Camryn Rogers Sets Another Hammer Throw Milestone

Former Cal star Camryn Rogers continues to stretch the boundaries of her potential.

The 26-year-old Canadian broke her own North American record in the women’s hammer throw with a heave of 266 feet, 2 inches (81.13 meters) in her season debut at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays.

“When I took the throw, it felt really good,” Rogers said in a phone interview. “I kind of wasn’t expecting it this early on, but I know (coach) Mo (Saatara) thought that training was going really well. Definitely a very good result, one that I’m super-duper happy with.”

By topping her own Canadian record and zooming into the 2026 world lead (by nearly 12 feet), Rogers became just the second woman in history to surpass 81 meters.

“It’s pretty surreal,” she called it. “Very, very excited as well, just to know that we’re here this early on in the season and there’s still so many more months to go.”

Her mark is the fourth-longest ever, the longest in the world in nine years and solidifies her spot at No. 2 on the all-time list. The only athlete to throw farther is Anita Włodarczyk, the three-time Olympic champion from Poland, who set the still-standing world record of 271-3 (82.98) in 2016.

Włodarczyk owns the three longest throws in history, but Rogers is creeping closer to her once-unassailable record. Her mark on Thursday topped her previous best of 264-1 (80.51), set at the world championships in Tokyo last year, and is barely five feet shy of the world record.

“She’s had the world record so long for a reason. It’s a very, very far throw,” Rogers said. “We just are looking long term, trying to be as consistent and healthy as possible for a very long career.

“I think we’re definitely moving in a good direction. If anything, I think this first competition shows we’re doing something right in training.”

Rogers was virtually unbeatable at Cal (2018-22), winning three NCAA titles and delivering the 10 longest throws in collegiate history.

She won Olympic gold in Paris in 2024 and has captured the past two world championships. Aside from the legendary Włodarczyk, Rogers is in a class by herself in the event’s history.

At the Texas Relays, Rogers opened with a mark of 257-8 (78.54), then threw 259-2 (78.99). She delivered her winning throw on her third attempt, then fouled twice.

This is a so-called non-championship year, with World Championships set for 2027 and ’29, bookending the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

There’s a busy season ahead in any case for Rogers, who now lives and trains in Austin after Saatara, her long-time coach was hired away from Cal by Texas.

She will compete for the first time at the Oklahoma Throws Series World Invitational and at the Kip Keino Classic in Kenya, both later this month. She is entered in the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore., on July 3-4, and will be part of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, beginning in late July.

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