EUGENE, ORE.—Camryn Rogers’ handshake isn’t just firm, it’s so firm it feels like she could break bones without trying hard. So it’s a bit funny to hear such a powerful hammer thrower call herself a gushing “fangirl.”
Rogers was the youngest competitor in the Olympic hammer final and made Canadian history with her fifth-place finish. She is back competing against the world’s best at the world athletics championships, though not against world record holder and three-time Olympic champion Anita Wlodarczyk, of Poland, who is out with an injury sustained while sprinting after and apprehending a thief who was trying to break into her car.
But hammer is the only field event that has never been included in the Diamond League and, not surprisingly, it’s a sore point. Being left out means throwers have fewer opportunities to compete, to raise their event’s profile and to pick up the sponsors needed to fund a career.Athletes and throwing coaches have been told the exclusion is for safety reasons or because of a desire to limit the number of events but, really, they’re pretty sure it’s about the grass.
These world championships, the first to be held in the U.S., are being billed as a crucial opportunity to raise the profile of track and field in the world’s biggest sports market. There are high hopes among organizers, athletes and fans that these 10 days could be the start of a sport revival with the 2024 Paris and 2028 Los Angeles Olympics coming up.
Really? Is there anyone who cares about this?
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Source: CP24 - 🏆 30. / 67 Read more »