Betty Heidler (born 14 October 1983) is a retired German track and field athlete who competed in the hammer throw. She held the world record from 2011 until 2014 with her personal best throw of 79.42 m (260 ft 6 in). She is the 2012 Olympic silver medallist, the 2007 World champion and the 2009 and 2011 World Championship silver medallist. She also finished fourth in the Olympic finals in 2004 and 2016.

Betty Heidler
Personal information
NationalityGerman
Born (1983-10-14) October 14, 1983 (age 41)
East Berlin, East Germany
EducationBachelor of Laws
Alma materUniversity of Hagen
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Weight83 kg (183 lb)[1]
Sport
Country Germany
SportAthletics
EventHammer throw
ClubLG Eintracht Frankfurt
Turned pro2004
Coached byBernd Madler
Achievements and titles
Olympic finals
World finals
Regional finals
Personal best
  • Hammer throw: 79.42 (2011, WR)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  Germany
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2012 London Hammer throw
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2007 Osaka Hammer throw
Silver medal – second place 2009 Berlin Hammer throw
Silver medal – second place 2011 Daegu Hammer throw
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2010 Barcelona Hammer throw
Silver medal – second place 2016 Amsterdam Hammer throw
Universiade
Gold medal – first place 2009 Belgrade Hammer throw
Updated on 13 August 2012

Career

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She now lives in Frankfurt and is a member of the Eintracht Frankfurt athletics team. She works for the German Federal Police where she is a member of the sports support group and started studying Bachelor of Laws at the Fernuniversität Hagen in 2007.

She put in a dominant performance at the 2010 European Cup Winter Throwing with a winning mark of 72.48 m, beating her nearest rival by more than three metres.[2]

Heidler won the inaugural IAAF Hammer Throw Challenge in 2010, finishing at the top of the rankings ahead of Anita Wlodarczyk.[3] She won the gold medal at the 2010 European Athletics Championships then went on to take the silver medal at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics. In May 2011, in Halle, she achieved a new world record in hammer throw, with a result of 79.42 m.[4] She began the 2012 season with a series of wins, performing at the Colorful Daegu Meeting, Golden Spike Ostrava, and Prefontaine Classic.[5]

Heidler won a medal at the 2012 London Olympics. The event was not without controversy as the referees first failed to correctly measure Heidler's bronze-winning throw.[6] She was then later promoted to the silver medal position, after Tatyana Lysenko was disqualified for a doping violation in 2016.

Achievements

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Year Competition Venue Position Notes
Representing   Germany
2000 World Junior Championships Santiago, Chile 19th (q) 52.18 m
2002 World Junior Championships Kingston, Jamaica 17th (q) 53.82 m
2003 European U23 Championships Bydgoszcz, Poland 4th 66.49 m
World Championships Paris, France 11th 65.81 m
2004 Olympic Games Athens, Greece 4th 72.73 m
World Athletics Final Szombathely, Hungary 6th 69.65 m
2005 European U23 Championships Erfurt, Germany 2nd 69.64 m
World Championships Helsinki, Finland 29th (q) 61.91 m
World Athletics Final Szombathely, Hungary 6th 69.95 m
2006 European Championships Gothenburg, Sweden 5th 70.89 m
World Athletics Final Stuttgart, Germany 1st 75.44 m (CR)
2007 World Championships Osaka, Japan 1st 74.76 m
2008 Olympic Games Beijing, China 9th 70.06 m
World Athletics Final Stuttgart, Germany 5th 69.72 m
2009 Universiade Belgrade, Serbia 1st 75.83 m (GR)
World Championships Berlin, Germany 2nd 77.12 m (NR)
World Athletics Final Thessaloniki, Greece 1st 72.03 m
2010 European Cup Winter Throwing Arles, France 1st 72.48 m
European Championships Barcelona, Spain 1st 76.38 m
2011 World Championships Daegu, South Korea 2nd 76.06 m
2012 European Championships Helsinki, Finland 17th (q) 65.06 m
Olympic Games London, Great Britain 2nd 77.13 m
2013 World Championships Moscow, Russia 18th (q) 68.83 m
2014 European Championships Zürich, Switzerland 5th 72.39 m
2015 World Championships Beijing, China 7th 72.56 m
2016 European Championships Amsterdam, Netherlands 2nd 75.77 m
Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 4th 73.71 m

References

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  1. ^ a b "Betty Heidler". London2012.com. London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 27 August 2012. Retrieved 14 August 2012.
  2. ^ Mikhnevich and Müller put on a show at the European Cup Winter Throwing[permanent dead link]. European Athletics (20 March 2010). Retrieved 23 March 2010.
  3. ^ Sampaolo, Diego (29 August 2010). "Rudisha lowers 800m World record again, 1:41.01; Carter dashes 9.78sec in Rieti – IAAF World Challenge". IAAF. Retrieved 8 May 2016.
  4. ^ "Das Leichtathletik-Portal - Start".
  5. ^ Gains, Paul (2 June 2012). "Dibaba 30:24.39 and Kiprop 27:01.98 on stunning but wet first night in Eugene – Samsung Diamond League". IAAF. Retrieved 8 May 2016.
  6. ^ "London 2012 - Event Report - Women's Hammer Throw Final". IAAF. 10 August 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2016.
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Records
Preceded by Women's Hammer World Record Holder
21 May 2011 – August 31, 2014
Succeeded by
  Anita Włodarczyk