The USATF Indoor Championships saw numerous records get taken down. Grant Holloway and Tia Jones set and equaled, respectively, blistering marks in the 60 meter hurdles, and Chris Nilsen being the first person to top 6 meters in the pole vault at a USA Indoor Championships. Perhaps the most spectacular result in the Championships, however, came from 28 year old Daniel Haugh in the often overlooked weight throw competition.
Haugh himself is no stranger to the big stage. He has twice represented the USA in the hammer throw at World Championships (8th in Eugene in 2022; 6th in Budapest in 2023), and has twice been on the podium in international competitions (2022 NACAC Championships; 2023 Pan Am Games). Additionally, he has been a mainstay atop the podium in national championships as of late, this being his third Weight Throw title since 2019 and was the 2022 USA Hammer Throw Champion outdoors.
What sets this championship title and record apart is both the dominance over the field, and over the previous performance from one of the all-time greats in the sport.
The weight throw event has had an enduring history in American track and field. It was a national championship event for men outdoors from 1878 to 1965, and has been a mainstay of the USA Indoor Track and Field Championships: the men’s 35 pound event has been held from 1932 to present and a women’s 20 pound weight throw event was introduced in 1991. It would be easy to think of it like an indoor hammer throw, but there are numerous dynamics that make it an altogether different event. We will defer to Sean Donnelly on such particulars: Video 1: How to Throw Weight Like a F&*kin Boss | Video 2: How to Train the Weight Throw Like a Champ
On the first day of the 2024 USATF Indoor Championships, Daniel Haugh stepped into the ring for his first attempt and let loose a 25.32 meter throw, which would have been good enough for gold right from the jump. After fouling the second attempt, and nearly equaling his first throw with the third attempt (25.24m), his fourth result would be the one for the history books.
26.35 meters.
It was Haugh’s longest throw on the day by over a meter. It also would be nearly half a meter farther than anyone had ever launched the 35 pound weight in competition. The first American male to ever go beyond 26 meters. Lance Deal‘s record of 25.86 meters from 1995, which was set 2 months before Daniel was born, was now good for second-best on the all-time USA indoor lists. Daniel Haugh has a world record.
Remember friends, watch the throws. They are awesome.
