Aussies have called for Canada’s Ethan Katzberg to take a DNA test after being blown away by his striking, but very familiar, appearance at the Olympic Games.
Katzberg, 22, won gold in the men’s hammer throw in Paris on Sunday to further cement his dominance of the discipline after becoming the youngest ever world champion last year.
The Canadian cuts a distinctive figure with his moustache and long curly hair, and asserted himself with a first throw of 84.12 metres, and none of his rivals could respond.
But all Aussies are asking the same thing after Katzberg’s triumph, with many convinced he boasts Australian DNA.
‘Nah I want a DNA test, this man is clearly Australian’ one person said on X.
Another said: ‘Canadians are Northern Hemisphere Australians. Request denied.’
A third fan quipped: ‘They’re just appropriating the Aussie male look.’
Others likened Katzberg’s look to Neighbours legend Toadfish Rebecchi, while one fan joked: ‘DNA will prove him a German porn actor from 1978.’
People are calling for Canada’s Ethan Katzberg to take a DNA test
The Canadian triumphed in Paris on Sunday, winning gold in the men’s hammer throw
Reflecting on his victory, the 22-year-old said: ‘I don’t think I expected it, but I had the preparation in mind to get a good round on the first throw, and to throw 84 metres felt really good.’
Hungary’s Bence Halasz won silver with 79.97 and Ukraine’s Mykhaylo Kokhan won bronze with 79.39.
The three hammer throwers jokingly took turns to put questions to each other in the press conference after their win, as journalists in the Stade de France thronged the men’s 100-metre medallists instead.
A podium of Katzberg, Halasz, who was celebrating his 27th birthday on Sunday, and 23-year-old Kokhan, represented a changing of the guard as defending Olympic champion, Poland’s Wojciech Nowicki, 35, finished seventh and his teammate, Tokyo bronze medallist Pawel Fajdek, was fifth, taking a bow after his final throw.
But Aussies believe he must have links Down Under, given his distinctive look
Norway’s Eivind Henriksen, who won silver in Tokyo, was fourth.
Kokhan, who secured his bronze medal after Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh and Iryna Gerashchenko won gold and bronze in the high jump, said it was a great night for his country.
‘These medals are very important for Ukraine. Because our people finally have happy time, they can cheer us, and they can celebrate this with us. Not to think about the war for one day,’ he said.
Hammer throw world champion Ethan Katzberg has become the Olympic champion, becoming the first Canadian to win the gold in the event since 1956.
