Men's Field Events Preview for the World Athletics Championships in Budapest: Titans Set to Clash
As the world gears up for the upcoming World Athletics Championships in Budapest, the focus is now turning towards the Men's field events. With an electrifying blend of talent, skill, and sheer will, these events are set to captivate audiences around the globe.
Men’s long jump:
Miltiadis Tentoglou will be looking to win the first world outdoor gold medal of his career, the only title missing in his collection, which includes the Olympic gold medal in Tokyo 2021, two European outdoor gold medals in Berlin 2018 and Munich 2022, three European indoor in Glasgow 2019, Torun 2021 and Istanbul 2023, the world indoor gold medal in Belgrade 2022. During the 2023 outdoor the Greek jumper took wins at the Paris Diamond League meeting with 8.13m, at the European Team Championships in Chorzow with 8.34m, at the Greek Championships in Volos with his seasonal best of 8.38m and at the Continental Tour meeting in Szekesfehrvar with 8.29m.
Simon Ehammer opted to compete in the long jump and not in the decathlon. Ehammer won in Oslo with his seasonal best of 8.32m becoming the first Swiss athlete in history to win a Diamond League competition. Ehammer leapt to 8.45m at the Hypo Meeting in Goetzis setting the Swiss record and the world all-time long jump best performance for a decathlon competition.
Jianan Wang from China took a surprising world title in Eugene with 8.36m beating Tentoglou. Wang also won the world bronze medal on home soil in Beijing 2015.
Indian long jumpers Jeswin Aldrin and Sreeshankar take the top two positions of the world seasonal list with 8.42m and 8.41m. Aldrin took the win at the Citius meeting in Bern with 8.09m beating Ehammer. Sreeshanskar jumped 8.41m at the Indian Championships and won the silver medal at the Asian Championships in Bangkok with 8.37m with a headwind of -1.1 m/s.
Another Asian jumper with a great potential is Yu Tang Lin from Taipei, who won the continental outdoor gold medal with 8.40m in Bangkok.
The Jamaican team will be represented by Wayde Pinnock and Tajay Gayle. Pinnock set a seasonal best of 8.37m at the South Eastern Conference in Baton Rouge and the Jamaican Championships in Kingston with 8.32m and finished second at the NCAA Championships with 8.15m in Austin.
Gayle won the world outdoor gold medal with the national record of 8.69m in Doha 2019. The Jamaican jumper finished second at the National Championships with his seasonal best of 8.27m and finished second in Szekesfehrvar with 8.24m.
Marquis Dendy will be looking to win his first world outdoor medal after finishing in the top-three at the World Indoor Championships (gold in Portland 2016 and two bronze medals in Birmingham 2018 and Belgrade 2022). Dendy won the US title in Eugene with 8.14m.
Italian rising star Mattia Furlani came to the fore last year when he won two European under 18 gold medals in the long jump with an Italian under 18 record of 8.04m and in the high jump with 2.15m.
Last May Furlani leapt to a wind-assisted 8.44m (+2.2 m/s) at the Memorial Giulio Ottolia in Savona. It would have been the world under 20 record if the wind had not been just above the legal limit of +2.0 m/s. Furlani produced the longest mark by an under 20 long jumper in any conditions ahead of Kareem Streete Thompson (8.40m with a wind of +3.2 m/s in 1991) and US legend Carl Lewis (8.35m with +2.2 m/s in 1980).
Furlani went on to win his first Continental Tour Gold competition in Hengelo with 8.24m improving Howe’s Italian under 20 record set at the World Under 20 Championships in Grosseto in 2004. At the end of June he contributed to the triumph of the Italian team at the European Team Championships in Silesia with his second place with 7.97m behind Olympic champion Miltiadis Tentoglou. Last week Furlani won the European under 20 gold medal in Jerusalem with 8.23m.
The other top athletes to watch are Olympic bronze medallist Maykel Massò, who jumped 8.36m in L’Habana last May, and Arnovis Dalmero from Colombia, who improved his PB to 8.29m in Sao Paulo in 2023.
