Haruka Kitaguchi headed into the second leg of the Wanda Diamond League season as the clear favourite in the women's javelin, but she had to dig deep to start her title defence with a win in Suzhou.
Kitaguchi became the first Japanese athlete ever to be crowned Wanda Diamond League champion when she won last year's series final at Eugene, and she was keen to get her 2024 campaign off to a winning start in China.
Yet the 26-year-old found herself trailing as she went into the Final 3. While she had only managed 61.44m by the fifth round, Australian rival Mackenzie Little was leading the pack with a second-round effort of 62.12m.
The reigning champion needed something special, and she delivered. Her final throw was marked at 62.97m by the Wanda Diamond League Official Timekeeper, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat and securing the OMEGA Moment of the Meeting.
"I managed to throw much further with my last throw...it's not good for my heart!" she joked after he dramatic late win. Yet the victory will undoubtedly be good for the soul, as Kitaguchi once again showed her champion's pedigree in Suzhou.
Asked what her focus was this season, she didn't miss a beat: "An Olympic medal in Paris." With performances like this weekend's, there are few who would write her off.
