19-Year-Old Max Dehning Becomes Youngest To Throw Javelin Beyond 90m

A 19-year-old from Germany, Max Dehning made history in javelin by throwing beyond the mark of 90m in 2024- the year of the Paris Olympics. At the German Winter Throwing Championship held in Halle, on February 25, Sunday, Max's impressive throw of 90.20m not only improved his own record but also surpassed the mark set for the Paris Games at 85.50m. (More Sports News)

The remarkable achievement of the German teenager sends a strong message to the golden boy of India, the current Olympic champion, Neeraj Chopra, that his first rival has emerged. Chopra's best throw of 87.58m won him the gold at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, which was also the national record.

However, the Haryana boy has improved his own national record every time he picked up the stick. His personal best stands at 89.94m which falls short of Max Dehning's performance on Sunday.

Entering the record book for the longest javelin throw, Max is now the best in German U23, and also in European U23 surpassing the previous mark of 89.58m set by Briton Steve Backley in Stockholm in 1990. Nevertheless, the young javelin star needs a little control over his power as he threw 85.45m in his second attempt, while his previous personal best was 79.13m.

The ticket to Paris has not been handed over to the record holder yet. The National Olympic Committee has not yet announced the result. However, there is no doubt that Max has matched and even exceeded the entry requirements for the javelin throw at the Olympics as well as the European Athletics Championships 2024, which are set to take place in Rome, Italy in June.

ALSO READ: Neeraj Chopra Profile: Know All About India’s Only Track and Field Olympic Champion

Top 10 Javelin Throws Of All Time

Although Neeraj Chopra, Jakub Vadlechj, and now Max Dehnings are the names garnering attention for their throws, their measures aren't even close to Jan Zelezny's world record of 98.48m in the javelin throw set 48 years ago.

The second-best world record of 97.76 was achieved by Johannes Vetter, another German athlete. Dehning's potential as a rising star is supported by a history that features 4 German throwers in the top ten list worldwide, mentioned below:

1. Jan Zelenzy - 98.48m (1966) Czech Republic

2. Johannes Vetter - 97. 76m (1993) Germany

3. Thomas Rohler - 93.90m (1991) Germany

4. Aki Parvianen - 93.09m (1974) Finland

5. Anderson Peters - 93.07m (1997) Grenada

6. Julius Yego - 92.72m (1989) Kenya

7. Sergey Makarov - 92.61m (1973) Russia

8. Raymond Hecht - 92.60m (1968) Germany

9. Andreas Hofmann - 92.60m (1991) Germany

10. Konstantinos Gatsioudis - 91.59m (1973) Greece