Damian Warner, a gold medalist in the decathlon at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, has won the Lionel Conacher Award as Canada’s Male Athlete of the Year.
The 32-year old from London, Ontario set Olympic and Canadian records and became just the fourth man to top the 9,000-point barrier in competition. His final score of 9,018 in Tokyo was an Olympic record. His long jump alone would have won him the bronze medal as well.
Warner received 18 of the 47 votes cast while sprinter Andre De Grasse was second with 14, and soccer’s Alphonso Davies, who won the award in 2020, had seven votes to finish third.
“So, it’s always a humbling thing and I’m grateful to be recognized, (but) it’s also recognizing my family, my coaches and everybody that helped me get to this point, which is what I think is really cool about it,” said Warner.
Warner, who won a bronze medal at the 2016 Games in Rio, was Canada’s flag-bearer at the closing ceremony in Tokyo. Warner has stated he hopes to defend his title at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.