Tokyo Olympics: Ash Moloney makes history with Australia's first decathlon medal

Australia has an Olympic medallist on the track, 21-year-old Ash Moloney sealing an historic bronze medal - the nation's first in decathlon. RECAP DAY 13

With another Aussie "f*** yeah", Ashley Maloney created history when he became this country’s first ever medallist in the Olympic decathlon.

 

At just 21-years-old and at his first major international meet, Maloney held on for dear life in the 1500m, the final of the 10-event marathon — and his least favourite.

He won the bronze medal by just 38 points, in an Australian record total of 8649.

Ash Moloney celebrates his decathlon bronze.

When the medallists were announced, Maloney screamed "f*** yeah" to his teammate and fellow decathlete, Cedric Dubler.

It was the same reaction swimmer Kaylee McKeown had when she was interviewed on television after winning a gold medal in the pool.

His ecstatic mum Alyson said from Logan in Queensland his swear word was acceptable — “but only the one”.

She was whacking the bed during the 1500m final race yelling “what are you doing?” as he appeared to drift back in the event.

Ashley Moloney realises his achievement.

It turns out he was conserving energy for one final burst over the last 200m.

He finished the race in a personal best time — with a total score that was a new Australian record.

Maloney was the second athlete from Logan to win a medal, with BMX rider Logan Martin winning gold earlier this week.

Recap all the day 13 action in our blog below.

Originally published as Tokyo Olympics: Ash Moloney makes history with Australia's first decathlon medal

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