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World champion Marco Arop sat on his sofa watching last week’s thrilling 800m race at the Diamond League in Paris, where he finished on the podium with the fastest third, fourth and fifth places in history.
Although the Canadian missed that race, he will compete in Friday’s event in Monaco, the ninth on the Diamond League tour, along with Paris champion Djamel Sedjati of Algeria (1:41.56) and third-placed Gabriel Tual of France.
Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi finished second in the French capital but withdrew from the Monaco race at short notice.
“I think it’s a very good result for the 800 meters,” said Arop, who won bronze at the 2022 world championships in Eugene before taking gold at last year’s world championships in Budapest.
“I’m a big fan of the sport and this tournament in particular, so I enjoy watching them.
“I’m really happy for these guys…it’s incredible to watch them play.”
Arop said he believed the current generation of 800m runners had the ability to break the world record of 1:40.91 set by David Rudisha at the 2012 London Olympics.
“Watching the race in Paris, you realise that when you put your mind to it, you have no idea what you are capable of, and the world record is definitely within reach,” said the Khartoum-born runner.
“I don’t know who’s going to break that record, but there are a lot of people coming close, and that’s what excites me.
“It sent a warning to the world, and rightly so.”
Arop added that his own hope is to break the 1:42 record at some point.
“Based on my training, I’m definitely capable of running this distance,” he said. “I started in Eugene with a 1:43, which is my fastest time to start the season.”
Tuar, who finished third in Paris and broke the French record, said he had been “on a high for a few days”.
“But I’m fine now! My legs are great and I hope I can run just as fast tomorrow.”
His performance took him above current World Athletics president Sebastian Coe in the all-time rankings, who currently sits sixth behind Tours.
“That’s the hardest thing for me to process,” Tuar said. “I think about it every day. It’s crazy.”
“But tomorrow is Monaco and in a few weeks it’s the Olympics, which means I have to focus.
“I didn’t think I could run that fast, and to be in the top five is crazy. I’m here to run 1:41 again and prove to myself that I can run that fast again.”
Arop said he hopes this positive state can continue until the Paris Olympics.
“I want everyone to play their best so we can have a great game,” he said.
“It helps to know that we can not only run fast, but we can also compete fiercely. It will push everyone to break their own barriers and set faster times.”
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