Rudy Winkler

{{Infobox sportsperson

| name = Rudy Winkler

| image = Day 10 at the 2024 United States Olympic Trials (track and field) 82 (cropped).jpg

| caption = Winkler in 2024

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1994|12|06}}

| birth_place = Albany, New York, U.S.

| height = 6 ft 2 in

| weight = 240 lb

| sport = Track and field

| event = Hammer throw

| collegeteam = Cornell Big Red

| pb = Hammer: {{T&FcalcR|82.71}}

| updated = July 8, 2021

|medaltemplates = {{MedalSport | Men's athletics}}

{{MedalCountry|{{USA}}}}

{{MedalBronze|{{nowrap|2023 Santiago}}|{{nowrap|Hammer throw}}}}

}}

Rudy Winkler (born December 6, 1994) is an American male track and field athlete who competes in the hammer throw.{{Cite web |title=Rudy Winkler |url=https://www.teamusa.org/usa-track-and-field/athletes/Rudy-Winkler |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160730122205/http://www.teamusa.org/usa-track-and-field/athletes/Rudy-Winkler |archive-date=July 30, 2016 |url-status=dead |access-date=July 8, 2021 |website=Team USA}} He is the NACAC area record holder{{cite web |url=https://worldathletics.org/records/by-discipline/throws/hammer-throw/outdoor/men |title=Hammer Throw Men − Records |website=IAAF |access-date=August 20, 2023}} and American record holder with a throw of {{T&FcalcR|82.71}} for the hammer{{Cite web |url=https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/en/news/us-olympic-track-and-field-trials-results |title=US Track and Field Olympic Trials 2021, results |access-date=June 21, 2021 |archive-date=June 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624180804/https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/en/news/us-olympic-track-and-field-trials-results |url-status=dead}} and holds a personal best of {{T&Fcalc|23.32}} for the weight throw. He was the hammer national champion in 2016 and 2020, winning the 2016.[http://www.all-athletics.com/node/448938 Rudy Winkler]. All Athletics. Retrieved on July 16, 2016. and 2020 United States Olympic Trials.[https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/en/news/us-olympic-track-and-field-trials-results] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624180804/https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/en/news/us-olympic-track-and-field-trials-results|date=June 24, 2021}}. US Olympic Track and Field Trials Results. Retrieved on June 21, 2021.

Career

Born in Sand Lake, New York, Winkler attended Averill Park High School and competed in the hammer from a young age and represented the United States in age category competitions. He was a finalist at both the 2011 World Youth and the 2012 World Junior Championships in Athletics.[http://www.iaaf.org/athletes/united-states/rudy-winkler-264892 Rudy Winkler]. IAAF. Retrieved on July 16, 2016. He won his first international medal at the Pan American Junior Championships in 2013, taking the silver medal behind Mexico's Diego del Real.[http://americasathletics.org/attachments/article/87/PANAM%20Junior%20COL%20August%202013%20-%20COMPLETE%20RESULTS.pdf 2013 Pan American Junior Championships Official results]. Americas Athletics. Retrieved on July 16, 2016.

He joined{{clarify|date=August 2024}} Cornell University and competed collegiately for their Cornell Big Red track team and was selected for the Quill and Dagger society. He topped the field of the weight throw at the 2015 Ivy League Indoor Track & Field Championships, then won the hammer title at the conference's outdoor championships later that year. At his first national event, he came eighth in the hammer at the 2015 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships. In the 2016 season, he defended his Ivy League Indoor title and placed tenth at the NCAA Men's Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships. He was again hammer champion at the Ivy League Outdoor meet and set a personal record of {{T&Fcalc|72.84}} to place runner-up to Britain's Nick Miller at the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships.[https://www.tfrrs.org/athletes/4634683/Cornell/Rudy_Winkler.html Rudy Winkler]. TFRRS. Retrieved on July 16, 2016. Following his graduation in 2017, Winkler used the last of his NCAA eligibility for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights track and field team, setting their school record and placing 4th at the 2018 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships.{{cite web|url=https://scarletknights.com/sports/mens-track-and-field/roster/rudy-winkler/5566|title= Rudy Winkler|website=Rutgers Scarlet Knights|access-date=17 March 2025}}

