Athletics (British Sports Library)

CHAPTER XIV HAMMER THROWING DESPITE the fact that comparatively light weights like the late A. E. Flaxman, who weighed just over ll stone and yet threw 150 feet odd, and the former All America Collegiate record holder, K. W. Shattuck, who reached 160 feet 4 inches, have done marvel– lously well, the truth remains that big, heavy men, like Pat Ryan, who holds the world's record of 189 feet 6! inches, and Matt McGrath, the Olympic record holder, are best suited for the difficult job of Hammer Throwing ; but still, a man who brings down the beam at anything over 12} stone has quite a hope of doing himself justice in international compet-ition, especially as the big, muscular heavy– weights are often handicapped by the awkwardness characteristic of their size. Hammer Throwing is probably the most difficult of all events within the range of athletics at which to attain proficiency. For that reason, if for no other, the number of hammer throwers in any country will always be strictly limited. How difficult it is to master the art may well be 178