Canada’s Ethan Katzberg Won His First Gold Medal In The Hammer Event
Ethan Katzberg Gold Medal: More Gold Medals to Come for 22-Year-Old
Canada finally won its first gold medal in the hammer at the Paris Olympics.
You might’ve seen Ethan Katzberg trending around social media or being talked about on television. He’s the Canadian guy with the epic mustache and super long hair who celebrated an Olympic gold medal for flinging the hammer 84.12 meters.
His first throw already took the field by storm. That first throw beat all of his competitors by at least four meters. It was the largest margin of victory since the 1920 Summer Olympics.
Even more stunning, Katzberg is only 22 years old and has the potential to dominate this sport for more than a decade. He has the potential to stack up Olympic medals each Summer Olympics for at least the next decade.
His head coach, Dylan Armstrong, acknowledged that Katzberg is in the best shape of his life. The goal was to throw as far as possible in the first throw to make everyone else tense up.
It totally worked. Most Olympians couldn’t even throw a hammer over 80 meters.
The Ethan Katzberg gold medal is likely the first of many to come.
Where It All Started
Armstrong told MSN that he saw a tall, lanky kid with a ton of speed and was also super fast in the ring. That’s precisely what Armstrong was looking for when it came to coaching an athlete into the Olympics.
He knew he’d have to help Katzberg put some muscle on and add some weight to throw further.
Some believe Katzberg didn’t have the straight to be this good. Ultimately, his lack of gym strength made people wonder if he had what it took.
However, Armstrong discussed that some have the wrong idea. Armstrong believes you don’t have to be crazy strong to be great at hammer. You must be somewhat strong but flexible with a really good technique.
Even the strongest baseball players don’t always hit the ball the farthest. It’s ultimately how you can connect the ball with the bat.
Where The Greatness Came From
It’s been said that Armstrong learned all of his coaching techniques and ideas from Dr. Anatoliy Bondarchuk. Bodnarchuk coached the late Yuriy Sedykh, who has the current world record of 86.74 meters in 1986.
Since Bondarchuk added a bunch of athletes with medals, Armstrong didn’t waste his opportunity to learn. He also stated that Katzberg is a great student, a hard worker, and listens to everything he tells Katzberg.
Some people don’t always recognize how much work goes into training and practice leading up to the Olympics. Katzberg calls Armstrong his “prep man.” Katzberg prepared the whole year for this moment and admitted all he could ever think about was throwing 84 meters and winning gold.
The 2024 Summer Olympics odds liked Katzberg. But the 2028 Olympics odds will absolutely love him.
New Customers Only. Visit BETMGM.COM for Terms & Conditions. 21+ Years of Age or Olders. MI, NJ, PA OR WV Only. Excludes Michigan DISASSOCIATED PERSONS. Please Gamble Responsibly, Gambling Problem? CALL 1-800-270-7117 FOR CONFIDENTIAL HELP (MI). 1-800-GAMBLER (MI, NJ, PA, WV)
65 Days In Portugal
In the winter, Armstrong and Katzberg spent over two months in Portugal. They wanted to find a spot with warm weather and a spot with no distractions.
Armstrong’s decision helped earn the Ethan Katzberg gold medal.
When many Canadians went to the pre-games in Barcelona, Katzberg stayed in Portugal to prepare. Other Canadians weren’t even close to Katzberg’s numbers in the Olympics.
Rowan Hamilton finished with just a 76.59-meter throw. That was only good for ninth place.
Social Media Calling for DNA Test?
There have been plenty of controversies surrounding the 2024 Olympics news this year. Although Katzberg went to the Olympics for Canada, many suggested he looked more Australian.
Some suggested he should do a DNA test to prove that he’s Australian or German and not Canadian.
It’s likely that most social media users were joking, but his unique appearance definitely made people wonder about him.
That said, Katzberg will be around for a long time in this sport. Nobody will question him as his popularity rises. He got into hammer throwing at 14 years old and became a gold medalist eight years later.
At 22 years old, the Canadian won silver in the 2022 Commonwealth Games. He also won the Hammer Throw World Championship in 2023. And now he’s an Olympic gold medalist. Nobody can take that away from him for the rest of his life, no matter what happens moving forward.
That’s an insane accomplishment.
He’ll always be in the record books that will read, “Ethan Katzberg Gold Medal.”
For more 2024 Olympic events, betting odds and analysis, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
