Accra, the Kenyan throwing legend hurled the spear to 79.87m to secure his sixth African title, finishing ahead of Ethiopia’s Obang Otagiogulia, who settled for silver with 77.60m, while South Africa’s Smit Douw rounded off the podium with a 76.00m effort.
Yego, the 2016 Olympic silver medallist, will be eager to maintain that momentum when he makes his first Diamond League appearance of the season in Rabat on Sunday. Last season, he opened his campaign in Doha with a ninth-place finish after throwing 78.52m before improving to sixth place in Paris with an 80.26m effort. He later registered his first Diamond League victory of the season in Silesia with a commanding 83.60m throw.
However, he wrapped up his campaign with back-to-back fifth-place finishes in Brussels (80.50m) and at the Diamond League Final in Zurich (82.01m).
In Rabat on Sunday, Yego will face Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Pathirage, who currently holds the world-leading mark this year with a massive 89.37m throw.
Also lining up in the star-studded field are reigning world champion Keshorn Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago, world silver medallist Anderson Peters of Grenada, and 2016 Olympic champion Thomas Rohler of Germany.
Others in the field include Curtis Thompson of the USA, Jakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic, and Dawid Wegner of Poland.
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