At the 2016 United States Olympic Trials a big personal best of {{T&Fcalc|76.76}} brought him his first national title and selection for the USA Olympic team.{{Cite web |url=https://www.tfrrs.org/results/46783/2887565/2016_U.S._Olympic_Trials/Men_Hammer_Throw/ |title=TFRRS {{!}} 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials Men Hammer Throw Track & Field Meet Results|work=Track & Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS)|access-date=2019-09-22}} Although he was just short of the 77-meter qualifying standard set by the IAAF, he was invited to compete as one of the highest-ranked athletes, as an insufficient number of people had achieved the mark that year.Bohnert, Craig (July 14, 2016). [https://web.archive.org/web/20160717131935/http://www.teamusa.org/News/2016/July/14/3-US-Mens-Hammer-Throwers-Invited-To-Compete-At-Rio-Olympics 3 U.S. Men's Hammer Throwers Invited To Compete At Rio Olympics]. Team USA. Retrieved on July 16, 2016.

He currently resides in Washington, D.C., with his fiancé, Olivia Foster.{{Cite web |title=Current Masthead – Cornell Law Review |url=https://cornelllawreview.org/current-editorial-board/ |access-date=March 16, 2021 |website=cornelllawreview.org |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Who is Rudy Winkler dating? Record-holder Olympian's girlfriend is a star Cornell law student |url=https://meaww.com/rudy-winkler-dating-olivia-foster-tokyo-olympians-girlfriend-is-a-star-cornell-law-student |access-date=September 5, 2021 |website=meaww.com |date=August 4, 2021 |language=en}}

His greatest sports influences are his friends and coaches Paddy McGrath and Roman Feldman.

International competitions

2011

|World Youth Championships

|Lille, France

|9th

|Hammer throw

|68.14 m

2012

|World Junior Championships

|Barcelona, Spain

|11th

|Hammer throw

|69.35 m

2013

|Pan American Junior Championships

|Medellin, Colombia

|bgcolor=silver|2nd

|Hammer throw

|71.79 m

rowspan=2|2016

|NACAC U23 Championships

|San Salvador, El Salvador

|bgcolor=silver|2nd

|Hammer throw

|73.00 m

Olympic Games

|Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

|18th (q)

|Hammer throw

|71.89 m

2017

|World Championships

|London, United Kingdom

|31st (q)

|Hammer throw

|68.88 m

2018

|NACAC Championships

|Toronto, Canada

|4th

|Hammer throw

|70.45 m

rowspan=2|2019

|8th

|71.84 m

|11th

|75.20 m

2021

|Olympic Games

|Tokyo, Japan

|7th

|Hammer throw

|77.08 m

rowspan=2|2022

|World Championships

|Eugene, United States

|6th

|78.99 m

|bgcolor=gold|1st

|78.29 m

rowspan=2|2023

|8th

|76.04 m

|bgcolor=cc9966|3rd

|76.65 m

2024

|Olympic Games

|Paris, France

|6th

|Hammer throw

|77.92 m

National titles

USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships
Hammer throw: 2016
Hammer throw: 2020

Personal records<ref>{{Cite web |title=Rudy WINKLER {{!}} Profile|url=https://www.worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/rudy-winkler-14436941|access-date=2021-05-22|website=www.worldathletics.org}}</ref>

Hammer throw – {{T&Fcalc|82.71}} (2021)
Discus throw – {{T&Fcalc|51.47}} (2019)
Weight throw – {{T&Fcalc|23.32}} (2017)

References

External links

{{World Athletics}}
{{USATF}}
{{Team USA|new_id=rudy-winkler|old_id=WI/Rudy-Winkler|archive=20230318154247}}
{{Olympedia}}
{{Olympics.com profile|rudy-winkler-x1704}}
[https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/athlete/rudy-winkler_1965933 Rudy Winkler] at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics
{{2019 Pan American Games profile|athletics/athlete-profile-n1141549-winkler-rudy}}