Yan Ziyi sets a new meeting record at the 2026 Diamond League Final in Brussels. [Photo provided by 2026 World Athletics Diamond League]

Eighteen-year-old Chinese javelin thrower Yan Ziyi from Ningbo, Zhejiang province, has capped a remarkable season by winning the women's javelin title at the 2026 World Athletics Diamond League Final in Brussels, Belgium.

Yan staged a stunning comeback in her Diamond League Final debut, with two fouls and a 62.21-meter throw in her first three attempts while trailing Olympic champion Haruka Kitaguchi of Japan. But Yan responded with a 64.95-meter throw in the fourth round before unleashing a winning 68.42-meter effort in the fifth.

The throw not only secured the title but also broke the previous meeting record of 68.11 meters, with Kitaguchi finishing second with 65.44 meters and Colombia's Flor Denis Ruiz Hurtado taking third.

Yan went unbeaten throughout the Diamond League season, winning all five of her appearances. Her breakthrough came in Xiamen in May, where her opening throw of 71.74 meters set Asian, world U20, and Diamond League records.

With major events still ahead, Yan will compete at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship and the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games later this month. At just 18, her rise shows no signs of slowing down.