Career
Before the 2001 World Championships he had made his mark in Asian athletics. He started with a bronze medal at the 1993 East Asian Games. At the Asian Championships he won silver medals in 1993, 1995. He won the silver medal at the 1994 Asian Games and then took his first title 1997 East Asian Games. A silver medal at the 1998 Asian Championship was followed by a gold medal at the 1998 Asian Games. In global events, he finished eighth at the 1992 World Junior Championships, tenth at the 1997 World Championships and ninth at the 2000 Olympic Games.
He scored gold medals at the both the 2001 Goodwill Games and the 2001 East Asian Games – setting a Games record at the latter event. After the 2001 World Championships, he proceeded by winning the 2002 Asian Championships and Asian Games as well as a silver medal at the 2002 World Cup and a bronze medal at the 2003 World Championships. That year he threw 84.86 metres, which was the longest hammer throw in over ten years, putting Murofushi fifth on the all-time performer's list. Among the favorites at the 2004 Summer Olympics, he eventually won the gold medal after the disqualification of Adrián Annus, and in 2004 gained a doctorate in physical education from the Chyukyo University, in Nagoya, where he is now an associate professor in the Faculty of Sports Science.
In July 2006 he won the World Athletics Final and the World Cup. He finished sixth at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics, third at the 2007 World Athletics Final, and fifth at the 2008 Olympic Games. Two medalists, Vadim Devyatovskiy and Ivan Tsikhan, were first disqualified for failing the doping test, but won the appeal and had their medals reinstated.
At the 2009 Japanese Championships, Murofushi retained his national title, winning his fifteenth consecutive championships at the event. He increased his title total again the following year.
He made a world-leading throw of 80.99 m at the Rieti IAAF Grand Prix meeting which ranked him first place in the inaugural IAAF Hammer Throw Challenge. He remained ahead of second-placed Dilshod Nazarov at the end of the series, winning with a score of 238.52 (the combined total of his three best throws on the circuit).
In July 2011, Olympic news outlet Around the Rings reported that the Japanese Olympic Committee nominated Murofushi for the IOC's Athletes Commission. Elections will take place during the Olympics. The commission represents the athletes' views at the IOC.
Read more about this topic: Koji Murofushi
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