00:00The rain pelted down on the athletes completely covering the concrete beneath them and it turned
00:05the throwing circle into a death trap. So as Alex Rose approached the circle he knew this was going
00:11to be one of the most dangerous and challenging finals he would ever be a part of. Alex was the
00:16only Samoan athlete at the 2025 World Athletics Championships and he had hoped that this would
00:21be his opportunity to put Samoa into the history books and make his beloved wife and family proud.
00:27But as he stepped up to take his first throw he knew immediately that it just wasn't going to be
00:32good enough. Concerned about slipping like his competitors he'd played it too safe and so all
00:38he could do was watch as the other competitors pushed the grip on their shoes to the absolute
00:43limit putting score after score on the board and dropping Alex further and further down the ranks.
00:49So as he stepped up to take his second throw he didn't hold back he committed himself fully he
00:54kept his feet and with one of the longest throws he'd ever made at the World Championships he pulled
00:59himself back up the leaderboard into third place. He knew that if he could hold that spot he'd secure
01:05Samoa's first ever medal in any sport at the World Championships but it wasn't long before that hope was
01:11stripped away as the Australian thrower Matt Denny took second place and pushed Alex off the podium.
01:17Alex tried desperately to reclaim the spot but his third and fourth throws fell short. The conditions got
01:23worse and as the staff hopelessly mopped the concrete with saturated towels it certainly didn't
01:28look like things were going to get any easier for Alex's final two throws. Alex stepped up for his
01:34fifth throw and with the knowledge that another throw after this certainly wasn't guaranteed he gave
01:39it everything he had. It was the longest throw he'd ever made at the World Championships and it pulled
01:45him back up the leaderboard into third place once again sitting right behind the World Champion
01:50Daniel Stoll. The Samoan fans watching at home rejoiced but it wasn't over just yet because the
01:56Australian now in fourth place still had two more throws. Matt Denny stepped up for his fifth throw he
02:02wound up and he slipped but he didn't let go of the discus and he stayed in the throwing circle
02:07so he was
02:08given another chance. Alex watched nervously as Matt launched the disc a fifth time which fell short and
02:14then for his sixth and final throw after he launched the disc he stepped out of the circle. It was
02:21a foul. Alex
02:22had kept his spot on the podium. Alex fouled his final throw but at that point it didn't even matter.
02:27He'd already
02:27secured Samoa's first ever medal at the World Championships. The World Champion Daniel Stoll hugged him, secured
02:34gold with his final throw and as the gold and silver medalists celebrated together looking around for Alex to join
02:40them. The cameras found him on the other side of the stadium celebrating with his biggest fan.
