Anita Włodarczyk facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Anita Włodarczyk

Anita Włodarczyk in 2016 Rio Olympics
Personal information
Born	(1985-08-08) 8 August 1985 (age 39) Rawicz, Poland
Height	1.76 m
Weight	100 kg
Sport
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	Hammer throw
Club	Skra Warszawa
Medal record Women's athletics Representing  Poland Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 3 0 0 World Championships 4 0 0 European Championships 4 1 1 Continental Cup 1 0 0 European Team Championships 2 1 0 Olympic Games Gold 2012 London Hammer throw Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro Hammer throw Gold 2020 Tokyo Hammer throw World Championships Gold 2009 Berlin Hammer throw Gold 2013 Moscow Hammer throw Gold 2015 Beijing Hammer throw Gold 2017 London Hammer throw European Championships Gold 2012 Helsinki Hammer throw Gold 2014 Zürich Hammer throw Gold 2016 Amsterdam Hammer throw Gold 2018 Berlin Hammer throw Silver 2024 Rome Hammer throw Bronze 2010 Barcelona Hammer throw European Team Championships Gold 2009 Leiria Hammer throw Gold 2015 Cheboksary Hammer throw Silver 2013 Gateshead Hammer throw Continental Cup Gold 2014 Marrakech Hammer throw European Cup Winter Throwing Gold 2008 Split Hammer throws Gold 2009 Split Hammer throw Jeux de la Francophonie Gold 2013 Nice Hammer throw

Anita Włodarczyk (born August 8, 1985) is a famous Polish hammer thrower. She is known as one of the greatest female hammer throwers of all time. She has won three Olympic gold medals in a row. She was the first woman ever to throw the hammer over 80 meters. Anita also holds the current women's world record for the hammer throw, which is 82.98 meters.

In 2016, she was named the Polish Sports Personality of the Year. She also received a very high honor from Poland in 2021 for her amazing sports achievements.

Włodarczyk (on the left) celebrating her gold medal at the 2017 World Championships with teammate and bronze medalist Malwina Kopron.

Anita Włodarczyk's Career

Starting Out in Athletics

Anita Włodarczyk began her journey in athletics by winning her first national championship for athletes under 23 years old in 2007. She then competed in the European Athletics U23 Championships. In 2008, she finished fourth in the hammer throw at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Later that year, she won a bronze medal at the World Athletics Final. The next year, in 2009, she earned her first gold medal at a big international competition. This was at the European Team Championships.

Anita kept improving her throws. She set a new personal best of 76.20 meters in May 2009. Before the 2009 World Championships, she set a new Polish national record. Her throw of 77.20 meters was one of the longest throws by a woman at that time.

Breaking World Records

On August 22, 2009, at the World Championships in Berlin, Germany, Anita set a new world record. She threw the hammer an amazing 77.96 meters! Her season ended early when she twisted her ankle while celebrating.

She returned to competition in April 2010. She easily won her event with a throw of 75.13 meters. On June 6, 2010, she broke her own world record again. She threw the hammer 78.30 meters at a competition in Bydgoszcz. She won a bronze medal at the 2010 European Athletics Championships.

Olympic Gold and More Successes

In 2012, Anita won the silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Her throw was 77.60 meters. Later, in 2016, she was given the gold medal for this event. This happened because another athlete was found to have used banned substances.

In 2014, Anita won the European Championship. She set a new championship and national record with a throw of 78.76 meters.

On August 1, 2015, Anita Włodarczyk made history. She set a new world record by throwing 81.08 meters. She became the first woman ever to throw the hammer over 80 meters! She then won the gold medal at the World Championships, throwing over 80 meters again.

On August 15, 2016, Anita won the gold medal at the Olympic Games in Rio. She set another new world record with a throw of 82.29 meters. Just two weeks later, on August 28, 2016, she broke her own world record again. She threw 82.98 meters at a memorial event in Warsaw. Anita often uses equipment that belonged to her friend and fellow hammer thrower, Kamila Skolimowska, as a way to honor her.

Because of her amazing performances, she was named the "Track & Field News Athlete of the Year" in 2014, 2016, and 2017. She also won the Polish Sportspersonality of the Year award in 2017. She had an incredible winning streak of 42 competitions that started in July 2014.

Anita holds many of the best hammer throw results ever recorded by a woman.

Third Olympic Gold Medal

At the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Anita won her third straight Olympic gold medal in the hammer throw. Her winning throw was 78.48 meters. This was a very special achievement.

Anita Włodarczyk is the only woman in history to win the hammer throw event three times in a row at the Olympics. In the men's competition, only one athlete has done this before. She is also the first woman to win any individual athletics event three times in a row at the Olympic Games. With her three gold medals, she is one of the top Polish athletes in Olympic history.

Awards and Honors

Anita Włodarczyk has received many special awards and honors for her amazing achievements in sports:

• Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta, 2009
• Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta, 2016
• Polish Sports Personality of the Year awarded by a sports magazine, 2016
• Honorary Citizen of her hometown, Rawicz, 2016
• Commander's Cross with Star of the Order of Polonia Restituta, 2021

* The Order of Polonia Restituta is a very high honor given by the President of Poland for outstanding achievements.

• In 2021, the toy company Mattel created a special "Shero Barbie" doll in Anita Włodarczyk's image. This doll was made to celebrate her as an inspiration to others. She was the third Polish woman to have a Barbie doll made after her.

International Competitions

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Notes
2007	European U23 Championships	Debrecen, Hungary	9th	63.74 m
2008	European Winter Throwing Cup	Split, Croatia	1st	71.84 m
	Olympic Games	Beijing, China	4th	71.56 m
	World Athletics Final	Stuttgart, Germany	3rd	70.97 m
2009	European Team Championships	Leiria, Portugal	1st	75.23 m
	World Championships	Berlin, Germany	1st	77.96 m
2010	European Championships	Barcelona, Spain	3rd	73.56 m
2011	World Championships	Daegu, South Korea	5th	73.56 m
2012	European Championships	Helsinki, Finland	1st	74.29 m
	Olympic Games	London, United Kingdom	1st	77.60 m
2013	World Championships	Moscow, Russia	1st	78.46 m
	Jeux de la Francophonie	Nice, France	1st	75.62 m
2014	European Championships	Zürich, Switzerland	1st	78.76 m
	Continental Cup	Marrakesh, Morocco	1st	75.21 m
2015	World Championships	Beijing, China	1st	80.85 m
2016	European Championships	Amsterdam, Netherlands	1st	78.14 m
	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	1st	82.29 m OR
2017	World Championships	London, United Kingdom	1st	77.90 m
2018	Athletics World Cup	London, United Kingdom	1st	78.74 m
	European Championships	Berlin, Germany	1st	78.94 m
2021	Olympic Games	Tokyo, Japan	1st	78.48 m
2023	World Championships	Budapest, Hungary	13th (q)	71.17 m
2024	European Championships	Rome, Italy	2nd	72.92 m
	Olympic Games	Paris, France	4th	74.23 m

See Also

In Spanish: Anita Włodarczyk para niños

• Sport in Poland
• List of Polish records in athletics
• List of Polish track and field athletes