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Family and friends cheer on Damian Warner to Olympic history in the decathlon

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London, Ont. -

 Although his loved ones couldn't be in Tokyo in person to cheer on their favourite decathlete, Damian Warner could probably hear their roars of support from a viewing party in London, Ont., Thursday.

Friends and family – including his baby son Theo – gathered at the home of Warner's long-time friend and business manager Jeff Fischer to witness history in the making.

"Just amazing watching him and pick it up and across the finish line and the time that he needed to break that record and it's just amazing to hear the Olympic champion that's so crazy," says Warner's long-time partner Jen Cotton.

Cotton adds watching Warner dominate the event was an emotional journey.

"I think his mom (Brenda Gillan) who I'd never seen cry ever was crying and now it's just amazing to watch him. I've been getting nervous the whole competition until this race (1500m) and it's always like the, I don't know it's the deciding factor, and it's kind of like tense watching, it's kind of slow but you like the build up in the build up."

Warner is Canada’s first-ever Olympic champion in the decathlon, earning him the unofficial title of 'World’s Greatest Athlete'.

His final score of 9,018 points at the Tokyo games is an Olympic record as well as a Canadian record.

This is the first time Warner has surpassed the 9,000-point mark, becoming just the fourth decathlete in history to do so.

More to come

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