Mykhaylo Kokhan in the hammer at the IAAF World U18 Championships Nairobi 2017 (© Getty Images)
Mykhaylo Kokhan of Ukraine made no mistake in the boys' hammer final on Friday (14), earning the global age group title with a commanding performance in the afternoon session at the IAAF World U18 Championships Nairobi 2017.
After entering the competition with a massive world U18 lead of 84.25m, which was nearly nine metres farther than the next best athlete in the line-up, Kokhan sent the hammer sailing out to 82.31m in the second round.
It was more than enough for him to pocket a well-deserved gold medal, as he lived up to the expectations which had been placed on him after a superb season. His winning margin of 8.11m is the largest ever at the World U18 Championships.
Though his best attempt was almost 10 metres short of the winner, India's Damneet Singh rolled out a consistent series of throws.
He produced four heaves which landed beyond 72 metres, including a personal best of 74.20m in the opening round to take the silver, India’s first hammer medal at a global championships.
In the penultimate round, Germany's Raphael Winkelvoss delivered a 71.78m effort to fill the bottom step of the podium.
Wesley Botton for the IAAF
