Shot Put, Men

There was no bigger favorite in athletics at Tokyo than American Ryan Crouser in the shot put, who was also the defending gold medalist. Crouser had not won the 2019 World Championship, losing by a centimetre to his teammate Joe Kovacs, but he had since re-written the all-time performance list. He had broken the world record with 23.37 at the US Olympic Trials and had multiple throws over 75 feet (22.86). The three medallists were back with Kovacs and New Zealander Tom Walsh still expected to challenge for medals.

In round one of the final Crouser took the lead with an Olympic record 22.83, the #13 performance of all-time. He extended that lead in round two with 22.93, the #4 performance ever. He continued his amazing series, bettering the pre-Tokyo Olympic record with all six throws, and finally, in round six, tossing 23.30, a mark bettered only by his own world record. His average throw in the finals was 22.87, a mark surpassed by only four other throwers.

Behind Crouser, Kovacs and Walsh contested the other medals, as the other competitors were basically a sideshow. Kovacs threw 22.19 in round one to stand second, while in round four he would improve to 22.65, with Walsh in third at 22.17. Walsh improved in round five with 22.18, but still stood third. In the final round Walsh threw 22.47 to solidify bronze while Kovacs threw 22.60, not enough to improve but a significant throw, and he would win silver.

In the end the podium was as expected – Crouser gold, Kovacs silver, Walsh bronze – which was the exact same podium as at Rio de Janeiro in 2016. After 125 years of modern Olympic Games, that marked the first time in Olympic history that an individual podium in any sport or event had been exactly the same at two consecutive Olympic Games.