Men’s triple jump:
Jamaican 18-year-old Jaydon Hibbert is aiming to add the world senior gold medal to his win at the World Under 20 Championships in Cali with 17.27m.
This year Hibbert improved his PB to 17.87m at the South Eastern Conference Championships in Baton Rouge and won the NCAA indoor title with 17.54m in Albuquerque and the NCAA outdoor title in Austin with 17.56m, the Jamaican outdoor title in Kingston with 17.68m. He finished second on his debut on the Diamond League circuit in Monaco with 17.66m.
Defending champion Pedro Pablo Pichardo from Portugal will chase his sixth major international title after winning gold medals at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021 with 17.95m, at the World Championships in Eugene with 17.98m, at the European Championships in Munich with 17.50m, at the past two editions of the European Indoor Championships in Torun 2021 with 17.30m and Istanbul 2023 with 17.60m. The Portuguese jumper took the win in the Diamond League meeting in Doha with a wind-assisted 17.91m in his only competition of the season.
Fabrice Zango became the first athlete from Burkina Faso to reach the podium in the history of the World Championships when he won the bronze medal with 17.66m in Doha 2019. The African jumper went on to win the bronze medal at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021 with 17.47m and the silver medal at the World Championships in Eugene with 17.55m. Zango performed very well this outdoor season. He won the Diamond League meeting in Monaco with 17.70m and finished second in Doha with 17.81m and in Florence with 17.68m.
Lazaro Martinez from Cuba will be aiming to win another world medal after claiming two world under 20 gold medals in Eugene 2014 and in Bydgoszcz 2016 and the world indoor title with 17.64 in Belgrade 2022.
China’s Yaming Zhu is seeking his third major medal after winning the Olympic silver in Tokyo with 17.57m and the world bronze medal with 17.31m at the World Championships in Eugene.
The Italian team will be formed by Emmanuel Ihemeje, three-time NCAA champion and fifth at the World Championships in Eugene, and Tobia Bocchi, fourth at the European Championships in Munich. Ihemeje and Bocchi jumped 17.29m and 17.26m respectively this season.
Mohamed Triki from Algeria, who finished fifth at the Olympic Games in Tokyo with 17.43m, recently showed his good form by finishing third 17.32m in Monaco.
The other top names in the field are Praveen Chitraveel from India, who improved his PB to 17.37m this year, Donald Scott, winner at the US Championships in Eugene with 17.22m, Jean Marc Pontvianne from France, bronze medallist at the European Championships in Munich 2022 with 16.94m, and Almir Dos Santos from Brazil, winner at the South American Championships with 17.24m this year.
Men’s High jump:
Qatari high jump legend Mutaz Barshim is seeking his fourth consecutive world gold medal after winning in London 2017 with 2.35m, Doha 2019 with 2.37m and Eugene 2022 with 2.37m. This year Barshim won a world-class competition at the Diamond League meeting in Chorzow setting a world seasonal best of 2.36m and finished second with 2.33m in London.
Barshim shared the Olympic gold medal with his friend Gianmarco Tamberi, who is aiming to win his first world championships medal after finishing fourth at last year’s edition in Eugene with 2.33m. Tamberi cleared 2.37m when he won the Olympic gold medal, two European outdoor medals in Amsterdam 2016 and Munich 2022, the world indoor title in Portland 2016 and the European indoor gold title in Glasgow 2019 and two Diamond Trophies in 2021 and 2022, but the world outdoor gold medal is the only title missing in his cabinet. Tamberi started his outdoor season with a win at the European Team Championships in Chorzow with 2.29m beating Thomas Carmoy on countback and returned to the Polish venue a few weeks later to finish second behind Barshim with a seasonal best of 2.34m.
Ju’Vaughn Harrison won three Diamond League competitions this year in Doha with 2.32m, Florence with 2.32m and Chorzow with 2.35m. Harrison won titles at the NCAA indoor and outdoor Championships, at the US Championships in the long jump and high jump in 2021 and was beaten by Tamberi on countback with 2.34m in last year’s edition of the Diamond League final in Zurich.
