Not only did Ethan Katzberg become the first Canadian to win a medal in the hammer throw, he completely disqualified the competition. He easily won gold at the Paris Olympics.
In his first throw, his best, Katzberg reached 84.12 meters. He was more than four meters ahead of his nearest competitor, Hungary’s Bence Halász, who won silver. Katzberg’s throw was just 68 centimeters short of Russia’s Sergey Litinov’s Olympic record, set in 1988 at the Seoul Games.
At age 22, Katzberg became the youngest hammer throw champion in Olympic history.
He is the first Canadian to medal in a throwing competition since Étienne Desmarteau in 1904. He also becomes the first North American Olympic champion in this event since 1956. The American Harold Connolly won it in Melbourne, Australia.
The Nanaimo, B.C., native earned a spot in the final with a throw of 79.93 metres in qualifying, placing first in his group.
PHOTO KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Ethan Katzberg Dominates Hammer Throw Final
The 198cm, 107kg colossus was the favourite in the hammer throw. He set the world record this year with a throw of 84.38m. It is the best throw in the last 16 years.
Katzberg, 22, was competing in his first Olympic Games. He holds the title from the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest.
Canada now has 17 medals at these Games, its fifth gold.
British Columbian Rowan Hamilton also made the final. His best throw was 76.59m, which gave him a 9e rank.
Earlier Sunday, Canadian Camryn Rogers posted the second-fastest distance in the women’s hammer throw qualifying round. She will compete in the final on Tuesday.