The hammer throw is one of the four throwing events in regular outdoor track and field competitions, along with the discus throw, shot put and javelin.
The Men's Hammer Throw event at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Olympic Stadium on August 15 and August 17. With reigning champion Ivan Tsikhan banned from competition for doping offences, the 2008 Olympic gold and silver medallists Primož Kozmus and Krisztián Pars were the favourites in the event. Pars entered the competition with a world-leading throw of 81.43 m and an 18 competition win-streak. Belarusian Yuriy Shayunov and Russian Aleksey Zagornyi, the only other athletes to have thrown over eighty metres twice that season prior to the championships, were identified as possible podium finishers. Nicola Vizzoni, Igor Sokolov, Olli-Pekka Karjalainen, Szymon Ziółkowski, Koji Murofushi, and Libor Charfreitag were all predicted to have an outside chance of a medal.
The men's hammer throw competition at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom was held at the Olympic Stadium on 3–5 August. There were 41 competitors from 32 nations. The event was won by Krisztián Pars of Hungary, the nation's first victory in the men's hammer throw since 1996 and fifth overall. Primož Kozmus of Slovenia, the 2008 winner, took silver. Koji Murofushi of Japan, the 2004 winner, took bronze. Kozmus and Murofoshi were the 12th and 13th men to earn multiple medals in the hammer throw.
Paweł Fajdek is a Polish hammer thrower, a five-time World Champion, European Champion, Olympic bronze medal winner, multiple Polish Champion and Polish men's hammer throw record holder. In 2013, he became the youngest world champion in the event. His personal best throw of 83.93 metres was achieved on 9 August 2015 at the Janusz Kusociński Memorial in Szczecin.
The women's javelin throw at the 2013 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Luzhniki Stadium on 16–18 August.
The men's hammer throw at the 2013 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Luzhniki Stadium on 10–12 August.
The women's hammer throw at the 2013 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Luzhniki Stadium on 14–16 August.
The men's hammer throw was a competition at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The event was held at the Estádio Olímpico João Havelange between 17–19 August. There were 32 competitors from 24 nations. The event was won by Dilshod Nazarov of Tajikistan, the nation's first medal in the men's hammer throw and first gold medal in any Olympic event. Ivan Tsikhan of Belarus took silver, the 14th man to win multiple medals in the event in adding to his 2008 bronze. Bronze went to Wojciech Nowicki of Poland, the nation's first medal in the event since 2000.
The men's hammer throw at the 2015 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Beijing National Stadium on 22 and 23 August.
The women's hammer throw at the 2015 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Beijing National Stadium on 26 and 27 August.
Wojciech Nowicki is a Polish hammer thrower. He won the gold medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics, silver medals at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships and bronze medals at the 2016 Summer Olympics, 2015, 2017 and 2019 World Championships. His personal best in the event is 82.52 metres set in 2021 at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
The women's hammer throw at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Olympic Stadium on 5 and 7 August.
The men's hammer throw at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics is being held at the Olympic Stadium on 9 and 11 August.
The men's hammer throw event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place between 2 and 4 August 2021 at the Japan National Stadium. Approximately 35 athletes were expected to compete; the exact number was dependent on how many nations used universality places to enter athletes in addition to the 32 qualifying through distance or ranking. 31 athletes from 21 nations competed. Wojciech Nowicki of Poland won the gold medal, adding to his 2016 bronze to become the 15th man to earn multiple hammer throw medals. It was Poland's second gold medal in the event, after Szymon Ziółkowski's 2000 victory. Nowicki's countryman Paweł Fajdek took bronze. Between them was Norwegian thrower Eivind Henriksen, with his silver being Norway's first-ever Olympic medal in the men's hammer.
The women's hammer throw event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 1 and 3 August 2021 at the Japan National Stadium. Approximately 35 athletes competed; the exact number was dependent on how many nations use universality places to enter athletes in addition to the 32 qualifying through distance or ranking.
The women's hammer throw at the 2019 World Athletics Championships was held at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha from 27 to 28 September 2019.
The men's hammer throw at the 2019 World Athletics Championships was held at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar, from 1 to 2 October 2019.
The women's javelin throw at the 2022 World Athletics Championships was held at the Hayward Field in Eugene on 20 and 22 July 2022.
The men's hammer throw at the 2023 World Athletics Championships was held at the National Athletics Centre in Budapest on 19 and 20 August 2023.
The men's hammer throw at the 2024 Summer Olympics was held in Paris, France, on 2 and 4 August 2024. This was the 29th time that the event is contested at the Summer Olympics.