Sanghyeok Woo from South Korea is looking to return to the podium at a major championship after winning the world indoor gold medal in Belgrade with 2.34m and the world outdoor silver medal with 2.35m. Woo cleared a seasonal best of 2.33m at the National Championships and finished second at the Diamond League meetings in Doha with 2.27m and Florence with 2.30m.
Tobias Potye from Germany won the silver medal at the European Championships in Munich and continued his progress by improving his PB to 2.34m at the Diamond League meeting in Chorzow.
Another solid performer at major championships is Hamish Kerr from New Zealand, who shared the world indoor bronze medal at the World Indoor Championships. Kerr set his seasonal best of 2.31m in Essen and won two competitions held in rainy conditions in Stockolm with 2.24m and in Heilbronn with 2.28m.
Men’s pole vault:
Armand Duplantis will chase his second consecutive world outdoor title one year after his triumph in Eugene, where he broke his own world record with 6.21m. The Swedish star improved this record for the sixth time in his career to 6.22m in Clermont Ferrand last February. Duplantis won the Olympic gold medal in Tokyo with 6.02m beating Chris Nilsen. During his career he also won the European Indoor title in Torun 2021, the World Indoor gold medal in Belgrade 2022 with a world record of 6.20 and two European outdoor gold medals in Berlin 2018 with 6.05m and Munich 2022 with a championships record of 6.06m.
Duplantis cleared the 6 metres barrier five times this outdoor season in Hengelo with 6.11m, Oslo with 6.01m, Ostrava with 6.12m, Stockolm with 6.05m, Chorzow with 6.01m. He had to settle with fourth place in the Monaco Diamond League meeting in his final competition before the World Championships in Budapest.
Christopher Nilsen won two silver medals at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021 with 5.97m and at the World Championships in Eugene with 5.94m. Nilsen showed his consistency by clearing a seasonal best of 5.92m twice in Bydgoszcz and in the Monaco Diamond League meeting. He also won the US title with 5.91 in Eugene and finished second in Oslo with 5.91m. The US team will be also represented by Zach McWhorter, who finished second at the National Championships with 5.86m in Eugene.
Ernest John Obiena made history last year when he won the bronze medal in Eugene, becoming the first athlete from the Philippines in history to win a medal at this event. Last June Obiena cleared 6.00 metres for the first time in his career at the Bergen Jump Challenge, improving his Asian record by six cm. The pole vaulter recently won the Asian Championships title in Bangkok with 5.91m and finished second in Stockholm with 5.82m, Monaco with 5.82m, third in Oslo with 5.81m and Ostrava with 5.90m.
Double Commonwealth Games champion Kurtis Marshall from Australia finished second to Duplantis in Ostrava with 5.90m and won in Sotteville lès Rouen with 5.95m.
Sondre Guttormsen from Norway enjoyed a solid season winning the gold medal at the European Indoor Championships in Istanbul with 5.80m and the NCAA Indoor title with his lifetime best of 6.00m.
Emmanouil Karalis from Greece won the silver medal at the European Indoor Championships with 5.80m and finished second at the European Team Championships in Chorzow with 5.80m.
Dutch record holder Menno Vlonn won the European Team Championships in Chorzow with 5.85m.
Piotr Lisek returned to his best form by clearing 5.82m in Chorzow last June. Lisek reached the podium at the World Championships three times winning silver in London 2017 and bronze twice in Beijing 2015 and Doha 2019.
Bo Kanda Lita Baehre from Germany won the European silver medal in Munich 2022 and claimed the national title with 5.82m this year.
Claudio Stecchi equalled the Italian indoor record held by his coach Giuseppe Gibilisco with 5.82m in Liévin last February. The 31-year-old Italian vaulter took the win at the Madrid meeting clearing 5.82m again.
The line-up also features Thibaut Collet from France, who cleared 5.81m in Olympia this year, and Ben Broeders from Belgium, national record holder with 5.85m and fifth placer at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade 2022.
