As the only man to throw in excess of seventy metres that season, reigning world and Olympic champion Gerd Kanter of Estonia was the event favourite.
The season had been of a high standard, with a number of athletes throwing over 65 m, including Frank Casañas, Bogdan Pishchalnikov and Zoltán Kővágó.
Consistently throwing better than the rest of the field, Harting and Małachowski battled for the top spot.
The Pole improved his lead with 69.15 m in the fifth round, another national record, but Harting took the gold with his final throw of the competition, recording a personal best of 69.43 m.[3][4] The victory for the home athlete was marred by his controversial comments regarding an initiative by victims of doping in East Germany.
Harting said that he wished his discus would bounce from the ground and hit wearers in the eyes, but he later retracted and apologise for his statement.