Julia Ratcliffe

Julia Ratcliffe (born 14 July 1993) is a retired New Zealand track and field athlete who specialised in the hammer throw. She won the gold medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in the Gold Coast, and won silver medals at both the 2014 Commonwealth Games and 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Personal life Ratcliffe was born in Hamilton to Dave and Sue Ratcliffe, and has one older sister, Sarah. She attended Waikato Diocesan School for Girls, where she was head girl and dux in her final year. In her youth, she participated in various sports including hockey, netball, and hurdling.

Ratcliffe attended Princeton University in New Jersey, United States. She graduated in 2017 with a Bachelor of Arts, with a major in economics and a certificate in political economy.

Career Ratcliffe began participating in hammer throw at age 12.

Ratcliffe held the New Zealand national record in the hammer throw from July 2012 until September 2020. She reclaimed the national title in March 2021, setting a new national record of 73.55 metres at the New Zealand Track and Field Championships.

In April 2021, Ratcliffe was selected to compete at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Ratcliffe announced her retirement on 13 January 2023.

Statistics

Annual progression Source: Athletics New Zealand Records & Rankings

International results

Year Event Location Place 2008 Pacific School Games Canberra 1st 2009 Australian Youth Olympic Festival Sydney 1st 2009 IAAF World Youth Championships Brixen 10th 2010 Oceania Youth Championships Sydney 1st 2010 Youth Olympic Games Singapore 11th 2012 Bauhaus Junioren-Gala Mannheim 1st 2012 IAAF World Junior Championships Barcelona 4th 2013 World University Games Kazan 8th 2014 Commonwealth Games Glasgow 2nd 2015 World University Games Gwangju 3rd 2017 IAAF World Championships London 26th 2017 World University Games Taipei 11th 2018 Commonwealth Games Gold Coast 1st 2019 Oceania Championships in Athletics Townsville 1st 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 14th 2021 Summer Olympics Tokyo 9th 2022 World Athletics Championships Eugene 16th 2022 Commonwealth Games Birmingham 2nd