Gatis Čakšs
Gatis Čakšs is a Latvian athlete specialising in the javelin throw. He has competed at multiple major championships, including the 2024 Paris Olympics. He won the gold medal at the 2014 World Junior Championships.
Career
He won the gold medal at the 2014 World Junior Championships in Eugene, Oregon with a throw of 75.04 metres to win from Slovenian Matija Muhar, by over a metre. He made his Diamond League debut in 2018 in Birmingham, England, and finished in sixth place with a best throw of 80.96 metres.In 2019, he became National senior champion at the Latvian Athletics Championships with a throw of 84.04 metres. In August 2020, he retained his national championship title at the Latvian Athletics Championships with a throw of 83.80 metres. In June 2021, he won the Latvian national title for a third time at the Latvian Athletics Championships, with a throw of 81.96 metres. In June 2021, he moved to second on the Latvian all-time list by winning in Eisenstadt, Austria, with a throw of 87.57 metres. He competed at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2021, but did not progress to the final with a best throw of 78.73 metres.
In 2022, he took part in the 2022 European Athletics Championships in Munich. He was selected for the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest in August 2023, but did not make the final.
In June 2024, he competed at the 2024 European Athletics Championships in Rome. He threw 79.42 metres in qualifying but did not proceed through to the final. He competed in the javelin at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris in August 2024, but failed to record a throw.