Games star drops the hammer in Tokyo bid
QUEENSLANDER Matthew Denny won a Commonwealth Games silver medal in the hammer throw, but will drop the event from his schedule for the next two years to improve in the discus.
Denny said he would focus on the discus, in which he is national champion and a Gold Coast Commonwealth Games finalist, as he heads towards the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
The versatile 22-year-old earlier this year set a long-term goal of winning an Olympic gold medal in both the discus and the hammer throw at the same Games during his career.
Denny also placed second in the discus last month at the Continental Cup meet in the Czech Republic.
“I will be retiring from the hammer for the next two years to focus on discus for (next September’s) Doha world championships and the Tokyo 2020 Olympics,’’ Toowoombaraised Denny, who regularly makes the 350km round trip to Brisbane and Gold Coast for competition, said.
“This has been a very difficult decision for me as I have tossed and turned with it for the last six months. This is not because I can’t handle both as most of the traditionalists have told me numerous times (and) which I have enjoyed proving wrong.
“I am doing this for multiple reasons and if I want to achieve my goals in the next two years, this is a step that I need to take for it to become a reality.
“This isn’t the end of me as a hammer thrower as I have many other goals I still want to achieve with it. This is just a short intermission.’’