Capítulo 10. Discusión de resultados y conclusiones
10.1. Relaciones entre las variables biográficas y el razonamiento moral
32 Al Oerter USA 1956-1, 1960-1, 1964-1, 1968-1 31 Virgilijus Alekna LTU 1996-5, 2000-1, 2004-1, 2008-3,
2012-4
24 Martin Sheridan USA 1904-1, 1906-1, 1908-1
Most Finals
5 Alekna
4 Adolfo Consolini ITA 1948-1, 1952-2, 1956-6, 1960-17 Ferenc Klics HUN 1948-5, 1952-5, 1956-7, 1960-10 Oerter
Ludvík Daněk TCH (CZE) 1964-2, 1968-3, 1972-1, 1976-9 Jay Silvester USA 1964-4, 1968-5, 1972-2, 1976-8 Jürgen Schult GDR/GER 1988-1, 1992-2, 1996-6, 2000-8
Most Appearances
5 Alekna
Aleksander Tammert EST 1996-25Q, 2000-9, 2004-3, 2008-12, 2012-27Q
4 André Tison FRA 1906-5, 1908-8, 1912-30, 1920-11 Elmer Niklander FIN 1908-AC, 1912-4, 1920-1, 1924-7 Consolini Klics Oerter Daněk Silvester Schult
Vaclavas Kidykas URS/EUN/LTU 1988-13Q, 1992-15Q, 1996-8, 2000- 30Q
Lars Riedel GER 1992-14Q, 1996-1, 2000-2, 2004-7 Dragan Mustapić BIH/CRO 1992-29Q, 1996-27Q, 2000-34Q,
2004-34Q
St. Louis, 29 Aug 1904
1, John Flanagan USA 51.23OR
2, John DeWitt USA 50.265 3, Ralph Rose USA 45.73 4, Charles Chadwick USA 42.785 5, James Mitchel USA
6, Albert Johnson USA
(Competitors: 6; Countries: 1)
Alfred Plaw, who had beaten Flanagan in the US Championships, was missing from the competition but defending champion Flanagan’s opposition was thought to be fierce enough. Rose had reputedly thrown over 58m in training, while De Witt had looked impressive in practice. Flanagan settled things early, producing 51.23 in the first round. The stocky (1.78/86kg) Irish-American backed up his winning effort with another throw of 50.90. Behind him the athletic (1.83/95kg) De Witt was a solid second with 50.26, while Rose’s cumbersome technique was shown up as he threw only 45.73 with a single turn as opposed to the two turns used by the first two men.
Athens, 1906
Not held
London, 14 Jul 1908
Qualifying (in three sections)
1, (C1) John Flanagan USA 51.92OR 50.35
2, (C3) Matt McGrath USA 51.18 51.18
3, (A3) “Con” Walsh CAN 48.50 48.50
4, (B2) Tom Nicolson GBR 48.09 48.09
5, (A4) Lee Talbott USA 47.86 47.86
6, (B3) “Bill” Horr USA 46.94 46.94
7, (C2) Simon Gillis USA 45.58 45.58
8, (A1) Eric Lemming SWE 43.05 43.05 (Competitors: 18; Countries: 8; Finalists: 3)
The two top throwers – Flanagan and McGrath – were seeded in the same qualifying group, which McGrath won 51.18 to 50.35. The other pools were won by Walsh and Nicolson. Both Nicolson and Talbott, who did not qualify, were both well capable of throwing beyond 50m, which indicates the harshness of the qualifying system. Like Sheridan in the discus, Flanagan was able to regroup after the qualifying round, and won with his sixth round throw, to become the first man to win three consecutive Olympic titles over an eight-year period.
