Olympics-Athletics-Wlodarczyk shatters world record for hammer gold

The Rio 2016 athletics programme had its third world record here this morning – a hammer throw of 82.29 metres with which Poland’s Anita Wlodarczyk earned gold – and it might have had a second had Ruth Jebet run a second faster in winning the 3,000 metres steeplechase title in 8min 59.75sec.

Ahead of the final, Poland’s world champion had indicated that she was looking to go further than ever before and after breaking the Olympic record with 80.40m in the second round, she improved that mark by nearly two metres with her next throw to get the gold in style.

Hitchon had moved up into bronze medal position with 73.29m from her second throw but dropped down the field as the competition progressed.

She would have needed a personal-best throw to medal, as gold medalist Anita Wlodarczyk of Poland set a new world record in the event. She’s now set six world records since then.

Lysenko, who had already served a two-year doping ban for steroid use before competing in 2012, was one of dozens of athletes whose frozen samples from the 2005 World Championships in Helsinki were re-tested retrospectively.

“It was extremely hard conditions and mega hot”, she said.

The following month, reports in Italy and Russian Federation named Lysenko as being among dozens of athletes from the 2012 Olympics who had failed dope tests after the retesting of stored samples.

“I´’m so happy to win the gold medal 16 years after Kamila did it in Sydney”, Wlodarczyk said.

“After the world record I felt an explosion of happiness. If you come out with that then you get the gold medal”, said triple jump heat victor Taylor.

“I was broken”, she added.