Men’s shot put put:
Ryan Crouser won his first world outdoor title in Eugene last year with 22.94m beating his friend and rival Joe Kovacs by just five centimetres. Crouser is aiming to add another gold medal to his collection that also includes two Olympic gold medals in Rio de Janeiro 2016 with 22.52m and Tokyo 2021 with an Olympic record of 23.30m and the Diamond League Trophy with 22.67m in Zurich 2021. Crouser broke his own world record with 23.56m in Los Angeles and was unbeaten in his eight outdoor competitions, including the US Championships in Eugene with 22.86m, three Diamond League competitions in Lausanne with 22.29m, Chorzow with 22.56m and London with 23.07m and two Continental Tour events in Ostrava with 22.63m and Szekesfehrvar with 22.51m.
Kovacs has Hungarian origins and will receive a strong support from his family and friends. The US shot putter won two world titles in Beijing 2015 with 21.93m and in Doha 2019 with 22.91m in one of the greatest men’s shot put competitions of all-time, two Olympic silver medals in Rio de Janeiro 2016 and Tokyo 2022. He became the second best performer of all-time with 23.23m in the 2022 Diamond League final in Zurich.
The US team will be also represented by world bronze medallist Josh Awotunde and Payton Otterdahl, who finished second and third at the US Championships in Eugene with 22.10m and 22.09m respectively.
Tom Walsh from New Zealand won two Olympic bronze medals in Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo and the world title in London. He improved his seasonal best to 22.58m at the London Diamond League meeting in London.
Rajindra Campbell from Jamaica was the major surprise of the season with his national record of 22.22m set in Madrid last July.
Zane Weir, fifth at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, won the European Indoor gold medal in Istanbul with an Italian indoor record of 22.06m and set the fifth best performance in the world this year with his 22.15m at the Memorial Brazzale in Vicenza in his final competition before the World Championships in Budapest, beating his friend and training partner Leonardo Fabbri, who also improved his seasonal best with 21.84m. Fabbri enjoyed a consistent season winning the first Diamond League competition of his career in his home city Florence with 21.73m.
The other top European contenders are Filip Mihaljevic from Croatia and Tomas Stanek from Czech Republic, who finished first and third respectively at the European Championships in Munich. Mihaljevic finished third in Lausanne with 21.42m and fourth in Chorzow with 21.63m. Stanek set his seasonal best of 21.71m in Ostrava.
Men’s discus throw:
Reigning world champion Kristjan Ceh improved his lifetime best to 71.86m beating Olympic champion Daniel Stahl (71.45m) at the Memorial Heino Lipp in the Estonian town of Johvi last June. Ceh became the first athlete to throw beyond the 71 metres barrier three times in the same competition. Stahl produced the best ever mark for a runner-up finish.
Ceh threw three more times over the 70 metres barrier with 70.89m in Doha, with 70.32m in Rabat and 70.54m in Velenje. Last year he won the World Championships in Eugene with 71.13m and five Diamond League, including the Final in Zurich and the European silver medal in Munich.
This year Stahl beat Ceh three times in Turku with 70.38m, in Szekesfehrvar with 68.98m and London with 67.03m and threw over the 70 metres twice in Sollentuna with 70.93m and Karlstad with 70.25m. Stahl leads 17-14 in his head-to-head clashes against Ceh.
Mykolas Alekna from Lithuania is following in the footsteps of his father Virgilius Alekna, who won two world titles in Paris 2003 and Helsinki 2005 and two Olympic Games in Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004. Mykolas won the world silver medal with 69.27m in Eugene and the European title with 69.78m in Munich. This year the Lithuanian thrower improved his lifetime best to 71.00m in Berkeley last April and won the European Under 23 gold medal in Espoo with 68.34m and the Lithuanian title with 69.30m. Martynas Alekna, the other son of Virgilius Alekna, lines up with a PB of 67.23m set last June.
The Lithuanian team also features Andrius Gudzius, who won gold medals at the World Championships in London 2017, at European Championships in Berlin 2018 and the bronze medal at the World Championships in Eugene 2022.
Lukas Weisshaidinger from Austria won two bronze medals at the World Championships in Doha 2019 and at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021. This year the Austrian thrower improved his own national record to 70.68m in Schwechat.