Stockholm, 14 Jul 1912
1, Matt McGrath USA 54.74OR
2, Duncan Gillis CAN 48.39 3, Clarence Childs USA 48.17 4, Robert Olsson SWE 46.50 5, Carl-Johan Lind SWE 45.61 6, Denis Carey GBR 43.78 7, Nils Linde SWE 43.32 8, Carl Jahnzon SWE 42.58
(Competitors: 15; Countries: 4; Finalists: 3)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 McGrath 54.41 54.23 54.28 52.83 53.90 54.74 Gillis 48.39 46.17 48.39 Injured Childs 48.17 48.17 x x x x Olsson 46.50 39.56 46.50 x Lind 45.61 45.06 x 45.61 Carey 43.78 38.99 43.78 x
This was the era of McGrath and Pat Ryan (both USA). Between them they won all but two US titles between 1908 and 1922. Ryan did not compete in Stockholm, so the way was clear for McGrath, who domi- nated the event. Every one of his six throws was well in advance of the opposition, with his six casts averaging beyond 54m, more than 5m in advance of the next best thrower. Simon Gillis, who had injured him- self in training, sprained his ankle on his third throw and had to be car- ried off.
Antwerp, 19 Aug 1920
Qualifying (18 Aug)
1, Pat Ryan USA 52.875 52.830
2, Carl-Johan Lind SWE 48.43 48.000
3, Basil Bennet USA 48.25 48.250
4, Malcolm Svensson SWE 47.29 47.290
5, Matt McGrath USA 46.67 46.670
6, Tom Nicolson GBR 45.70 45.700
7, Nils Linde SWE 44.885
8, James McEachern USA 44.700
(Competitors: 12; Countries: 5; Finalists: 6)
Ryan, who had set the world record of 57.77 a year before World War I, had won the US title just ahead of McGrath (51.62 to 50.68). The two were expected to battle for the gold medal, but McGrath suffered a knee injury and had to retire after two throws in the qualifying stage. The big (1.88/113kg) Ryan had an easy victory, having two throws more than 4m beyond his nearest rival. A nice touch was added when Nicholson arrived late for the competition, missing the qualifying rounds, and several of his opponents lobbied successfully for him to be allowed to compete in the final.
Paris, 10 Jul 1924
Qualifying
1, Fred Tootell USA 53.295 50.600
2, Matt McGrath USA 50.84 47.055
3, Malcolm Nokes GBR 48.875 48.875
4, Erik Eriksson FIN 48.74 47.975
5, Ossian Skiöld SWE 45.285 45.075
6, James McEachern USA 45.225 44.935
7, Carl-Johan Lind SWE 44.785 8, John Murdock CAN 42.48
(Competitors: 15; Countries: 10; Finalists: 12)
Tootell and McGrath dominated the event in 1924, producing eight of the top 10 marks of the season. The third string American was Jack Merchant, who had competed in the long jump in Antwerp, but here he was nearly 9m below his best with 41.455 for ninth place. Tootell had won the US Trials with his last throw, but in the Olympics settled things early, leading the qualifiers with 50.60, and then hurling the ball and chain out to 53.295. The first native born American to win the Olympic title won by more than 2m from the 45 year-old McGrath, who moved up from fourth in the final to take his third medal in 16 years.
Amsterdam, 30 Jul 1928
1,(A10) Pat O’Callaghan IRL 51.39
2,(A12) Ossian Skiöld SWE 51.29 3, (B7) Edmund Black USA 49.03 4, (B3) Armando Poggioli ITA 48.37
5,(B10) Donald Gwinn USA 47.15
6, (B9) Frank Connor USA 46.75
7, (A1) Federico Kleger ARG 46.60 8, (A9) Ricardo Bayer CHI 46.34
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6
O’Callaghan ? 47.49 ? ? 51.39 ?
Skiöld 48.50 50e 51.29 50e 51.20 x
Black 49.03 ? x 45e 46e x
Poggioli 46.96 ? ? 45e 48.37
Connor 46.75 45e 45e
The pre-Olympic lists were topped by Connor, O’Callaghan and Skiöld. However, Connor placed only fourth in the US Trials, and was considered the least likely of the three to win. O’Callaghan was untest- ed, having improved more than 5m in 1928, so Skiöld, who had led the world in 1926 and 1927, was the favourite. After the qualifying stage, Connor lagged in sixth with 46.75, which would be his best throw of the day, while O’Callaghan was third with 47.49. Way ahead was Skiöld with 51.29, leading from Black’s 49.03. It was only in the penul- timate round that O’Callaghan took the lead, with 51.39, to win Ireland’s first Olympic gold medal. However five of the previous six hammer titles had gone to Irish-born athletes. The unfortunate Skiöld thus lost the gold by just 10cm.
