Damian Warner’s chances of repeating as Olympic decathlon champ increased in a big way on the eve of the competition.
France announced that world-record holder Kevin Mayer decided to drop out Thursday because of a hamstring injury suffered in early July.
Warner, one of Canada’s top gold-medal hopes in Paris, now has a clearer path to the top of the podium.
Mayer, the silver medallist in decathlon at the past two Olympics and a two-time world champ, was hurt in a 110-metre hurdles race at a meet in France on July 7.
Fellow Canadian Pierce LePage, the reigning world champion, also dropped out last month because of a back injury.
Warner, from London, Ont., is looking for his third consecutive Olympic medal after taking bronze in Rio de Janeiro and gold in Tokyo.
The two-day event starts Friday with the 100 metres at 4:05 a.m. ET.