The discus throw, also known as disc throw, is a track and field sport in which the participant athlete throws an oblate spheroid weight — called a discus — in an attempt to mark a farther distance than other competitors. It is an ancient sport, as demonstrated by the fifth-century-BC Myron statue Discobolus. Although not part of the current pentathlon, it was one of the events of the ancient Greek pentathlon, which can be dated back to at least 708 BC, and it is part of the modern decathlon.
A pentathlon is a contest featuring five events. The name is derived from Greek: combining the words pente (five) and -athlon (competition). The first pentathlon was documented in Ancient Greece and was part of the Ancient Olympic Games. Five events were contested over one day for the Ancient Olympic pentathlon, starting with the long jump, javelin throwing, and discus throwing, followed by the stadion and wrestling. Pentathletes were considered to be among the most skilled athletes, and their training was often part of military service—each of the five events in the pentathlon was thought to be useful in war or battle.
Lillian Copeland was an American track and field Olympic champion athlete, who excelled in discus, javelin throwing, and shot put, setting multiple world records. She has been called "the most successful female discus thrower in U.S. history". She also held multiple titles in shot put and javelin throwing. She won a silver medal in discus at the 1928 Summer Olympics, a gold medal in discus at the 1932 Summer Olympics, and gold medals in discus, javelin, and shot put at the 1935 Maccabiah Games in Mandatory Palestine.
Margaret "Meg" Elizabeth Stone is a retired Scottish discus thrower and Shot putter. She reached the Olympic finals at discus in Moscow 1980 (9th) and Los Angeles 1984 (5th). She also won the 1982 Commonwealth Games title. Her discus best of 67.48 metres has stood as the British record since 1981, while her shot put best of 18.99 metres has stood as the Scottish record since 1983.
Dani Stevens is an Australian retired discus thrower who in 2009 became the youngest ever female world champion in the event. She is the current national and Oceanian record holder.
These are the official results of the women's discus throw event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.
The Women's Discus Throw event at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 22 competitors, with two qualifying groups before the final (12) took place on Thursday September 29, 1988.
The Women's Discus Throw at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California had an entry list of 17 competitors, with two qualifying groups before the final (12) took place on August 11, 1984.
Stephanie Brown Trafton is an American track and field athlete who won the discus throwing gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. She is thus one of only three American women to have ever won the event.
Ingeborg Ella Pfüller is an Argentine former track and field athlete who competed in the discus throw and shot put. She represented her native country at the 1952 Summer Olympics and won the gold medal in the women's discus throw event at the 1955 Pan American Games in Mexico City, Mexico. She also won the discus throw at the South American Championships in 1961 and 1963.
The Women's Discus Throw event at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Soviet Union had an entry list of 18 competitors, with one qualifying group and the final (12) held on Friday 1980-08-01.
The men's discus throw event at the 1932 Olympic Games took place August 3. Eighteen athletes from 11 nations competed. The 1930 Olympic Congress in Berlin had reduced the limit from 4 athletes per NOC to 3 athletes. The event was won by John Anderson of the United States, the nation's third consecutive and sixth overall victory in the men's discus throw. Henri LaBorde took silver, marking the first time since 1908 that the same nation had the top two discus throwers. Paul Winter was the bronze medalist, earning France's first discus medal. Finland's four-Games podium streak ended, while the United States extended its streak to all nine appearances of the event.
The men's discus throw event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1936 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on August 5, 1936. Thirty-one athletes from 17 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was won by Ken Carpenter of the United States. It was the nation's fourth consecutive, and seventh overall, victory in the men's discus throw; it was also the second consecutive Games that the Americans finished with both of the top two places, as Gordon Dunn took silver. Giorgio Oberweger earned Italy's first men's discus throw medal with his bronze.
Jules Noël was a French athlete who competed in discus and shot put at two European Athletics Championships and three Olympic Games.
Veronika "Ronny" Kohlbach was an Austrian athlete.
The discus throw is one of four track and field throwing events held at the Summer Olympics. The men's discus throw has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1896. The women's event was first contested at the 1928 Olympics, being one of the five athletics events in the inaugural Olympic women's programme.
The javelin throw at the Summer Olympics is one of four track and field throwing events held at the multi-sport event. The men's javelin throw has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1908, being the last of the current throwing events to feature at the Olympics after the shot put, discus throw and hammer throw. The women's event was first contested at the 1932 Olympics, becoming the second women's throws event after the discus in 1928.
Combined events at the Summer Olympics have been contested in several formats at the multi-sport event. There are two combined track and field events in the current Olympic athletics programme: a men's decathlon and a women's heptathlon.
Johanna Freda Gertrude Wilhelmsen was an American track and field athlete and softball player. She represented the United States at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, placing seventh in the women's javelin throw and eighth in the discus throw.
Lucienne Velu-Chapillon, Mrs Odoul was a French athlete and basketball player. She was inducted into the French Basketball Hall of Fame, in 2011. She was born Paris and died in Quincy-sous-Senart.