Los Angeles, 1 Aug 1932
1, (8) Pat O’Callaghan IRL 53.92 2, (1) “Ville” Pörhölä FIN 52.27 3, (3) Peter Zaremba USA 50.33 4, (2) Ossian Skiöld SWE 49.25 5, (13) Grant McDougall USA 49.12 6, (12) Federico Kleger ARG 48.33 7, (9) Gunnar Jansson SWE 47.79 8, (4) Armando Poggioli ITA 46.90
(Competitors: 14; Countries: 9; Finalists: 10)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 O’Callaghan 47.76 52.21 50.87 51.81 51.85 53.92 Pörhölä 51.27 52.27 x x 50.86 51.76 Zaremba 50.33 47.67 50.16 x x x Skiöld 49.25 47.95 48.39 47.84 48.08 48.75 McDougall 48.36 49.02 x 49.12 x 48.79 Kleger 42.57 45.77 48.33 x x 47.79 Jansson 47.33 x 47.79 Poggioli 44.25 45.47 46.90
O’Callaghan and Pörhölä had dominated the world hammer scene in 1931, with four throws each over 53m. Though the Irishman led the world before the Olympics, his season’s best was only 52.27. In the event, 52m was attainable by only the two top men from the previous year. Pörhölä, who had dabbled in the event in 1922 before taking it up seriously in 1929, led with his opener of 51.27, which he improved by a metre in the next round. O’Callaghan threw 52.21 in the second round, and of the rest only Zaremba was able to exceed 50m.
O’Callaghan was still second as he came up for his last throw, which F. A. M. Webester described in Great moments in Athletics as follows: “The spikes of Dr Pat’s left boot drove hard into the cinders, his left leg stiffened to form the immovable fulcrum for the throw, his arms swept round from low right to high left and the hammer departed, flying up and out over his left shoulder in a perfect arc ... the missile soared high above the flags marking the throws of the other competitors.”
Berlin, 3 Aug 1936
1, Karl Hein GER 56.49OR
2, Erwin Blask GER 55.04 3, Fred Warngård SWE 54.83 4, Gustaf Koutonen FIN 51.90 5, William Rowe USA 51.66 6, Donald Favor USA 51.01 7, Bernhard Greulich GER 50.61 8, Koit Annamaa EST 50.46
(Competitors: 27; Countries: 16; Finalists: 17)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hein 52.13 52.44 x 54.70 54.85 56.49 Blask 52.55 55.04 x 54.10 54.48 x Warngård 52.05 52.98 54.03 54.83 53.30 50.61 Koutonen x 50.01 51.90 49.11 49.91 x Rowe 51.53 51.04 49.29 50.32 51.66 x Favor 50.78 50.02 51.01 48.48 50.33 47.71 Greulich 50.19 x 50.61 Annamaa 48.77 49.54 50.46
O’Callaghan was a member of an athletic association in Ireland which was not the IAAF-recognised federation for that country, and conse- quently he could not defend his title. The following year he threw 59.56 to give an idea of his capabilities. Meanwhile Germany had developed two excellent throwers in the two years leading up to Berlin – Blask and Hein. Between them, they beat the German record seven times, improving the national record more than 5m to 54.29. The world list was topped by Henry Dreyer (54.94), but he could only reach 50.42 for ninth place, and the battle for the medals was between the two Germans, and Fred Warngård. After the three had throws just beyond 52 (and the best of anyone else that day), Blask threw 55.04, which would survive as a German record until the final round. By then, Hein was in second placed, having caught the Swede’s 54.83 with 54.85 in the fifth round. Hein then reached 56.49, the season’s best throw, with his final effort.
