| Event: | Hammer throw |
| Wrmen: | Yuriy Sedykh (1986) |
| Ormen: | Sergey Litvinov (1988) |
| Crmen: |  Ivan Tsikhan (2007) |
| Wrwomen: |  Anita Włodarczyk (2016) |
| Orwomen: | Anita Włodarczyk (2016) |
| Crwomen: | Anita Włodarczyk (2015) |
The hammer throw is one of the four throwing events in regular outdoor track and field competitions, along with the discus throw, shot put and javelin.
The "hammer" used in this sport is not like any of the tools also called by that name. It consists of a metal ball attached by a steel wire to a grip. These three components are each separate and can move independently. Both the size and weight of the ball vary between men's and women's events. The women's hammer weighs 4kg (09lb) for college and professional meets while the men's hammer weighs 7.26kg (16.01lb).[1]
The exact origins of the hammer throw are a mystery to modern historians. According to legend, at the Tailteann Games in Tara, Ireland, as far back as 2000 BC the Celtic warrior Culchulainn took a chariot axle with a wheel still attached and spun it around and hurled it.[2] The wheel was later replaced by a rock with a wooden handle attached. A sledgehammer began to be used for the sport in Scotland and England during the Middle Ages. In current times, the hammer has changed to the more modern 7.26 kg ball attached to a wire and a handle, but the Scottish Highland Games still feature the older style of hammer throw with the rock and the solid wood handle.
While the men's hammer throw has been part of the Olympics since 1900, the International Association of Athletics Federations did not start ratifying women's marks until 1995. Women's hammer throw was first included in the Olympics at the 2000 summer games in Sydney, Australia, after having been included in the World Championships a year earlier.
The men's hammer weighs and the women's weighs 4kg (09lb), with the wire in either case no more than in length.[3] Like the other throwing events, the competition is decided by who can throw the implement the farthest.
The throwing motion starts with the thrower swinging the hammer back-and-forth about two times to generate momentum. The thrower then makes three, four or (rarely) five full rotations using a complex heel-toe foot movement, spinning the hammer in a circular path and increasing its angular velocity with each rotation. Rather than spinning the hammer horizontally, it is instead spun in a plane that angles up towards the direction in which it will be launched. The thrower releases the hammer as its velocity is upward and toward the target.[4]
Throws are made from a throwing circle. The thrower is not allowed to step outside the throwing circle before the hammer has landed and may only enter and exit from the rear of the throwing circle. The hammer must land within a 34.92º throwing sector that is centered on the throwing circle. The sector angle was chosen because it provides a sector whose bounds are easy to measure and lay out on a field (10 metres out from the center of the ring, 6 metres across).[5] [6] A violation of the rules results in a foul and the throw not being counted.
the men's hammer world record is held by Yuriy Sedykh, who threw at the 1986 European Athletics Championships in Stuttgart, West Germany on 30 August. The world record for the women's hammer is held by Anita Włodarczyk, who threw during the Kamila Skolimowska Memorial on 28 August 2016. Sedykh's 1986 world record has been noted for its longevity, and for dating from "a time when track and field was starting to realize the scale of performance-enhancing drug use" (AP).[7] According to Russian doping whistleblower Grigory Rodchenkov, Sedykh was a heavy user of steroids, which Sedykh denied.
The throwing distance depends on the velocity and height at which the hammer is released, but also on other factors that are not under the athlete's control.[8] In particular, Earth's rotation affects it via the location's latitude (due to the centrifugal force, the hammer will fly a bit further in a location closer to the equator) and to a lesser extent also via the throw's azimuth (i.e. its compass direction, due to Coriolis forces). According to a 2023 study, such effects are large enough that the top 20 world-record rankings for both men and women at the time could somewhat change if they were adjusted for latitude and azimuth.
Hammer throwing has been described as involving "inherent danger [...]. Athletes, coaches, and spectators participating in the event are at risk; steel hammers [...] are hurled through the air at great speeds, [travel] far distances, and [are] sometimes difficult to spot in flight."[9] For example, hammer throws resulted in four deaths in Europe in 2000 alone,[10] and have caused deaths and permanent brain damage injuries in the United States too.
