Charlie Dobson is the shocker of Day 1 of the Diamond League Final

In the last event of a cold night in Brussels, Briton Charlie Dobson had the most unexpected performance--he won the Diamond League Final in the 400m.

Dobson, 24, did not run fast enough in the Paris Olympics to advance out of his semi-final. His time of 44.68 earned him 4th in a tough heat. Tonight in Brussels, on the first night of the two-day meet, a slight improvement to 44.49 earned him the Diamond League title and all its accouterments

When Olympic silver medalist and 43-mid man Matthew Hudson-Smith pulled up well before the 200m mark, all eyes shifted to Kirani James in Lane 4. Though James was closely tracked by Olympic bronze medalist Muzala Samukonga, he appeared to be in control of the race.

In a Van Niekerk-esque sneak attack from an outside lane, it was Charlie Dobson, the world number ten, who crossed the line ahead of James and all the others.

Charlie Dobson wins 400m dash at Diamond League Final

On a night where low temperatures and a wet track translated to disappointing times across the board, Dobson made the most of the opportunity, running a brilliant home stretch to improve three places. Though Dobson’s victory on the heels of his much-faster countryman’s failure to finish will have an asterisk next to it, the bye he receives to next year’s World Championships in Tokyo also means Great Britain can send four men instead of three, provided they three aside from Dobson have qualified. 

Asterisk or not, Dobson was running for the win. His being located in lane seven outside of Hudson-Smith’s meant that he spent the entire race expecting to race to the line rather than knowing someone dropped out and that it would be an easier win.

More questions than answers are attached to the men’s 400m as the 2024 outdoor season reaches its conclusion. Relatively little was articulated by a banged-up eight-man final featuring at least two men who are near retirement, one man who didn’t finish DNF, and one national athlete who was slotted in to delight the home crowd.

Going into 2025, these questions, roughly in order of significance, are:

1. What will Olympic champion Quincy Hall’s return look like?
2. Is there any chance that Fred Kerley will race any 400s, considering that the upstart Grand Slam Track League might offer significant financial incentives to do so?
3. Will Michael Norman ever be healthy enough to reach his potential?
4. Will 16-year-old American Quincy Hall go pro?
5. Will Christopher Morales Williams figure out how to reach peak fitness outdoors?
6. Will Alexander Doom rebound from injury to attempt to replicate this year’s indoor campaign?

And, of course, the newest question: can Charlie Dobson transition from having the best night of his career to competing for medals?