Mexican Hammer Thrower Makes History at World Athletics Championship

Hammer thrower Diego del Real made history by becoming the first Mexican in his discipline to compete in a final at the World Athletics Championship. The athlete from Nuevo León finished in 12th place at the 2023 Budapest championships.

Del Real qualified for the final with the eleventh best score, but his throws in the final were not better than in the qualification round, causing him to drop to 12th place overall.

However, simply qualifying for the final made him the first Mexican hammer thrower to be in exclusive contention. Del Real achieved his best record of 72.56 meters with his first throw in the final, placing him in 12th position.

The hammer thrower's personal best is 78.68 meters, achieved at the Centro de Alto Rendimiento track in Parque Niños Héroes on April 24, 2021.

The event in Budapest 2023 was won by Canadian athlete Ethan Katzberg, who set a new national record with a distance of 81.25 meters. Polish athlete Wojciech Nowicki took second place with 81.02 meters, and Hungarian athlete Bence Halász took third place with 80.82 meters.

Del Real, who trains at the Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León under the guidance of Cuban coach Alejandro Laberdesque, is aiming to qualify for his third Olympic Games, with the possibility of competing in Paris 2024.

He previously competed in Rio 2016, where he finished in fourth place, and in Tokyo 2020, where he did not make it to the finals.