“The HARDEST World Record in Track and Field was Finally Broken.” This was the title of the video that followed a 21-year-old track and field athlete doing the impossible. Jur­gen Schult’s men’s discus world record stood at 74.08 metres, set on June 6, 1986, in Neubrandenburg (then East Germany). Almost four decades later, this young athlete came toying with the disc into the throwing circle to break that record. On April 14, 2024, in Ramona, Oklahoma, he threw the disc for a distance of 74.35 m, breaking the record. Now, when a man of such stature enters the NCAATF, you expect him to win. But…

For Mykolas Alekna, the first time it was so nice, he had to do it twice. Same month, same place, just a year later. The World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze meeting in Ramona, Oklahoma, did not just witness a world record but history as well. Alekna, now 22, threw the disc for 75.56 meters. Not only did he break the world record, but he also became the first track and field athlete to surpass the 75-meter mark. Now he must have won the NCAATF championship, right? Only if…

It takes a record to defeat the record holder, and that is exactly what happened at the final of the NCAATF discus throw finals. It was a battle of beasts and bests when Mykolas Alekna and Olympian Ralford Mullings of the University of Oklahoma went face to face. Alekna threw the disc at a distance of 66.77m. Jamaica’s Ralford Mullings broke the 33-year-old NCAA discus throw record, pushing the two-time world record holder to number 2.

Kamy Keshmiri of the University of Nevada in 1992 threw the disc for 67.06m, the meet record to this date, until the Jamaican threw it for 67.70m in the third round. Mullings also threw 67.48m in the fifth round before ending the competition with 69.31m. This marked the third NCAA final defeat for Alekna. Despite being one of the most dominant discus throwers in history, he is  yet to win an NCAA title.

In 2022, as a freshman at Cal, he set a collegiate record earlier in the season but was narrowly beaten at the NCAA Outdoor Championships by Virginia’s Claudio Romero, finishing 2nd. In 2023, he returned stronger and again held the collegiate record (71.00 m), but placed 3rd at the NCAA Championships in Austin. He did not compete in the 2024 NCAA season as he redshirted the year to focus on the Paris Olympics, where he won a silver medal. But for him, the story is far from over.

It isn’t over for Mykolas Alekna

Mykolas Alekna’s college career may have missed NCAA gold, but his resume is filled with a queue of accolades. As a freshman in 2022, he became a two-time Pac-12 Champion, broke the collegiate discus record multiple times (culminating in a stunning 68.73 m), and swept weekly honors—including Pac‑12 Freshman and Field Athlete of the Year as well as first-ever Cal male to win two USTFCCCA Division I Athlete of the Week awards. He also earned First‑Team All‑American honors that year and was a semifinalist for both the Bowerman and the Sullivan Award.

In 2023, the track and field athlete raised the bar by throwing a massive 71.00 m at the Big Meet, becoming the youngest athlete ever to cross the 70 m mark in college competition. He also successfully defended his Pac‑12 title and was named a First‑Team All‑American once again. In the 2025 season, Mykolas Alekna won his third Pac‑12 title, set a new meet record (70.40 m), and earned another First-Team All-American honor. He threw 71.29 m at the Big Meet and 70.09 m at the Brutus Hamilton Invitational, both among the top collegiate marks ever. He also appeared on the Bowerman Watch List for a record 22nd time, the most by any collegiate thrower in history.

So the question needs to be asked. Why can’t he do it again? Alekna still has college eligibility left, and the redshirt rule gives him strategic flexibility. After competing in 2022–23, he redshirted his junior year to focus on the Paris Olympics—saving a season of eligibility while still training with Cal. Since NCAA athletes get four years of competition across five academic years, Alekna enters next season with at least one more shot at NCAA gold.