hammer

Throwing event in track and field athletics. The hammer is a spherical weight attached to a wire with a handle. The competitors grip the handle with both hands, spin the hammer in a circular motion about them several times, and throw it as far as they can. The senior men's hammer weighs 7.26 kg/16 lb and may originally have been a blacksmith's hammer. Women and junior men throw lighter weights.

The first ever Olympic women's hammer event took place at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.