Rogers’ hammer throw triumph highlights Day 11 for Canada in athletics

Hammer throw fever is sweeping Canada, with Camryn Rogers winning gold in the women’s event just two days after Ethan Katzberg’s gold on the men’s side.

It’s Canada’s first gold in a women’s athletics event since Amsterdam 1928. And the Rogers/Katzberg double is just the third time that one nation has won both men’s and women’s hammer throw gold at the same Games.

Over on the track, both Brendon Rodney and Aaron Brown came out strong in the men’s 200m repechage round. Both ran times of 20.42 seconds in their respective heats, and both were among the six men making it through to Wednesday’s semifinal.

They’ll see a familiar face in that semifinal—Andre De Grasse, who won gold in the event back at Tokyo 2020.

A day shy of her 21st birthday, hurdler Savannah Sutherland gave herself an excellent early gift. Her time of 53.80 in the semifinal of the women’s 400m hurdles has put her through to Thursday’s final.

“I know the final’s going to be pretty historic, so I just wanted to try and get out there, get out quick and get myself the best chance,” said Sutherland. “I knew I was in a fast heat so my best bet would be to run as fast as possible and try to get a small ‘q’. So I’m happy that I was able to execute.”

The top two finishers in each of the three semifinal heats advanced automatically (a big “Q”), while the two fastest other competitors earned a small “q” and also moved on.

Sutherland finished fourth in the last semifinal heat and was unsure of her status until an Olympic official gave her the news.

“I gave her a hug; I think she was a little bit startled,” said Sutherland. “I was definitely shocked, excited, taken aback.

“Best birthday present in the world, for sure!”

Similarly, Christopher Morales-Williams sought a late birthday present in the men’s 400m semifinal, a day after his 20th birthday. But it wasn’t to be, as his time of 45.25 fell short of what was needed to reach the final. Morales-Williams was making his Olympic debut after a very long and exhausting NCAA season.

Earlier on the track at Stade de France, Lucia Stafford (4:02.22), Simone Plourde (4:06.59) and Kate Current (4:09.81) ran in the qualifying heats of the women’s 1500m. All three will take part in Wednesday’s repechage round.

Craig Thorne competed in the repechage round of the men’s 110m hurdles on Tuesday. But his finishing time of 13.62 seconds wasn’t quite enough to make the semifinal. It was a similar story for Zoe Sherar (51.43) and Lauren Gale (52.68) in the repechage of the women’s 400m.