Records, barriers smashed as Canadian track athletes raised the bar in Tokyo

As the lights go out at Tokyo's Olympic Stadium on Saturday, it marks the end of a remarkable Olympic run for Canadian track and field. Over the course of the week, records were broken, dreams were realized, and barriers once thought unattainable were smashed.

Canada will leave Tokyo with six medals, far surpassing what it has done on the track at previous Olympics.

The magical week started with Toronto's Andre De Grasse competing in the 100-metre event, vying for the title of world's fastest man.

With the world watching, the 26-year-old from Markham, Ont., delivered a bronze medal in what is widely regarded as the Olympic's marquee event.

His time of 9.89 seconds was also his fastest ever.

WATCH | De Grasse wins 100m bronze with blazing finish:

"From me, this is an amazing moment. Last year I never thought we would be here in Tokyo," De Grasse said after the race. "And to get back on the podium, it's amazing."

De Grasse also captured the bronze in the 100 at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Two days after winning the bronze in Tokyo, he followed it up with a gold-medal performance in the 200, outracing a trio of Americans, finishing with a Canadian-best time of 19.62.

The sprinter called it the "race of his life."

WATCH | Andre De Grasse gets his golden moment in Tokyo:

He ended the week by propelling Canada onto the podium in the men's 4x100-metre relay, and in doing so, earned his sixth career medal at the Games. That makes him Canada's most-decorated track athlete in Olympic history.

"It's crazy, I'm just really happy. I was telling these guys how proud I am to be part of this team," De Grasse said. "For these guys to help me win my sixth medal, I'm just so grateful for this and just so proud of them."

WATCH | De Grasse turns on the jets to earn relay bronze for Canada:

De Grasse's success bookended other Canadian triumphs.

Damian Warner, of London, Ont., became the first-ever Canadian to win the men's decathlon, a gruelling two-day event made even more difficult by unrelenting Tokyo heat.

Warner dominated from start to finish in the race to become the "world's greatest athlete," compiling an Olympic record 9,018 points, the fourth-highest total ever.

"It's been a long two days. When you go through the whole battle of the decathlon and finally finish and you get the result you were looking for, there is no greater feeling. This is a dream come true," Warner said.

"I've never been in this position when one of my dreams came true. I don't even know how to react right now," added Warner, who at 31 years old was the oldest competitor in the 21-man field.

WATCH | Damian Warner's road to Olympic glory:

Canadian women failed to reach the podium in track and field but did have some impressive results.

Camryn Rogers of Richmond, B.C., placed fifth in women's hammer throw out of 30 competitors.

Marathoner Malindi Elmore finished a remarkable ninth in the marathon, making an improbable return to the Olympics after a 17-year absence.

Toronto's Gabriela Debues-Stafford led early in the women's 1,500 final and sat third for a brief period before placing fifth in 3:58.93 at her first Olympics.

Evan Dunfee added to Canada's medal haul on Thursday, coming from behind to win bronze in the men's 50-kilometre race walk.

It was Canada's first-ever race walking medal in 29 years.

"I just asked my body to give me everything it had and I was able to dig deep and get it," Dunfee said. "I don't need a medal to validate myself. I'm proud of what I accomplished today, but I have been dreaming of this moment and winning this medal for 21 years. I am over the moon."

WATCH | Evan Dunfee wins bronze in race walking:

Arguably Canada's most improbable track medal was its sixth and final one.

Although coming into Tokyo, Moh Ahmed had run North America's fastest 5,000-metre time of all time, no Canadian had ever broken through at the Olympics.

That was until Ahmed stormed to silver.

WATCH | Moh Ahmed captures 5,000m silver medal:

"Relieved, just relieved," Ahmed said after the race. "That last 100 metres, I wish I was a little bit closer to challenge [new Olympic champion Joshua] Cheptegei for the gold. But to come out here after five years of waiting for this, I'm delighted and elated."

"The long distance medals are so tough because the continent of Africa in particular is so strong," says Olympian Dave Moorecroft, CBC Sports' long-time track analyst. "It's not just Kenya or Ethiopia, but now you've got Uganda as well. In this heat and humidity, it's brutal out there."

Moorecroft says Ahmed achieved success in the ultimate global event.

"For Canada, it's fantastic. Pretty much every boy and girl at some point finds out whether they can run fast and keep going, which is what these long distance runners do."