At the 2004 Summer Olympics, the athletics events were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium from August 18 to August 29, except for the marathons, the race walks, and the shot put. A total of 46 events were contested, of which 24 by male and 22 by female athletes.
Japan competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, from 13 to 29 August 2004. Japanese athletes have competed at every Summer Olympic Games in the modern era since 1912 except for two editions; it was not invited to the 1948 Summer Olympics in London for its role in World War II, and was also part of the US-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. The Japanese Olympic Committee sent a total of 306 athletes, 139 men and 167 women, to compete in 27 sports. For the first time in its Olympic history, Japan was represented by more female than male athletes.
The men's discus throw competition at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens was held at the Olympic Stadium on 21–23 August. It was originally planned to hold the discus throw at the Ancient Olympia Stadium, but it was discovered that the field was not large enough to accommodate the range of modern discus throwers, and would have posed a danger to spectators. As such, it was decided to move the discus throw and to hold the shot put at the ancient stadium, despite the fact that the shot put was not contested at the Ancient Olympic Games. Thirty-nine athletes from 26 nations competed.
Turkey competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, from 13 to 29 August 2004. Turkish athletes have competed at every Summer Olympic Games since its debut in 1908. Turkey did not attend the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles at the period of worldwide Great Depression, and the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow because of its support for the United States boycott. The Turkish Olympic Committee sent the nation's largest delegation to the Games. A total of 65 athletes, 45 men and 20 women, competed in 10 sports. There was only a single competitor in shooting and taekwondo.
Belarus competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, from 13 to 29 August 2004. This was the nation's fifth appearance at the Summer Olympics in the post-Soviet era. The Belarus Olympic Committee sent a total of 151 athletes to the Games, 82 men and 69 women, to compete in 22 sports.
Adrián Zsolt Annus is a Hungarian hammer thrower, who was stripped of his gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens for a doping violation in a highly publicized scandal. The disqualification received heightened attention, as it came on the heels of several drug scandals at the Athens Games and came as Annus' teammate, discus thrower Róbert Fazekas was also stripped of his Olympic title for a doping violation. The incident also received attention, as Annus refused for several months to return his gold medal, relenting only after the International Olympic Committee put pressure on the Hungarian Olympic Committee and threatened sanctions.
Athletes from Belarus began their Olympic participation at the 1952 Summer Games in Helsinki, Finland, as part of the Soviet Union. After the Soviet Union disbanded in 1991, Belarus, along with four of the other fourteen former Soviet republics, competed in the 1992 Winter Olympics as the Unified Team. Later in 1992, Belarus joined eleven republics to compete as the Unified Team at the Summer Games in Barcelona, Spain. Two years later, Belarus competed for the first time as an independent nation in the 1994 Winter Olympics, held in Lillehammer, Norway.
Eşref Apak is a Turkish hammer thrower. Apak was a member of Fenerbahçe Athletics in Istanbul then transferred to Enkaspor, where he was coached by Artun Talay. The 185 cm tall athlete at 115 kg (254 lb) was a student of physical education and sports at Gazi University in Ankara.
Ivan Ryhoravich Tsikhan is a Belarusian hammer thrower. He is a two-time world champion and an Olympic medalist.
Koji Alexander Murofushi, is a former Japanese hammer thrower and sports scientist. He has been among the world elite since the 2001 World Championships, where he won the silver medal. He was the 2004 Olympic champion. In 2011, he was crowned world champion.
Vadim Anatolyevich Devyatovsky is a Belarusian hammer thrower.
Krisztián Pars is a Hungarian hammer thrower. He competed at the Summer Olympics in 2004, 2008, and 2012, winning the gold medal in 2012. He also won the 2012 and 2014 European championships.
Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics were held during the last ten days of the games, from August 15 to August 24, 2008, at the Beijing National Stadium. The Olympic sport of athletics is split into four distinct sets of events: track and field events, road running events, and racewalking events.
The men's shot put at the Athens 2004 Summer Olympics was held on August 18, 2004, at the Ancient Olympia Stadium in Olympia, Greece. It was originally planned to hold the discus throw at this venue, but it was discovered that the field was insufficiently large to accommodate the range of modern discus throwers, and would have posed a danger to spectators. As such, it was decided instead to hold the shot put at the site, despite the fact that the shot put was not contested at the Ancient Olympic Games. All distances are given in metres. Thirty-nine athletes from 26 nations competed.
Belarus attended the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. A team of 181 athletes competed in 28 different sports.
The men's hammer throw at the 2008 Summer Olympics took place on 15 August (qualifying) and 17 (final) at the Beijing National Stadium. There were 33 competitors from 26 nations. The event was won by Primož Kozmus of Slovenia, the nation's first medal in the event.
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.
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.
