Kenya’s Julius Yego is not done yet. At 39, the former world champion is still chasing distance, medals and one final Olympic moment before bringing down the curtain on a career that changed African athletics.
Fresh from winning a sixth continental javelin title in Ghana, Yego is now turning his attention to Sunday’s Diamond League meeting in Rabat, where he will line up against some of the biggest names in the sport.
But beyond Rabat, beyond the 2027 World Championships in Beijing, Yego already knows how he wants the story to end.
“The last throw at the Olympics will be my last throw in men’s javelin,” Yego said. “I will think of retiring after that.”
For the man famously nicknamed “Mr YouTube” after teaching himself the sport through online videos, the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics now stand as the final target in a remarkable journey.
One More Push
Speaking ahead of the Rabat meeting at the Complexe Sportif Prince Moulay Abdellah, Yego said his focus remains fixed on staying competitive among the world’s elite.
“My main mission now going forward is to focus more on the Diamond League and the World Championships next year,” he said. “Ultimately, the focus is qualifying for the Olympics in 2028.”
It is an ambitious goal for an athlete who has already spent more than a decade competing at the highest level. Yet Yego has never been one to retreat quietly.
The Kenyan star won silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics and made history in 2015 when he became the first African athlete to win a world title in the javelin.
Familiar Rivals, New Threats
Rabat will offer another stern test.
Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Pathirage arrives in Morocco carrying the world-leading throw this season after launching the javelin 89.37 metres earlier this year. Also in the field are Trinidad and Tobago’s Keshorn Walcott, Grenada’s Anderson Peters and Germany’s Thomas Röhler; athletes Yego has battled for years on the global circuit.
But the competition, Yego insists, is built as much on friendship as rivalry.
“Me, Keshorn, Anderson and Röhler are very good friends,” he said. “It’s about enjoying the competition and cheering each other on. Whoever gets the best throw wins.”
Yego also welcomed the rise of younger athletes, saying the event benefits when new nations and talents emerge.
“The emergence of new athletes from different parts of the world is good for the sport,” he said.
He pointed to Pathirage’s recent performance in Nairobi as proof of how quickly the discipline is evolving.
“Rumesh came to Nairobi and threw over 89 metres, which was amazing. It’s exciting to see young athletes coming up. It gives us a good challenge.”
Chasing One Last Olympic Throw
Yego’s own season has been steady rather than explosive. At the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi in April, he finished fourth with a best throw of 79.87 metres as Pathirage dominated the event.
Still, experience remains Yego’s greatest weapon.
Last season, he finally secured his maiden Diamond League victory in Silesia with a throw of 83.60 metres — another reminder that he remains capable of competing with the world’s best.
Now, with Los Angeles 2028 on the horizon, Yego is entering what he openly calls the final phase of his career.
For Kenyan athletics, it marks the closing chapter of one of the country’s most unlikely and inspiring sporting stories.
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