London, 31 Jul 1948
1, (9) Imre Németh HUN 56.07 2, (7) Ivan Gubijan SRB YUG 54.27 3, (1) Robert Bennett USA 53.73 4, (5) Samuel Felton USA 53.66 5, (12) Lauri Tamminen FIN 53.08 6, (4) Bo Ericson SWE 52.98 7, (11) Teseo Taddia ITA 51.74 8, (10) Einar Söderqvist SWE 51.48
(Competitors: 25; Countries: 17; Finalists: 13)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6
Németh 53.59 55.44 54.94 50.05 x 56.07
Gubijan x x 54.27 51.76 54.22 x
Bennett 52.53 51.11 52.08 53.73 51.21 49.81 Ericson 52.98 52.20 51.88 52.95 52.98 50.34
The path to gold for Imre Németh was made easier by the suspension of German throwers, principally Karl Storch and reigning champion Karl Hein, who ended the season as the number two and three perform- ers after the Hungarian. Németh finished the year with 10 of the 11 best throws, and here had three throws beyond the best of runner-up Gubijan. Németh saved his best till last, and his 56.07 ensured the first male Hungarian athletics gold in 48 years.
Helsinki, 24 Jul 1952
1, (7) József Csermák HUN 60.34WR
2, (18) Karl Storch GER/FRG 58.86 3, (1) Imre Németh HUN 57.74 4, (6) Jiří Dadák CZE TCH 56.81 5, (2) Nikolay RedkinUKR URS 56.55 6, (3) Karl Wolf GER/FRG 56.49 7, (16) Sverre Strandli NOR 56.36
8, (19) Georgiy DybenkoUKR URS 55.03
(Competitors: 33; Countries: 18; Finalists: 25)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 Csermák 58.45 57.28 60.34 49.68 x x Storch x 56.45 58.18 58.86 57.80 58.34 Németh 54.92 55.05 56.82 54.95 57.74 56.30 Dadák 54.00 56.81 x 51.72 55.61 54.04 Redkin 53.08 56.55 52.30 53.55 x 54.16 Wolf 56.49 54.98 53.79 53.60 x 56.41
Series 1 2 3 Strandli 56.36 53.77 55.07
Dybenko 55.03 x 53.68
Németh, Strandl and Storch were the popular picks for gold, but the qualifying round was led by Csermák, who threw 57.20 for an Olympic record, leading 24 others past the ridiculously low standard of 49.00.
Csermák, a fiery competitor, made his intentions clear with another Olympic record, 58.45, in round 1 of the final. The stocky (1.70/89kg) Hungarian showed great quickness in the circle and exploded in the third round with a world record 60.34. Storch threw a good 58.18 to move ahead of Németh’s 56.82. Strandl surprisingly missed the cut for three more throws, edged out by the 40 year-old Wolf. The Norwegian later in 1952 became the first man to throw over 200 feet (60.96). Storch produced two more 58m+ throws, the best being 58.86 in round 4, while Németh improved his 1cm margin over Dadák to almost a metre with his fifth-round 57.74. Csermák became the youngest ever winner of the Olympic hammer title at 20 years 161 days.
Melbourne, 24 Nov 1956
1, (15) Hal Connolly USA 63.19OR
2, (14) Mikhail Krivonosov BLR URS 63.03 3, (1) Anatoliy SamotsvetovRUSURS 62.56 4, (12) Albert Hall USA 61.96 5, (8) József Csermák HUN 60.70 6, (6) Krešo RačićCRO YUG 60.36 7, (7) Dmitriy YegorovUKR URS 60.22 8, (2) Sverre Strandli NOR 59.21
(Competitors: 22; Countries: 14; Finalists: 15)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 Connolly x 60.92 62.65 61.76 63.19 x Krivonosov 60.59 63.00 63.03 x x x Samotsvetov 62.10 58.13 61.94 60.22 59.20 62.56 Hall 57.76 61.83 x 61.58 x 61.96 Csérmák 58.27 58.43 60.70 x 59.10 x Račić 57.99 60.36 x x 58.07 55.09 Yegorov 60.22 x x Strandli 58.62 58.49 59.21
Krivonosov, an athletic (1.89/90kg) Belarusian had broken the world record with 63.34 in winning the 1954 European title, and made six improvements to 67.32 in October 1956. Connolly then threw 68.54 three weeks before the Melbourne final. Their dominance was dented briefly by Clifford Blair, who threw an unratified 65.95, before curi- ously being ejected from the US team by the US Olympic committee for persistently refusing to stop writing newspaper articles!
