Rumesh Tharanga makes history with 92.62 metres throw

Sri Lankan javelin champion Rumesh Tharanga produced a historic performance at the Diamond League athletics competition in Rome, setting a new meet record with a throw of 92.62 metres.

Competing on the night of June 4 (Sri Lanka time), the 23-year-old delivered the best javelin throw recorded anywhere in the world in 2026 at one of the sport’s most prestigious competitions.

His throw surpassed the previous Diamond League meet record of 90.34 metres, which had been set by Norwegian athlete Andreas Thorkildsen in 2006.

The achievement also marked the first time in Sri Lankan athletics history that a javelin thrower has exceeded the 90-metre mark. In addition, it became the second-best performance ever achieved by an Asian athlete in the men’s javelin throw.

The Asian record is held by Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem, who threw 92.97 metres at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Rumesh’s mark falls just 35 centimetres short of that record.

Rumesh also became only the fourth Asian athlete to surpass the 90-metre barrier in the men’s javelin throw, joining Cheng Chao-tsun of Chinese Taipei (91.36m), India’s Neeraj Chopra (90.23m) and Arshad Nadeem.

His 92.62-metre effort now ranks as the eighth-longest javelin throw in world history. It is also only the second occasion in more than four years that an athlete has thrown beyond 92 metres in the men’s javelin event.

The throw further improved Rumesh’s own Sri Lankan national record. He had previously set a national mark of 89.37 metres at a competition in Sri Lanka in March 2026 and later recorded a throw of 89.28 metres in Nairobi, highlighting his consistent performances at the highest level.