A tough week on the track for Aaron Brown began with his slowest 200-metre race of the season and ended in disqualification for the four-time Canadian Olympian in the same event on Sunday in Stockholm.
Brown broke out from the starting blocks too early for a false start at the Olympic Stadium, only minutes after the men’s field of eight was shown a green card to signify a false start that wasn’t the fault of any athlete.
“Long hold with the [start] gun,” is what the Toronto native attributed to his false start, in a text message to CBC Sports. He was subsequently disqualified but ran under protest at the BAUHAUS-galan Diamond League track and field meet.
Brown believed it was bang-bang, referring to the verbal command “set” followed by the firing of a starting gun, but race officials thought otherwise. His protest was declined.
“I didn’t get an explanation,” said Brown, fresh of a sixth-place finish on Thursday at the Bislett Games in Oslo, Norway, where he ran 20.65 seconds.
“My entire race plan was thrown off after the false start. All I was thinking [after the reset] was, ‘Don’t false start,’ instead of my [race] execution.
“The first step to turning it around is accepting it happened, and it’s behind me now. I’ve had rough stretches before and overcome them, so I’m staying positive.”
WATCH | Brown DQ’d in men’s 200m, won by Cuba’s Mena:
Canada’s Brown disqualified at Diamond League 200-metre race, Cuban Mena captures win
At the Paris Olympics last summer, Brown false started in the 100m heats but raced in the semifinals four day later.
He false started in the 200m semifinals of the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary for stepping on the line separating running lanes. Brown’s time of 20.19 would have qualified him for the final.
At 2017 worlds, Brown posted the second-fastest time in the 200 heats before he was disqualified for a lane violation.
Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise he didn’t race Sunday.
“I have been dealing with a bit of a hip situation,” the 33-year-old Brown said, “and was hoping to power through it to get some world [championship] ranking points.”
He entered Sunday’s race 31st in the world rankings quota among the 48 athletes to be selected for the Sept. 13-21 championships in Tokyo.
Brown was seventh in the 2022 world final in Eugene, Ore., and sixth in 2019 (Doha, Qatar).
The reigning Canadian champion in the 200 didn’t reveal when he would return to competition.
“I’m going home [to Florida] to reset and get some quality training in,” said the father of two. “[I’ll] come back when I am better prepared to race.”
Brown’s fastest of three completed 200m races this season was his first, 20.35 on May 16 in Diamond League action in Doha. He followed with a 20.50 effort for third at the Grand Slam Track competition in Miramar, Fla.
Brown has his sights set on the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. As the start of his 2025 campaign approached, he told CBC Sports he’s focused on “pushing the boundaries and seeing how far I can take it.”
Cuba’s Reynier Mena won his second Diamond League race of the week and sixth in his past seven competitions.
“All the hard work in training is paying off,” said Mena, who ran 20.20 in Oslo. “I have been getting faster each race and hope to go under 20 seconds soon. I must continue to work hard and have belief in myself. I feel I can get close to and break my personal best [of 19.63]. My next race is [the] Ostrava [Golden Spike on June 24 in the Czech Republic] where I hope to continue racing well.”
His 20.05 clocking is a season best and topped world No. 5 Joseph Fahnbulleh (20.32) who is a Liberian-American sprinter, two-time Olympic finalist and two-time NCAA champion in the 200.
“This stadium is really historic, like a castle,” Fahnbulleh said. “You can hear the audience and that helps when you start to push. I’ve been in Europe training for the last month, back home once and looking forward to Tokyo [and the world championships].”
Kyree King of the United States crossed the line in 20.49 for third.
Mondo Duplantis lifted his pole vault world record to 6.28 metres at the Olympic Stadium in the Swedish capital.
The Olympic and world champion added a centimetre at his first attempt to the previous record he set at the end of February in France.
It was the 12th pole vault world record for the 25-year-old Swede and the first time in front of home fans.
WATCH | Pole vaulter Duplantis raises world record to 6.28m before home crowd:
Sweden’s Duplantis sets new pole vault world record on home soil
Before the Stockholm meet, Duplantis said setting a world record at home was one of his dreams.
“It’s a magical feeling,” Duplantis said afterward. “I wanted it so bad,” he said. “I kept saying it was the only thing I was missing. Now, I’m done. I can just chill.”
The Louisiana-born Duplantis competes for his mother’s native Sweden.
After clearing 6.00, Duplantis didn’t target his own meeting record of 6.16 but went straight for the world record.
He celebrating by ripping off his shirt and pumping his fist to the delight of roaring fans in the sellout crowd.