The Olympic record survived the qualifying round, led by Samotsvetov (59.53). However, it fell quickly to the Russian’s 62.10 in the opening round of the final. Hall broke into a Soviet top three in the next round with 61.83, as Krivonosov took over the lead with 63.00. Connolly – whose left arm was four inches shorter than his right – pro- duced a foul of over 65m in the first round, moved into third in round 3 with 62.65 and then took over the lead with his fifth-round 63.19. Samotsvetov edged Hall 62.56 to 61.96 in the final round. Connolly won both the gold and a wife. He married Czech discus winner Olga Fikotová early in 1957, after meeting her in Melbourne.
Rome, 3 Sep 1960
1, (14) Vasiliy Rudenkov RUS URS 67.10OR
2, (2) Gyula Zsivótzky HUN 65.79
3, (1) Tadeusz Rut POL 65.64 4, (11) John Lawlor IRL 64.95 5, (13) Olgierd Ciepły POL 64.57 6, (4) Zvonko Bezjak SRB YUG 64.21
7, (15) Anatoliy Samotsvetov RUS URS 63.60 8, (6) Hal Connolly USA 63.59
(Competitors: 28; Countries: 19; Finalists: 15)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rudenkov 65.60 64.98 67.10 66.62 64.58 66.23 Zsivótzky 60.83 63.83 64.87 65.79 x 65.11 Rut 64.51 65.64 64.95 x 64.85 63.54 Lawlor x 62.59 64.09 64.95 x x Ciepły 60.03 64.07 62.27 64.57 64.48 62.06 Bezjak 61.96 64.21 63.54 63.95 62.86 x Samotsvetov x 63.60 x Connolly 63.05 62.57 63.59
Connolly had twice improved his world record in the years between Melbourne and Rome, with the first 70m throw (70.33) just a month earlier in California. The number one thrower of 1959, Rudenkov, led the qualifiers with an Olympic record of 67.03, with 1952 champion Csermák the most prominent non-qualifier.
Rudenkov, who had been reaching massive (73m+) distances in training in Rome, took the lead in round 1 of the final with 65.60, ahead of European Champion Rut (64.51). The Pole moved into a short-lived lead with his next throw of 65.64, to which Rudenkov responded with 67.10 in round 3. Zsivótzky jumped from sixth to third with his third throw of 64.87, with Lawlor the final man to make the cut-off, his 64.09 good enough to edge veterans Samotsvetov (63.60) and Connolly (63.59). At the last moment Connolly tried to make modifi- cations to his technique, and this, allied with the tension of the compe- tition, was enough to eliminate him. Rudenkov kept up the pressure and ended up with three throws beyond the best of the statuesque (1.90/90kg) Zsivótzky, who reached 65.79 in round 4.
Tokyo, 18 Oct 1964
1, (3) Romuald Klim BLR URS 69.74OR
2, (7) Gyula Zsivótzky HUN 69.09
3, (13) Uwe Beyer GER/FRG 68.09 4, (1) Yuriy Nikulin RUS URS 67.69 5, (15) Yuriy Bakarinov RUS URS 66.72
6, (8) Hal Connolly USA 66.65 7, (10) Ed Burke USA 65.66 8, (14) Olgierd Ciepły POL 64.83
(Competitors: 24; Countries: 14; Finalists: 15)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 Klim 67.19 64.64 68.59 69.74 68.81 68.17 Zsivótzky 69.09 66.20 68.47 67.41 67.85 67.32 Beyer 68.09 65.64 62.91 x 65.71 x Nikulin 67.08 67.01 67.69 x x 65.61 Bakarinov 65.91 66.50 65.39 65.25 66.72 x Connolly x 62.95 66.65 x 64.73 x Burke 65.66 65.06 62.68 Ciepły 64.83 x x
While a number of good throwers failed to qualify, all those favoured got through. Heinrich Thun (AUT) – the third ranked thrower from 1963 – had a poor final, throwing just 62.76 after slipping in the rain- drenched circle. Rome silver medallist, the warrior-faced Zsivótzky, took the lead in the first round, and held it from Klim (68.59) and the left-handed Beyer (68.09). The athletic (1.91/95kg) Beyer improved his best by over 3m, and held off Yuriy Nikulin’s third round 67.69 for the bronze medal. Connolly again performed slightly below expecta- tions, only scraping into the final six with his third round throw, which shunted Ed Burke down to seventh. Klim took over in round 4, reach- ing the Olympic record distance of 69.74 to edge Zsivótzky for the gold. For the second time in a row, a Belarusian had won gold. Klim’s legacy, in a country which 30 years later continues to produce excellent hammer throwers is marked by the most important annual domestic hammer competition, which bears his name.
