Strength, technique and a smooth rhythm are crucial when throwing this 16-pound (7.2kg) metal ball.

The ball is attached through a swivel by a steel wire to a handle.

Mihaela Melinte (Rom) Born 27.3.75
Her career has been tainted following her positive drug test during the Sydney Olympics but her dominance cannot be ignored.

She was only 19 when she set her first world record in 1995 and after winning the event's first European Championships in 1998 she went on to be World champion the following year.

Yuriy Sedykh (URS) Born 11.6.55
He is unquestionably the greatest hammer thrower in history.

Sedykh first became Olympic champion at the 1976 Montreal Games.

And only a political boycott denied him the chance to attempt a hat-trick of golds at Los Angeles in 1984.

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World record

Men: 86.74m Yuriy Sedykh (URS) 30.8.86 Women: 76.07m Mihaela Melinte (Rom) 29.8.99