Canada's Damian Warner sets Olympic record on the way to decathlon gold

At age 31, Damian Warner of Canada was the oldest competitor in the Olympic decathlon.

That did not stop him from amassing an Olympic record 9,018 points en route to winning the Olympic gold medal at Olympic Stadium.

“It was a tough task,” Warner said. “We’re surrounded by some great athletes and they put up a good fight all the way to the end. It’s a really special thing.”

Warner became the first Canadian to win the gold medal in the decathlon and the fourth man to eclipse 9,000 points. He broke the record of 8,893 points that was set by Roman Sebrle of the Czech Republic in 2004 and equaled by American Ashton Eaton in 2016.

Warner, the 2016 bronze medalist, led from start to finish in a competition that began Wednesday with the 100 meters, long jump, shot put, high jump and 400 meters. It concluded Thursday with 110-meter hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1,500 meters.

Kevin Mayer of France, who holds the world record in the decathlon with 9,126 points, won the silver medal with 8,726 points. Ashley Maloney of Australia scored 8,649 to earn bronze.

Garrett Scantling of the United States was fourth with 8,611 points. U.S. teammate Zachary Zemek finished sixth with 8,435 points.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.