Hammer throw
Scottish hammer throw illustration from Frank R.Stockton's book "Round-about Rambles in Lands of Fact and Fancy"
A more conventional rig using a wire
World Athletics Championships 2007 in Osaka - Victory Ceremony for Hammer Throw with winner Ivan Tikhan (middle)
American John Flanagan in the hammer throw competition at the Summer Olympics 1908 in London
The modern or Olympic hammer throw is an athletic throwing event where the object is to throw a heavy metal ball attached to a wire and handle. The name "hammer throw" is derived from older competitions where an actual sledge hammer was thrown. Such competitions are still part of the Scottish Highland Games, where the implement used is a steel or lead weight at the end of a cane handle.
Like other throwing events, the competition is decided by who can throw the ball the farthest. The men's hammer weighs 16 pounds (7.257 kg) and measures 3 feet 11 3⁄4 inches (121.5 cm) in length and the women's hammer weighs 8.82 lb (4 kg) and 3 feet 11 inches (119.5 cm) in length. Competitors gain maximum distance by swinging the hammer above their head to set up the circular motion. Then they apply force and pick up speed by completing one to four turns in the circle. In competition, most throwers turn three or four times. The ball moves in a circular path, gradually increasing in velocity with each turn with the high point of the ball toward the sector and the low point at the back of the circle. The thrower releases the ball from the front of the circle. The two most important factors for a long throw are the angle of release and the speed of the ball.
While the men's hammer throw has been in the Olympic Games since 1900, the IAAF did not start ratifying women's marks until 1995. Women's hammer throw was first included in the Olympics at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, after having been included in the World Championships a year earlier.
The current world record for the men's hammer was set by Yuriy Sedykh, who threw 86.74 metres (284 ft 7 in) at the European athletics championships held in Stuttgart, West Germany in 1986. The EMC world record for the men's hammer was set in 2009 by Fred Poor who threw during the SA Olympics in Franklin, MA.
The current world record for the women's hammer was set by Anita Włodarczyk, who threw 78.30 metres (256 ft 11 in) in Bydgoszcz, Poland on 6 June 2010.
Best Year Performance
Men's Seasons Best
Women's Seasons Best
| Year |
Distance (m) |
Athlete |
Place |
| 1988 |
58.94 |
 Carol Cady (USA) |
Los Gatos |
| 1989 |
61.50 |
 Yelena Pichugina (URS) |
Frunze |
| 1990 |
61.96 |
Larisa Baranova (URS) |
Adler |
| 1991 |
64.44 |
Alla Davydova (URS) |
Adler |
| 1992 |
65.40 |
 Olga Kuzenkova (RUS) |
Bryansk |
| 1993 |
64.64 |
Olga Kuzenkova (RUS) |
Krasnodar |
| 1994 |
67.34 |
.svg.png) Svetlana Sudak (BLR) |
Minsk |
| 1995 |
68.16 |
Olga Kuzenkova (RUS) |
Moscow |
| 1996 |
69.46 |
Olga Kuzenkova (RUS) |
Sydney |
| 1997 |
73.10 |
Olga Kuzenkova (RUS) |
Munich |
| 1998 |
73.80 |
Olga Kuzenkova (RUS) |
Tolyatti |
| 1999 |
76.07 |
 Mihaela Melinte (ROM) |
Rüdlingen |
| 2000 |
75.68 |
Olga Kuzenkova (RUS) |
Tula |
| 2001 |
73.62 |
Olga Kuzenkova (RUS) |
Adler |
| 2002 |
73.07 |
Olga Kuzenkova (RUS) |
Annecy |
| 2003 |
75.14 |
 Yipsi Moreno (CUB) |
Savona |
| 2004 |
75.18 |
Yipsi Moreno (CUB) |
Havana |
| 2005 |
77.06 |
Tatyana Lysenko (RUS) |
Moscow |
| 2006 |
77.80 |
Tatyana Lysenko (RUS) |
Tallinn |
| 2007 |
77.30 |
Tatyana Lysenko (RUS) |
Adler |
| 2008 |
77.32 |
 Aksana Miankova (BLR) |
Minsk |
| 2009 |
77.96 |
 Anita Włodarczyk (POL) |
Berlin |
| 2010 |
78.30 |
Anita Włodarczyk (POL) |
Bydgoszcz |
Top 10
Men's best throwers of all time
| Rank |
Mark |
Athlete |
Place |
Date |
| 1. |
86.74 m |
Yuriy Sedykh (URS) |
Stuttgart |
1986-08-30 |
| 2. |
86.73 m |
Ivan Tsikhan (BLR) |
Brest |
2005-07-03 |
| 3. |
86.04 m |
Sergey Litvinov (URS) |
Dresden |
1986-07-03 |
| 4. |
84.90 m |
Vadim Devyatovskiy (BLR) |
Minsk |
2005-07-21 |
| 5. |
84.86 m |
 Koji Murofushi (JPN) |
Praha |
2003-06-29 |
| 6. |
84.62 m |
Igor Astapkovich (BLR) |
Seville |
1992-06-06 |
| 7. |
84.48 m |
Igor Nikulin (URS) |
Lausanne |
1990-07-12 |
| 8. |
84.40 m |
Jüri Tamm (URS) |
Banská Bystrica |
1984-09-09 |
| 9. |
84.19 m |
 Adrián Annus (HUN) |
Szombathely |
2003-08-10 |
| 10. |
83.68 m |
Tibor Gécsek (HUN) |
Zalaegerszeg |
1998-09-19 |
Women's best throwers of all time
| Rank |
Mark |
Athlete |
Place |
Date |
| 1. |
78.30 m |
Anita Włodarczyk (POL) |
Bydgoszcz |
2010-06-06 |
| 2. |
77.80 m |
Tatyana Lysenko (RUS) |
Tallinn |
2006-08-15 |
| 3. |
77.32 m |
Aksana Miankova (BLR) |
Minsk |
2008-06-29 |
| 4. |
77.26 m |
Gulfiya Khanafeyeva (RUS) |
Tula |
2006-06-12 |
| 5. |
77.12 m |
 Betty Heidler (GER) |
Berlin |
2009-08-22 |
| 6. |
76.90 m |
 Martina Hrašnová (SVK) |
Trnava |
2009-05-16 |
| 7. |
76.83 m |
Kamila Skolimowska (POL) |
Doha |
2007-05-11 |
| 8. |
76.66 m |
Volha Tsander (BLR) |
Minsk |
2005-07-21 |
| 9. |
76.63 m |
Ekaterina Khoroshikh (RUS) |
Trnava |
2006-06-24 |
| 10. |
76.62 m |
Yipsi Moreno (CUB) |
Zagreb |
2008-09-09 |
See also
- Men's hammer world record progression
- Women's hammer world record progression
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Andrey Abduvaliyev (UZB)
Primož Kozmus (SLO)