The remarkable Ashton Eaton retained his World Championships decathlon title in sensational style by coasting to victory with a record-breaking points tally in Beijing.

Eaton had not completed a decathlon in more than two years, but the Olympic champion provided an indication of his form on Friday with a sensational 400 metres time of 45 seconds flat.

And having come into the final two events – in Saturday's afternoon session at the Bird's Nest Stadium – with a 254-point advantage over Canada's Damian Warner, the American produced an impressive javelin throw of 63.63m to leave his world record total of 9,039 in sight.

Eaton duly completed the 1500m in a time of four minutes 17:52secs to set a new benchmark of 9,045 points – his level of exertion highlighted as he collapsed to the ground upon crossing the finish line.

Warner took silver with a national record of 8,695 points, while Germany's Rico Freimuth (8,561) posted a personal best to claim bronze.

But neither man could get close to Eaton, who improved on the points haul that saw him take the world record from Roman Sebrle at the United States Olympic Trials in 2012.