Mykolas Alekna Breaks World Record in Discus Again - Twice

Mykolas Alekna continues to stretch the limits of what is possible in the discus throw.

The 22-year-old Lithuanian, competing in his final season as a Cal athlete, twice broke his own year-old world record in the event Sunday at the Oklahoma Throw Series at Ramona, Okla.

Alekna opened Sunday’s competition with a world-record heave of 245 feet, 8 inches (74.89 meters), eclipsing the mark of 243-11 (74.35) he recorded last year at Millican Field. That erased the 38-year-old world standard of 243-0 (74.08) set by East Germany’s Jurgen Schult.

After fouls on his second and third attempts, Alekna stretched the world record to 247-10 (75.56), eclipsing his minutes-old mark by more than 2 feet.

He fouled on his final two throws, but Alekna will return to Berkeley as the owner of the two longest things in history.

These also count as Cal and collegiate records, a year after his best marks were not eligible for that because he was competing unattached while bypassing the college season to prepare for the Paris Olympics.

Australia’s Matthew Denny, who flirted with Aleena’s previous record when he threw 243-7 (74.25) on Thursday at Ramona, improved his best with a fourth-round throw of 245-4 (74.78), which is now the third-longest in history.

Denny has become Alekna’s chief rival over the past two seasons, including at 2024 Olympics, where Alekna won a silver medal and Denny captured the bronze. Jamaica’s Roje Stone was a surprise gold-medal winner at Paris.

But Alekna has dominated Denny in head-to-head matchups since the start of 2022, winning 15 of 16 meetings, including an 9-1 edge in 2024.

Elite throwers gravitate to the Oklahoma facility because of winds that are favorable and legal in the discus.

Two-time Olympic women’s discus champion Valerie Allman set U.S. and North American records with a throw of 241-2 (73.52), the farthest throw in the world since 1989.