The hammer weight, thrown by a participating high school student, flew out of bounds at the Colorado Springs meet.

"During a club sports track and field meet for high school students from across Colorado, taking place at the Mountain Lion Fieldhouse on the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs campus, a member of the attending audience was killed when a hammer thrown by a participant cleared certified barriers and struck him," the university's statement said.

An errant weight thrown by a competitor in a hammer throw event struck and killed a spectator at a youth track and field meet in Colorado, according to officials at the university where the competition was held.