Pre Classic 2023 x Throws Preview: Javelin

By Kara Winger

Ah, the Wanda Diamond League Final. The vibes in the dining rooms of this competition are so special. You can feel how important it is to everyone to do well, absolutely know in your bones that they’re all ready to perform, and also understand the undertone of celebration: Of being almost done with yet another long season in which every athlete there has done at least one thing that they’re proud of. If they hadn’t, they wouldn’t have made it onto the start list of this most prestigious event in the track and field world.

Everyone has a general understanding of your season, and you of theirs, and the supportiveness of that open conversation is unmatched. As an athlete, you can’t help but be elevated by the atmosphere of the last - and best - meet of the season. This year, it’s the always incredible Prefontaine Classic. 

Hey! I’m the reigning Diamond League Champion in the women’s javelin, Kara Winger. Zurich in 2022 was the final meet of my career, and earning that gorgeous Diamond Trophy (the first American in my event to do so) as the sun set on my career was the cherry on top of the incredible icing on the delicious cake that my last season was. Now that I’m a full year out of my athletic career, I have an even more fun perspective than 20 years of competition afforded on the events I love the most - the throws. I’ve always been a wild fan. Here’s what I’ll be cheering for this weekend from the Citius Mag Superfan Section!

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Women’s Javelin

Japanese javelin thrower Haruka Kitaguchi won the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest with a throw of 66.73m. Photo by Matthew Quine for Diamond League AG

Field: Victoria Hudson, Liveta Jasiūnaitė, Haruka Kitaguchi, Mackenzie Little, Maggie Malone, Līna Mūze-Sirmā, Tori Peeters

There is one very clear, very strong, extremely consistent, favorite in this competition, but a few others who could catch her! I cannot wait to see where that favorite goes from the last two seasons: It would be a real shock if she didn’t walk away with the Diamond Trophy, but her performances for the last two years at such a young age get me so excited to see a 70m thrower again sometime soon, win or lose this Saturday.

Budapest World Champion Haruka Kitaguchi will win, and has a legitimate shot at Christina Obergfoell’s meet record of 67.70m, set in 2013 (the year the German also won Worlds). Haruka’s most recent PB and Japanese National Record - her second such toss of the year - the world lead of 67.38m came just a week ago in Brussels. If she handles travel well (which she always seems to, competing for many months across Asia, Europe, and North America for the last two seasons), she appears unstoppable. And this magical runway is where she earned her first global medal (bronze) in a fabulous Eugene Worlds sixth round in 2022!

Mackenzie Little, though, who both starts and finishes competitions well, could call on some of her own Hayward Magic from Eugene 2022 and put a big throw out there early to put pressure on the rest of the field. Her PB of 65.70m at this year’s Lausanne Diamond League came at a nice time of the season to indicate that she has more in the tank at Pre, and coming off of a bronze medal performance in Budapest that she has stated wasn’t quite technically sound has her hungry at this final meet of 2023. 

Līna Mūze-Sirmā, who has finished middle of the pack with consistency over 62m at many DLs this season, and Maggie Malone, with a late-season surge after World Championships, appear to be in great position to relax and enjoy the final outing of the year, and could put some special throws together. Lina is incredible: She and I share knee injury woes, and I’ve been so impressed by her ever since her 2017 recovery. She married her long-time fellow-javelin-thrower boyfriend this summer, and I really think there’s an added element of enjoyment in her throwing after: The heartbreak of seeing her finish 9th in Budapest was tough after overcoming lots of adversity to be in such a good place this season. Maggie has had a very up and down last two seasons, but performed really well at a few small meets in Europe after Worlds (including an Olympic standard 64m toss), and has great experiences on this runway to draw from. 

Victoria Hudson, whose consistency in the Budapest final had some people nervous who didn’t start the competition as well as she did, reached 64m in Brussels to secure a Paris qualifying mark! That weight lifted could mean great things for the Austrian who has really been on an upward trajectory for three years. Tori Peeters and Liveta Jasiūnaitė have each had moments of promise this season, and could hone in on good technique with relaxation one more time to have a good result in Eugene. They’ll both look for redemption at Hayward after disappointment in both Eugene 2022 and Budapest 2023. 

I love when a field is small like all of them are at the Diamond League Final. There’s less time to dial in details when the rounds go really quickly, so typically whoever starts strong holds strong, but as we’ve seen time and again, Haruka and Mackenzie especially can show up in later rounds in any given competition. 

Men’s Javelin

Defending Diamond league champion Neeraj Chopra (India) won the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest with a throw of 88.17m. Photo by Matthew Quine for Diamond League AG

Field: Neeraj Chopra, Oliver Helander, Andrian Mardare, Anderson Peters, Curtis Thompson, Jakub Vadlejch

There are two World Champions, a many-time global medalist, and all Worlds finalists in this field. It really is a diamond of an opportunity for anybody. 

Defending Diamond League Champion, World Champion, and Olympic Champion Neeraj Chopra has set a shining example for his native India for years and years, and in Budapest, it was extremely clear that his countrymen are following suit. There were an incredible three Indian men who threw beyond 84 meters in the World Final this year. Neeraj emerged victorious, and his SB of 88.77m in the qualifying round in Hungary has him sitting in second in distance on the world list. This leader of his nation is careful in selection of competitions: He had a promising start to his season this year before taking a little break early, and returned with a vengeance to earn gold in Budapest. So if he’s coming to the Prefontaine Classic, he’s ready! I would be absolutely overjoyed to see my fellow 2022 Diamond League Champion throw 90m for the first time. 

Budapest bronze medalist Jakub Vadlejch is a consistently good competitor on the global stage, and owns the world lead at 89.51m. With a PB over 90m and many global medals, plus the chip on his shoulder that was coming in second to Neeraj in Zurich last year and the confidence that edging the win over Chopra in Zurich this season might bring, I would not be surprised to see Jakub earn the Diamond trophy in Eugene to add to his 2016 and 2017 collection. 

While Anderson Peters has had a tumultuous season, he remains a 2x World Champion, and he put on a clinic at Eugene 2022 on this very runway to earn his second title: Three 90m throws when Neeraj squeaked over 88m to earn silver. There is quite a bit of confidence that comes in returning to a place where you know you’ve dominated. 

If Oliver Helander has the day he has proven to himself for many seasons that he can have, he could surprise everyone! He hasn’t been so consistent above 85m this year, but he has shown up when it matters. I was really impressed by him in the final in Budapest, as he started the show strong with 83m and kept hitting that mark throughout. A few more finals and high-pressure scenarios will see him relax and reach even bigger distances when all eyes are on him! A PB of 89m and experience in the top 8 of the Eugene World Championships on this runway will serve him well at Pre, too. 

Andrian Martere’s season’s best of 83.04m has him sitting way down at 26th on the World list by distance this year, but he has shown up not only at multiple Diamond League meetings to earn his spot here: He also made his way into the Budapest final. The thing about the Diamond League Final is that if you’re on the start list, you know you belong and can contend. 

Same story with Curtis Thompson: His 80.92m U.S. Championships victory and multiple results at 79m might be a far cry from his 87m breakout season of 2022, but he earned his place here with trips to Doha, Lausanne, and Monaco, and many positive vibes throughout his career at Hayward will be playing in his head in this final meet of the year. 

Such an interesting mix of competitors here! If Neeraj throws 90m I will lose my mind, in a good way.