| The event consists of a large heavy ball, weighing 16 pounds (a touch over 7kg), attached to a long flexible chain and handle being plummeted forward in any means possible. The majority of professionals use the length of the cable to rotate round with the apparatus building up enough momentum until they reach their maximum speed, at which point they release the handle leaving the hammer to sail off into the distance.
Hammer throwing began in its most rudimentary form in the fabled Scottish highland games. Here, competitors would launch an actual sledgehammer skyward in a celebration of the Scottish and Celtic culture. The throw became synonymous with the whole festival along with other fêted events such as the caber toss and the stone put. The success in these daring pursuits was considered the utmost in masculinity, proving your strength to the entire village and still exists in some quarters today. At the turn of the 20th century the hammer throw was adopted by the world of track and field, taking the format it most commonly exists in today.
Competition in hammer throwing revolves around the major athletic events run throughout the year. The most notorious and celebrated of these is of course the Olympic games. Every four years, competitors from all over the globe step up to challenge for the ultimate prize – a gold medal. The current Olympic champion is Koji Murofushi of Japan, who received this honour after Adrian Annus was stripped of his medal for drug offences. Other sought after titles are the World Championships, European Championships and the Commonwealth Games.
Hammer throwing has been dominated somewhat by Eastern Europe since its introduction to the Olympic games. The ex-soviet states have provided a number of Olympic and World champions over the past decades and do not look ready to release their grip of superiority. Yuri Sedykh was perhaps the first star of the sport. The Ukrainian born Soviet Union representative won the gold medal on two occasions, and still holds the world record, which stands at an impressive – 86.74. However, it is Ivan Tikhon that currently rules the roost in the hammer circle. The burly Belarusian has come within one centimetre of Sedykh’s world record and is a three-time World champion. The only thing that still escapes him is that elusive Olympic gold medal, which he missed out on in both Athens and Beijing.
The great danger of hammer throwing provokes a lot of care and safety procedures during competition. The athletes are enclosed in a tall steel cage that is designed to protect bystanders if they miscalculate the release of the hammer. Stewards are also instructed to stand well back when judging the distance, ensuring they don’t come to harm when officiating.
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