Koji Murifushi, throwing at Pre in 2004, photo by PhotoRun.net
Men hammer returns after 11 years
EUGENE (USA): The men’s hammer throw returns to the Prefontaine Classic after a hiatus of 11 years in what will be the event’s best collection of talent on U.S. soil since the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. The field includes the reigning Olympic and World Championships gold medalists, just part of the top 6 from last year’s world rankings by Track & Field News. World champion Pawel Fajdek, Olympic winner Krisztian Pars, World silver winner Dilshod Nazarov along with bronze winner Wojciech Nowicki. Also in fhe field Mostafa Al-Gamal, Marcel Lomnicky and Kibwe Johnson. The event will be staged on Friday May 27.
Adding the hammer to the Pre is a great idea. The hammer was recently showcased on TV and was done quite well. I think the Diamond League and other major meets should all feature it; it’s a spectacular event if the throwers are shown up close.