Former World Youth and World Junior Champion, Australia's Dani Samuels is now the women's Discus World Champion at the 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics in Berlin (© Getty Images)
Producing one of the biggest surprises of the World championships, Dani Samuels clinched the title in the Discus Throw, the first in the event for Australia.
The 21-year-old, who took the World junior title three years ago, took the competition with a dramatic 65.44m throw in the fifth round. It was the second personal best for Samuels on the soggy evening, the first coming in the fourth round when she threw 64.76m. Before tonight, her best was 62.96m from 2008. The hour-long delay and rapidly cooling conditions obviously didn’t affect the precocious Aussie’s breakout on the world’s biggest stage.
Opening with a foul, her follow-up toss of 59.05m in the second round didn’t raise too many eyebrows, but a near-PB 62.71m in the third showed that at the very least, she was looking to impress.
In the meantime, the competition was dominated by Romanian Nicoleta Grasu from her second round 65.20m toss, a season’s best for the 37-year-old three-time World medallist.
Cuban Yarelis Barrios, the Olympic silver medallist and bronze medallist in Osaka two years ago, opened with a solid 64.44m throw showing that she arrived in the German capital very well prepared.
Grasu led until Samuels big toss in the fifth round, with the Cuban third. Samuels’ effort apparently took the wind out of Grasu’s sails, who fouled on her final throw. But conversely, Barrios kept fighting, and improved to 65.31m with her final throw to snatch the silver from Grasu.
The trio were head and shoulders ahead of the rest. Poland’s Zaneta Glanc was fourth with a 62.66m best, followed by China’s Aimin Song (62.42m) and German Nadine Muller sixth, reaching 62.04m.
The biggest disappointment was Olympic champion Stephanie Brown Trafton, who was last in the field of 12. Her best effort in two fair throws was just 58.53m.
Bob Ramsak for the IAAF
The 21-year-old, who took the World junior title three years ago, took the competition with a dramatic 65.44m throw in the fifth round. It was the second personal best for Samuels on the soggy evening, the first coming in the fourth round when she threw 64.76m. Before tonight, her best was 62.96m from 2008. The hour-long delay and rapidly cooling conditions obviously didn’t affect the precocious Aussie’s breakout on the world’s biggest stage.
Opening with a foul, her follow-up toss of 59.05m in the second round didn’t raise too many eyebrows, but a near-PB 62.71m in the third showed that at the very least, she was looking to impress.
In the meantime, the competition was dominated by Romanian Nicoleta Grasu from her second round 65.20m toss, a season’s best for the 37-year-old three-time World medallist.
Cuban Yarelis Barrios, the Olympic silver medallist and bronze medallist in Osaka two years ago, opened with a solid 64.44m throw showing that she arrived in the German capital very well prepared.
Grasu led until Samuels big toss in the fifth round, with the Cuban third. Samuels’ effort apparently took the wind out of Grasu’s sails, who fouled on her final throw. But conversely, Barrios kept fighting, and improved to 65.31m with her final throw to snatch the silver from Grasu.
The trio were head and shoulders ahead of the rest. Poland’s Zaneta Glanc was fourth with a 62.66m best, followed by China’s Aimin Song (62.42m) and German Nadine Muller sixth, reaching 62.04m.
The biggest disappointment was Olympic champion Stephanie Brown Trafton, who was last in the field of 12. Her best effort in two fair throws was just 58.53m.
Bob Ramsak for the IAAF
