Newton-Smith Takes Decathlon World Title on 7,900 Record

Camryn Newton-Smith won the 2026 Women's Decathlon World Championships in Oberlin, Ohio, scoring 7,900 points. The Australian's total set a championship record and stands as the highest in the event's modern era.

A day-one lead built on speed and distance

Newton-Smith opened fast at Oberlin College's Robert Kahn Track. She ran 11.83 in the 100m, leapt 6.17m in the long jump, and closed the first day with a 55.41 over 400m.

That gave her 4,414 points overnight, ahead of France's Esther Condé-Turpin and Noémie Desailly. Day two turned on the pole vault, where she cleared 3.50m. Her nearest overnight rival, Condé-Turpin, managed only 2.30m and slid from second to sixth.

The 1500m sealed a 95-point win

The final event decided the medals live on air. Carrying a cushion of roughly 270 points, Newton-Smith ran 5:48.49, the slowest time among the leaders. Desailly chased hard with a 5:18.30, but the gap held.

She took gold by 95 points, with Desailly on 7,805 and defending champion Nikki Boon third on 7,714. Her mark erased the previous championship record of 7,451, set by Boon a year earlier. Austra Skujytė's world record of 8,358 from 2005 still stands.

A benchmark on a decathlon debut

The result was striking for a first attempt. Newton-Smith, an Olympian from Beaudesert in Queensland, had built her career in the heptathlon before these ten events. "Winning the Decathlon means so much more than a medal," she said afterwards. "It's a statement that women belong in the decathlon."

For Newton-Smith, a first decathlon ended with the sport's newest benchmark.