Budapest 23 x Throws Preview: Men's Discus
By Kara Winger
Four-time Olympian, nine-time U.S. national champion, and 2022 Diamond League Final winner Kara Winger provides us with her insight ahead of the throwing competition at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary. Who will be crowned this year’s world champions? Follow along all week for Kara’s previews before tuning in to watch the meet on NBC and Peacock (which will also have some additional streams of field event finals).
Men’s Discus
From left to right: Brian Williams (Tracksmith), Sam Mattis (New York Athletic Club), and Turner Washington (Arizona State) at the 2023 Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field. Photo by Howard Lao
Qualification Round: Saturday, 8/19 | Group A – 10:09am PT, Group B – 11:43am PT
Final Round: Monday, 8/21 | 11:30am PT
Men’s discus has been absolutely astounding on a global level for the past two seasons. One of the coolest stories IMO of this World Championships is that Turner Washington (USA) and two Alekna brothers, Mykolas and Martynas of Lithuania, will compete against each other 14 years after their dads clashed in 1999 at Sevilla’s iteration of World Championships (Anthony Washington won and Virgilijus Alekna had much more winning to do from there after finishing fourth).
The Alekna brothers have the upper hand in this generation’s head to head…to head. Mykolas, a rising junior at Cal Berkeley, Eugene silver medalist, and European 2022 Champion, became the youngest athlete to surpass 70m in history earlier this season when he tossed 71.00m. Martynas, the slightly older of the two (at 22), has thrown personal bests multiple times in 2023 to end up at his seed mark of 67.23m, which has him in a wild eleventh on the start list based on season’s best. Turner, who finished his Arizona State University career with an NCAA Championship this year on his final attempt and then made his first senior World team in convincing fashion at the USA National Championships, has a season’s best further down the list of 66.22m. That mark is just off his PB from 2021 of 66.26m, and for a guy whose prep career had him in the spotlight from a young age, I am pumped to see him climb his way back after an up and down collegiate career and believe wholeheartedly in his success on this stage.
There are FIVE men this season over 70 meters, three of whom have gone beyond 71m. Defending World Champion and 2022 Diamond League Final winner Kristjan Ceh of Slovenia leads the world at a massive 71.86m, but Tokyo Olympic Champion and Doha gold medalist Swede Daniel Stahl is nipping at his heels with 71.45m and more consistency than he showed in 2022. Ceh’s most recent result of 69.99m on August 10 in Estonia (where his legendary coach Gerd Kanter is from) makes me believe he’ll defend his crown, but not without a fight.
Doha and Tokyo bronze medalist, Austrian Lukas Weisshaidinger, is out to 70.68m on the season, and Alex Rose of Samoa not only had massive PBs in the course of a week in April to reach 70.39m and sit fifth in the world, but also has been collecting points toward the Diamond League Final throughout the year, finishing middle of the pack with pretty strong results at multiple DL stops. Travel from the U.S. (where Alex trains) can be tough mid-season, but in-stadium experience against the best in the world will serve him well in Budapest.
Jamaicans are a force in this field!! All three of them - Roje Stona (who Turner beat at NCAAs this year), Fedrick Dacres, and Traves Smikle - have 68m season’s bests, and are only separated from each other by 70cm. Traves and Fedrick were both in the top 12 last year, so watch for the final this year to be 1/4 Jamaican I bet!
Tokyo and Eugene finalist American Sam Mattis ended 2022 in Zagreb with a 67m toss to meet the Budapest standard, and started 2023 with his SB 67.49m, despite being diagnosed with testicular cancer and undergoing a very invasive surgery in the fall. I can’t understand why more people aren’t talking about this incredible feat. I’ve been in awe all year. He got out to 65.93m to win his second career U.S. title in July.
There are so many other super talents in this field, it’s amazing. Lithuanian Andrius Gudzius won bronze last year. Aussie Matty Denny has been a finalist years on end and was fourth in the very deep Tokyo competition. Brit Lawrence Okoye could drop huge distances at any moment. Rio Olympic champion Cristoph Harting of Germany is only 33. The automatic qualifying distance from the first round on Saturday afternoon is 66.50m, and top 12 overall go to finals per usual. Truly anything can happen when you put yourself in that top 12, and I like to think of it like this: One quarter of the finalists get a medal. 25%. Three out of twelve. Pretty cool, just gotta give yourself a chance, and then your odds get better!
I have tickets for the final on Monday, and I cannot wait to watch these fireworks! I married a discus thrower, and I’m really looking forward to simply spectating in the nosebleeds in Budapest with him. What a beautiful event.