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 further 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.
The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of 10 track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek δέκα and ἄθλος. Events are held over two consecutive days and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not by the position achieved. The decathlon is contested mainly by male athletes, while female athletes typically compete in the heptathlon.
Roman Šebrle is a retired decathlete from the Czech Republic. He is considered to be one of the best decathlon athletes of all time. Originally a high jumper, he later switched to the combined events and is a former world record holder in the decathlon, holding the record for over eleven years. In 2001 in Götzis he became the first decathlete ever to achieve over 9,000 points, setting the record at 9,026 points, succeeding his compatriot, Tomáš Dvořák, who had scored 8,994 points two years earlier.
Imrich Bugár is a Czechoslovak discus thrower. An ethnic Hungarian who represented Czechoslovakia and then the Czech Republic, his career highlights include an Olympic silver medal from 1980, a European Championship title from 1982 and a gold medal in the inaugural World Championships in 1983. His personal best throw of 71.26 metres puts him tenth in the all-time performers list.
Ludvík Daněk was a Czechoslovak discus thrower, who won the gold medal at the 1972 Olympic Games with a throw of 64.40 m (211'3").
Olga Fikotová was a Czechoslovak, and later American, discus thrower. She is best known for winning gold at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, and for her romance across Cold War barriers with American hammer gold medalist Hal Connolly.
Móric "Mór" Kóczán was a Slovak–Hungarian athlete and Calvinist pastor. Specialized for the throwing events, his best results came in the javelin throw, having won five Hungarian championship titles between 1911 and 1918. Kóczán competed for Hungary at the 1908 Summer Olympics and 1912 Summer Olympics. He produced his best performance in 1912 by winning the bronze medal in the javelin throw event.
Mason Finley, is an American shot putter and discus thrower. He was on the track and field team at the University of Kansas before transferring to the University of Wyoming. He qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics in discus.
Mark Pharaoh was a track and field athlete, who competed in the discus throw at both the 1952 Helsinki Olympics and the 1956 Melbourne Olympics where he came fourth. This has been described as by far the finest single achievement in British discus history. He was also an international shot put and hammer thrower. He was fifth in the shot put at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games and second in the hammer at the 1953 Summer International University Sports Week.
Hein-Direck Neu was a German discus thrower.
Brett Morse is a British athlete who competes in the discus throw.
Aled Siôn Davies is a British Paralympian athlete competing mainly in category F42 throwing events. In 2012 he became the world record holder of the F42 shot put and in the 2012 Summer Paralympics he took the bronze medal in shot put and gold in the discus. In 2013 Davies took the World Championship gold in both the shot put and discus in Lyon. He won double gold in his home country at the 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships in the shot put and discus. This followed his silver medal in the F42-44 discus from the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow where he represented Wales. Davies also took part in the Channel 4 TV series Celebrity SAS: Who dares wins
Guy Nicholas Henly is an Australian Paralympic athlete. He currently competes in discus and shot put and has won medals at the 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2023 World Para Athletics Championships. He represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics, 2020 Tokyo Paralympics and the 2024 Paris Paralympics.
Daniel Ståhl is a Swedish athlete specialising in the discus throw. Ståhl is the Olympic champion and two-time world champion, setting the new championships record in Budapest.
Alexander Melei Rose is a Samoan-American athlete, competing primarily in the discus throw and occasionally in the shot put and the hammer throw. He represented Samoa at the 2016 Olympics, and 2020 Summer Olympics, as well as the Commonwealth Games and Pacific Games.
József Szécsényi was a Hungarian track and field athlete, who competed in the discus throw event. He was the bronze medallist at the 1954 European Athletics Championships, becoming Hungary's second such medallist in the event after István Donogán.
Ryan Crouser is an American track and field athlete who competes in the shot put and discus. He specializes in the shot put, in which he is the only three-time Olympic gold medalist, having won in Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo and Paris, and also a two-time World Champion. He holds the world record in the shot put, both indoors and outdoors. He set the outdoor world record at 23.56 meters in May 2023, improving upon his previous record of 23.37 m from July 2021. He has held the indoor record of 22.82 m since January 2021.
Matthew Denny is an Australian athlete specialising in the discus throw. He won the bronze medal in the men's discus throw at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Nicholas Percy is a Scottish athlete specialising in the discus throw.
Francois Otieno Prinsloo is a South African discus thrower.
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