To mitigate such risks, a C-shaped "hammer cage" was introduced, which is built around the throwing circle, preventing the hammer from flying off in unwanted directions. In 2004, the IAAF changed its rules to increase the mandatory height of hammer cages to 10m and reduce their "danger zone" angle to around 53°. The change also moved the cage gates further away from the throwing circle, thus reducing the risk of a misdirected hammer bouncing back on the thrower.[11]
See also: Men's hammer throw world record progression and Women's hammer throw world record progression.
| Mark | Athlete | Nation | Date | Place | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 30 August 1986 | |||||
| 2 | Sedykh #2 | 22 June 1986 | |||||
| 3 | Sedykh #3 | 3 July 1984 | |||||
| 2 | 4 | 3 July 1986 | |||||
| 5 | Litvinov #2 | 30 August 1986 | |||||
| 6 | Sedykh #4 | 11 August 1986 | |||||
| 7 | Sedykh #5 | 13 July 1984 | |||||
| Sedykh #6 | 17 August 1984 | ||||||
| 9 | Litvinov #3 | 3 July 1984 | |||||
| 10 | Litvinov #4 | 11 July 1986 | |||||
| Sedykh #7 | 4 September 1988 | ||||||
| 12 | Sedykh #8 | 20 August 1984 | |||||
| 13 | Sedykh #9 | 3 July 1986 | |||||
| 3 | 14 | 21 July 2005 | |||||
| 15 | Litvinov #5 | 10 September 1986 | |||||
| 4 | 16 | 29 June 2003 | |||||
| 17 | Litvinov #6 | 26 September 1988 | |||||
| 18 | Sedykh #10 | 9 July 1986 | |||||
| 19 | Litvinov #7 | 9 July 1986 | |||||
| 5 | 20 | 6 June 1992 | |||||
| 21 | Sedykh #11 | 14 September 1984 | |||||
| 22 | Sedykh #12 | 8 June 1986 | |||||
| 6 | 23 | 9 July 2008 | |||||
| 7 | 24 | 12 July 1990 | |||||
| 25 | Sedykh #13 | 14 September 1988 | |||||
| Tsikhan #2 | 7 May 2004 | ||||||
| 8 | 9 September 1984 | Banská Bystrica | |||||
| 9 | 20 April 2024 | Nairobi | [13] | ||||
| 10 | Adrián Annus | 10 August 2003 | Szombathely | ||||
| 11 | 9 August 2015 | Szczecin | [14] | ||||
| 12 | 19 September 1998 | Zalaegerszeg | |||||
| 13 | 26 May 1990 | Adler | |||||
| 14 | 10 February 2002 | Adler | |||||
| 15 | 16 May 1988 | Athens | |||||
| 16 | 5 August 2001 | Edmonton | |||||
| 17 | 14 July 2004 | Lahti | |||||
| 18 | 29 June 1997 | Frankfurt | |||||
| 19 | 4 June 1998 | Saint-Denis | |||||
| 20 | 26 June 1999 | Dortmund | |||||
| 21 | 20 June 2021 | Eugene | [15] | ||||
| 22 | 16 August 2014 | Zürich | |||||
| 23 | 3 August 1985 | Dresden | |||||
| 24 | 30 May 1998 | Bryansk | |||||
| 27 April 2002 | Kyiv |
| Mark | Athlete | Nation | Date | Place | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 28 August 2016 | [17] | ||||
| 2 | Włodarczyk #2 | 29 July 2017 | |||||
| 3 | Włodarczyk #3 | 15 August 2016 | |||||
| 4 | Włodarczyk #4 | 1 August 2015 | |||||
| 5 | Włodarczyk #5 | 27 August 2015 | |||||
| 6 | Włodarczyk #6 | 23 July 2017 | |||||
| 2 | 7 | 26 June 2021 | [18] | ||||
| 8 | Włodarczyk #7 | 12 July 2016 | |||||
| 3 | 9 | 20 May 2023 | [19] | ||||
| 10 | Andersen #2 | 4 May 2024 | [20] | ||||
