Bence Halász had settled for two European silvers and a bronze, but a national record and world-leading 84.25m finally delivered the title that had eluded him — and moved him to 10th on the world all-time list in the process.

If at first you don’t succeed, throw, throw again. Until this week in Birmingham, Bence Halász has been the nearly man of the hammer throwing world, but on Tuesday he won his first European title with a mighty 84.25m. It puts him No.10 on the world all-time rankings, is a world-leading mark for 2026 and takes down the long-standing Hungarian record.

Halász, who turned 29 earlier this month, won silver at the last two European Championships in Rome 2024 and Munich 2022, plus bronze in Berlin 2018.

In addition to this he won Olympic silver in Paris 2024 and three separate World Championships bronzes (2019, 2023, 2025).

In second place, Merlin Hummel of Germany threw 81.30m with Mykhaylo Kokhan of Ukraine third with 79.49m.

Arriving in Birmingham, Halász’s season’s best was "only" 81.87m and a lifetime best of 83.18m from Budapest last August, so 84.25m today isn't just a national record, it's a personal best by over a metre.

And the record he took, 84.19m, belonged to Adrián Annus — set on August 10 in 2003, almost exactly 23 years to the day before Halász beat it.

Annus won the European title in 2002 as well but was stripped of an Olympic title in 2004 for doping, so fans of clean sport will enjoy the fact Halász has erased it from the record books.

"This feels awesome," said the winner. "I am shocked. I was not expecting this kind of result. When I released the hammer, I was thinking, 'okay, this is a very good throw, maybe 83 metres.' And then I was shocked when I saw the result. This season was much harder than in previous years. But it was all worth it.

"For sure this is the best performance of my life. But it will be very hard to overcome the excitement at my next competition. I had this feeling in Budapest in 2023 at the world championships on my home soil. But these championships in Birmingham are very close to it."

Halász’s season is far from over as well. Next month the World Athletics Ultimate Championship are staged in his home country of Hungary and he is set to face Olympic and world champion Ethan Katzberg of Canada.

Britain's Jake Norris was 11th with a best of 74.61m and said: "It was good in the end, not quite the distance I wanted but it’s right there, and I’m happy with how it went. The crowd was great and I wish I could have pulled on out for them but it’s just what happens."

On getting to the European final, he added: “It’s definitely no easy feat. Hammer throw has continued to be dominated by the eastern Europeans and Germans. This is one of thew toughest competitions until you get to a Worlds or Olympics even making a final here is no easy feat so I’m happy with how I did and how I performed."

Men's hammer: 1 Bence Halász (HUN) 84.25 WL, NR; 2 Merlin Hummel (GER) 81.30; 3 Mykhaylo Kokhan (UKR) 79.49; 4 Volodymyr Myslyvchuk (CZE) 79.42; 5 Paweł Fajdek (POL) 79.13; 6 Sören Klose (GER) 78.13; 7 Hilmar Örn Jónsson (ISL) 77.26; 8 Ármin Szabados (HUN) 76.91; … 11 Jake Norris (GBR) 74.61