Alex Rose from Samoa improved his national record to 70.39m at the Oklahoma Throws Series Meet. The Samoan thrower finished eight at the World Championships in Eugene and fourth at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Roje Stona leads the strong Jamaican team with his PB of 68.64 set in Baton Rouge. Fredrick Dacres and Traves Smickle also threw over the 68 metres with their seasonal best performances of 68.57m and 68.14m.
The line.up is completed by Matthew Denny from Australia, fourth at the World Championships in Eugene with 67.02m and gold medallist at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 2022, Turner Washington, NCAA champion with 66.32m in Austin last June and son of 1999 world discus throw champion Anthony Washington, Lawrence Okoye from Great Britain, second at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and third at the European Championships in Munich in 2022, Sam Mattis, US champion in Eugene with 65.93m last July, 2016 Olympic champion Christoph Harting and Daniel Jasinski from Germany (66.25m).
Men’s javelin throw:
Jakub Vadlejch from Czech Republic set the world seasonal mark with his seasonal best of 89.51m at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku. Vadlejch also won in Monaco with 85.95m and Ostrava with 81.93m and finished second in Doha with 88.63m and third in Lausanne with 86.13m.
Julian Weber is seeking his first medal at the World Championships one year after winning the European Championships on home soil in Munich with 87.66m. The German thrower took wins in Hengelo with 87.14m, at the German Championships in Kassel with 88.72m, at the European Team Championships in Chorzow with 86.26m, and finished second in Lausanne with 87.03m and Monaco with 84.23m.
Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian athlete to win the Olympic gold medal in Tokyo. Chopra won two Diamond League competitions in Doha with 88.67m and in Lausanne with 87.66m.
Anderson Peters from Grenada will be seeking his third world medal after winning two consecutive world gold medals in Doha 2019 with 86.89m and Eugene 2022 with 90.54m. The Grenadan thrower set a seasonal best of 85.88m at the Diamond League meeting in Doha.
Timothy Herman from Belgium made his breakthrough last May when he broke the national record with 87.35m at the Continental Tour Gold meeting in Nairobi.
Oliver Helander from Finland finished second in the Continental Tour Gold meeting in Nairobi with his seasonal best of 87.32m.
The line-up also features 2012 Olympic champion Keshorn Walcott from Trinidad and Tobago, and Gyory Herczeg from Hungary, who set the European under 20 record with 84.78m and won the European Under 20 gold medal in Jerusalem.
Men’s hammer throw:
Wojciech Nowicki from Poland will chase his first world title in the men’s hammer throw after finishing third three times in Beijing 2015, London 2017 and Doha 2019 and second in Eugene 2022. Nowicki won the Olympic gold medal with 82.52m in Tokyo 2021 and two European titles in Berlin 2018 with 80.12m and Munich 2022 with 82.00m. The Polish athlete set the world seasonal with 81.92m at the Bislett Games in Oslo.
Nowicki will renew his rivalry with his compatriot Pawel Fajdek, who won five world titles in Moscow 2013, Beijing 2015, London 2017, Doha 2019 and Eugene 2022 and the Olympic bronze medal in Tokyo 2021. The Polish veteran set a seasonal best of 78.10m when he finished second to Nowicki at the Polish Championships in Gorzow.
Rudy Winkler will aim to win his first global medal after finishing seventh at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021 and sixth at the World Championships in Eugene 2022. Winkler set the North American record with 82.71m at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene 2021 and holds a seasonal best of 80.88m in Tucson.
Mykhaylo Kokhan from the Ukraine, world under 18 champion in Nairobi 2018, will be seeking his first world medal at senior level after finishing fifth in Doha 2019 and seventh in Eugene 2022 in his previous two appearances at the World Championships and fourth at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021. Kokhan won in Szekesfehrvar with 79.37m and in Banska Bystrika with 78.62m.
Elvind Henriksen from Norway won the Olympic silver medal in Tokyo 2021 with the national record of 81.58m and the world bronze medal with 80.87m.
The other top athletes in the line-up are Ethan Katzberg from Canada, second at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham 2022, Bence Halasz from Hungary, bronze medallist at the World Championships in Doha 2019, and Diego Del Real from Mexico, fourth at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