Mexico City, 17 Oct 1968
1, (13) Gyula Zsivótzky HUN 73.36OR
2, (12) Romuald Klim BLR URS 73.28 3, (1) Lázár Lovász HUN 69.78
4, (2) Takeo Sugawara JPN 69.78
5, (9) Sándor Eckschmidt HUN 69.46 6, (7) Gennadiy KondrashovRUS URS 69.08 7, (10) Reinhard Theimer GDR 68.84
8, (11) Helmut Baumann GDR 68.26
(Competitors: 22; Countries: 12; Finalists: 13)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 Zsivótzky 72.26 72.46 72.54 x 73.36 72.22 Klim 72.24 68.96 72.82 73.28 71.16 71.64 Lovász 64.76 x 69.78 x 69.38 x Sugawara 67.24 68.12 x 69.06 69.78 61.40 Eckschmidt 67.84 68.50 69.46 x 67.64 68.08 Kondrashov 69.08 67.00 68.64 67.10 67.98 67.70 Theimer 68.82 x 66.16 68.84 67.86 63.54 Baumann 65.94 66.98 68.26 x 63.76 x
Klim won the European title in 1966, and appeared to have established supremacy over Zsivótzky, although the Hungarian had improved his 1965 world record of 73.74 by 2cm a month before the Games. Klim waited till he arrived in Mexico to show his best form, when he threw 73.54. Zsivótzky responded by leading the qualifying round with an Olympic record 72.60, more than 3m ahead of the field, with Beyer (65.02), American four-time Olympians Hall (65.70) and Connolly (65.00) failing to make the 66.00 limit.
No-one reached 70m in the final until Klim went 3m clear of the field with his Olympic record 72.24. He was surpassed immediately by Zsivótzky (72.26). The mighty Magyar reached 72.46 and 72.54 in the next two rounds, only to be headed by Klim’s third round 72.82. Klim lengthened his lead with a fourth round 73.28, and it appeared that the status quo was being upheld. But Zsivótzky’s confidence was high. One week before the Games he had thrown 75.30 in practice, and had been motivated by former champion Csermák. His fifth throw meas- ured 73.36, edging Klim by just 8cm. Lovász made it a particularly good day for Hungary by edging Sugawara for bronze on the basis of a better second best throw.
Munich, 7 Sep 1972
1, (8) Anatoliy BondarchukUKRURS 75.50OR
2, (18) Jochen Sachse GDR 74.96 3, (20) Vasiliy Khmelevskiy BLR URS 74.04 4, (11) Uwe Beyer FRG 71.52 5 (16) Gyula Zsivótzky HUN 71.38 6, (15) Sándor Eckschmidt HUN 71.20 7, (3) Edwin Klein FRG 71.14 8, (5) Shigenobu Murofushi JPN 70.88
(Competitors: 31; Countries: 17; Finalists: 20)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bondarchuk 75.50 72.62 71.76 73.78 73.50 72.90 Sachse 71.54 x 73.70 71.26 x 74.96 Khmelevskiy 68.82 71.62 74.04 68.16 x x Beyer 70.32 71.52 x 68.98 69.90 x Zsivótzky 71.38 70.44 70.48 x 70.66 70.20 Eckschmidt 71.20 x 67.26 69.24 67.90 68.86 Klein 71.14 x x 69.70 70.26 x Murofushi 69.36 70.88 70.32 65.70 69.08 68.54
Bondarchuk had been the world’s best in two of the previous three sea- sons, and lived up to his billing, leading the 20 qualifiers over 66m with a throw of 72.88. Zsivótzky was next best on 71.20.
