Canada’s Arop sets world’s fastest 800-metre time of 2026 in Paris race

Marco Arop, of Canada, leads to win the men's 800 meters at the Meeting de Paris Diamond League athletics meet in Paris, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

A Canadian sprinter posted the world’s fastest time in one of his track disciplines this year.

Marco Arop, a world champion and an Olympic silver medallist, posted a time of 1:41.48 in the men’s 800 metres during Sunday’s Diamond League competition in Paris, the best mark on Earth in 2026 for the distance. Niels Laros of the Netherlands placed second with a time of 1:43.60.

The 27-year-old from Edmonton, who won silver in the 800 metres at the Summer Olympics two years ago and took gold in the distance at the world championships in 2023, had been on track to set a new world record for much of the race but faded near the end of it.

The performance comes a week after Arop fell just short of taking the Canadian title in the 1,500 metres, finishing second with a time of 3:38.28.