‘Weather doping' in Throw Town: Discus records tumble in Oklahoma but not without controversy

New York Times

16-04-2025

Discus records were smashed at the Continental Tour Bronze in Oklahoma but the event and the achievements were not without controversy.
A Swedish commentator felt 'weather doping' was at play as the event at Millican Field in Ramona was hit with high wind speeds throughout. Discus, unlike track and jumping events, has no restrictions on the impact of wind speed or direction with regard to upholding records.
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Mykolas Alekna, the Paris 2024 silver medallist from Lithuania, broke his own world record twice at the event on Sunday, recording 74.89m on his opening throw before bettering that with an effort of 75.56m. In doing so, the 22-year-old became the first man to pass the 75m mark.
His previous record, set at the Oklahoma venue almost exactly a year ago, stood at 74.35m.
THE FIRST 75M THROW BY A MAN EVER!
MYKOLAS ALEKNA, 75.56M!!!! pic.twitter.com/jRkbOYGbu8
— Paul Hof-Mahoney (@phofmahoney) April 13, 2025
Australia's Matthew Denny also posted a throw of 74.78m. He was one of five men to clear 70m, a feat not achieved in the same discus event before Sunday.
'I don't know whether to laugh or cry,' Swedish commentator Mats Wennerholm said, per Reuters. 'It just becomes ridiculous in a competition boosted by gale-force winds. Weather doping should be added to the banned list.'
Former Norwegian 800m champion Vebjorn Rodal, meanwhile, said Millican Field is 'sought out for throwing far.'
Millican Field has several throwing circles facing different directions, allowing athletes to better adjust depending on the conditions. The venue has been dubbed 'throw town' because of its perceived advantage to competitors.
Thor Gjesdal of the Norwegian Athletics Federation said it would be 'difficult to change the rules now,' adding it is 'difficult to quantify the benefit' of wind assistance in throwing events like it is with track.
The Athletic has contacted World Athletics for comment.
Wind was also in play on the other side of the world on Sunday, as teenage sprinter Gout Gout had his record-breaking 200m time of 19.84 seconds ruled out after it was adjudged he was aided by a tailwind of +2.2 metres per second in Perth, Australia.
That came two days after Gout won the Under-20 100m Australian title in 9.99s, also achieved with a tailwind above the permitted limit.
(Photo of Alekna competing at the 2024 Paris Olympics:)