Daniel Ståhl had been singled out as one of Sweden’s greatest medal hopes.
But the Swede looked to be sniffing the gold when Kristjan Ceh threw 70.02 in the last round.
Then Ståhl responded – and took home the gold after a powerful throw that measured 71.46.
Daniel Ståhl stepped straight into the Swedish cabins after his Olympic gold in Tokyo 2021. But after that success, it has been more difficult for the Swedish powerhouse, who came to the WC in Budapest with a weak season behind him.
He also missed out on a medal at last year’s World Championships in Eugene, after his bronze medal throw was ruled out in retrospect.
But on Monday, the Swede took a terrible revenge.
Before Monday night’s final, Ståhl had shown that he was a force to be reckoned with. In the qualifiers he threw the longest of all, 66.25 meters, and in advance he was one of three advance favourites, together with Mykolas Alekna (Lithuania) and Kristjan Ceh (Slovenia).
But the discus final was an even story, with drama late into the evening session.
Early in the final, Ceh managed a powerful throw that measured 69.27 meters. At the same time, Alekna and the Australian Matthew Denny impressed, who both threw longer than 68 meters.
Ståhl started tentatively, but in the fourth round he struck with conviction.
Ståhl got a real hit that sailed long and well. At impact it was clear that it was a possible medal throw and when the scoreboard then showed 69.37, the final had a new leader in the shape of the Swede.
After that, however, Ceh got a full hit that measured 70.02 in the last round, but in the last throw of the competition Ståhl stepped forward and showed class when it was most needed.
Ståhl struck with a new championship record measuring 71.46 meters and he trumped Ceh’s giant throw by a wide margin.
– The best anyone has ever thrown in a championship final. He thus breaks Ceh’s record from last year and he is back as number one in the world. Three straight victories against Ceh, including in the most important of all competitions this season, announced TV4 expert A Lennart Julin.
Stream the Athletics World Cup on TV4 Play
TV4 broadcasts from the Athletics World Championships in Budapest 2023 between 19 and 27 August with several Swedish medal hopefuls and international world stars.