Edwin Klein, who would later become a successful novelist in his home country, led the final with 71.14 until Bondarchuk stepped into the circle for his first throw. The compact (1.83/111kg) Ukrainian immediately stamped his authority on the competition with an Olympic record 75.50. The first round finished with Sachse in second place with 71.54, a position he exchanged with Khemelevskiy three times before finally winning silver with his final throw of 74.96. Khemelevskiy was the only other thrower over 72m with 74.04.
Montreal, 28 Jul 1976
1, (7) Yuriy Sedykh RUS URS 77.52OR
2, (10) Aleksey SpiridonovRUS URS 76.08 3, (6) Anatoliy BondarchukUKRURS 75.48 4, (12) Karl-Hans Riehm FRG 75.46 5, (8) Walter Schmidt FRG 74.72 6, (5) Jochen Sachse GDR 74.30 7, (1) Chris Black GBR 73.18 8, (11) Edwin Klein FRG 71.34
(Competitors: 20; Countries: 13; Finalists: 12)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 Sedykh 75.64 77.52 x x 75.58 76.40 Spiridonov 75.74 73.94 75.28 75.60 x 76.08 Bondarchuk 75.48 x 74.64 74.16 x 75.46 Riehm 75.00 73.08 x 75.46 75.42 74.62 Schmidt 72.58 74.72 74.36 73.52 74.72 72.42 Sachse 71.90 72.84 72.80 73.14 74.30 73.70 Black 70.56 72.38 73.18 x 69.54 x Klein 68.14 70.52 70.32 70.36 69.76 71.34
There were six prospective medal winners – all with bests further than 76m – making this a very open event. Sedykh and Riehm were consid- ered the best candidates. Riehm led the qualifying with 74.46, but by the time he had thrown 75.00 in the first round of the final, all the medals were settled. Ahead of him in order of throwing were the three Soviets; Bondarchuk (75.48), Sedykh (75.64), and Spiridonov (75.74). In the next round the 21 year-old Sedykh exhibited enormous power and speed to reach 77.52. Spiridonov responded well, with three throws over 75m, but Sedykh was never in danger of being beaten. Bondarchuk provided the most exciting moment of the event when his hammer flew high and wide off to the left, bouncing on the track and fortunately missing officials and the 5000m heat runners.
Moscow, 31 Jul 1980
1, (1) Yuriy Sedykh RUS URS 81.80WR
2, (3) Sergey Litvinov RUS URS 80.64 3, (2) Jüri Tamm EST URS 78.96 4, (6) Roland Steuk GDR 77.54 5, (10) Detlef Gerstenberg GDR 74.60 6, (11) Emanouil Dyulgerov BUL 74.04
7, (4) Giampaolo Urlando ITA 73.90 8, (5) Ireneusz Golda POL 73.74
(Competitors: 17; Countries: 12; Finalists: 12)
Series 1 2 3 4 5 6 Sedykh 81.80 81.46 79.68 x 80.98 80.70 Litvinov 80.64 x x x x x Tamm 77.84 78.96 77.92 77.26 x 76.86 Steuk 74.34 76.00 75.58 77.26 77.54 x Gerstenberg 73.64 74.60 73.98 x x 73.40 Dulgnerov 70.14 71.34 71.82 71.34 74.04 x Urlando 73.60 73.90 73.18 73.30 x x Golda 73.38 73.74 x x x x
The boycott again interfered with what would have been a great duel. Karl-Hans Riehm was undefeated in 1980 and threw 80.80 in Germany the day before the Olympic final. Both Litvinov (81.66) and Sedykh