| 11 | Włodarczyk #8 | 15 August 2017 | |||||
| Andersen #3 | 20 April 2023 | [21] | |||||
| 13 | Włodarczyk #9 | 6 May 2017 | |||||
| 14 | Włodarczyk #10 | 27 June 2017 | |||||
| 15 | Włodarczyk #11 | 18 June 2016 | |||||
| 16 | Włodarczyk #12 | 22 July 2018 | |||||
| 17 | Włodarczyk #13 | 31 August 2014 | |||||
| 18 | Włodarczyk #14 | 21 May 2016 | |||||
| 19 | Włodarczyk #15 | 29 May 2016 | |||||
| 4 | 20 | 21 May 2011 | |||||
| 21 | Andersen #4 | 30 April 2022 | [22] | ||||
| 22 | Andersen #5 | 17 July 2022 | [23] | ||||
| 23 | Włodarczyk #16 | 12 August 2018 | |||||
| 24 | Andersen #6 | 6 June 2023 | Bydgoszcz | [24] | |||
| 25 | Włodarczyk #17 | 15 August 2014 | Zürich | ||||
| 5 | Camryn Rogers | 26 May 2023 | Westwood | [25] | |||
| 6 | 5 July 2012 | ||||||
| 7 | Janee' Kassanavoid | 21 May 2022 | Tucson | [26] | |||
| 8 | Gwen Berry | 8 June 2018 | Chorzów | [27] | |||
| 9 | Wang Zheng | 29 March 2014 | Chengdu | ||||
| 10 | Zhang Wenxiu | 28 September 2014 | Incheon | ||||
| 11 | Aksana Miankova | 29 June 2008 | Minsk | ||||
| 12 | Gulfiya Agafonova | 12 June 2006 | Tula | ||||
| 13 | Oksana Kondratyeva | 30 June 2013 | Zhukovskiy | ||||
| 14 | Hanna Skydan | 23 August 2023 | Budapest | [28] | |||
| 15 | Martina Hrašnová | 16 May 2009 | Trnava | ||||
| 16 | Malwina Kopron | 26 August 2017 | Taipei City | [29] | |||
| 17 | Kamila Skolimowska | 11 May 2007 | Doha | ||||
| 18 | Mariya Bespalova | 23 June 2012 | Zhukovsky | ||||
| 19 | Volha Tsander | 21 July 2005 | Minsk | ||||
| 20 | Yekaterina Khoroshikh | 24 June 2006 | Zhukovsky | ||||
| 21 | Yipsi Moreno | 9 September 2008 | Zagreb | ||||
| 22 | Alena Matoshka | 12 June 2012 | Minsk | ||||
| 23 | Joanna Fiodorow | 28 September 2019 | Doha | [30] | |||
| 24 | Darya Pchelnik | 29 June 2008 | Minsk | ||||
| 25 | Hanna Malyshik | 27 April 2018 | Brest |
The following athletes had their performances (over 77.00 m) annulled due to doping offences:
| Year | Mark | Athlete | Place | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Los Gatos | ||||
| 1989 | Frunze | ||||
| 1990 | Adler | ||||
| 1991 | Adler | ||||
| 1992 | Bryansk | ||||
| 1993 | Krasnodar | ||||
| 1994 | Minsk | ||||
| 1995 | Moscow | ||||
| 1996 | Sydney | ||||
| 1997 | Munich | ||||
| 1998 | Tolyatti | ||||
| 1999 | Rüdlingen | ||||
| 2000 | Tula | ||||
| 2001 | Adler | ||||
| 2002 | Annecy | ||||
| 2003 | Savona | ||||
| 2004 | Havana | ||||
| 2005 | Moscow | ||||
| 2006 | Tallinn | ||||
| 2007 | Adler | ||||
| 2008 | Minsk | ||||
| 2009 | Berlin | ||||
| 2010 | Bydgoszcz | ||||
| 2011 | Halle | ||||
| 2012 | Minsk | ||||
| 2013 | Moscow | ||||
| 2014 | Berlin | ||||
| 2015 | Władysławowo | ||||
| 2016 | Warsaw | ||||
| 2017 | Cetniewo | ||||
| 2018 | Lublin | ||||
| 2019 | Des Moines | ||||
| 2020 | Minsk | ||||
| 2021 | Eugene | ||||
| 2022 | Tucson | ||||
| 2023 | align=leftR | Tucson | |||
| 2024 | align=leftR | Tucson |