BUDAPEST, Hungary (August 19) — American world record holder Ryan Crouser delivered yet another impressive performance to win the men’s Shot Put at the 2023 World Athletics Championships on the first Day of competition on Saturday.
The now two-time Olympic champion twice shattered his own world championship record, culminating in a staggering 23.51 meters throw in the sixth round to secure the world championship shot put gold for the second consecutive time.
Men’s Shot Put Final Medalists
| POS | COUNTRY | ATHLETE | MARK | MEDAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | USA | Ryan CROUSER | 23.51 CR | 🥇 |
| 2 | ITA | Leonardo FABBRI | 22.34 PB | 🥈 |
| 3 | USA | Joe KOVACS | 22.12 | 🥉 |
“It’s been a terrible preparation, the last 20 days have been very tough,” The USA star, who was affected by blood clots in a lower leg, said afterwards.
The day’s events were not without challenges, as stormy weather earlier disrupted the start of the championships in the morning session where Crouser threw 21.48m to qualify for the final comfortably. – Read more: Oblique Seville sets the pace with 9.86secs: Men’s 100m results
During his series in the final, the 30-year-old first broke the championship record with a throw of 22.98m in the second round to improve his previous mark from 22.94m, set in Oregon last summer.
Crouser opened with 22.63m and also did 22.28m in the third round.
Italy’s Leonardo Fabbri delivered the throw of his life in round three –tossing the shot to 22.34m to set a new PB and secured the silver medal. It was the first time he has surpassing the 22 meters mark and he picked the right time to find his best form.
USA’s Joe Kovacs, who was the 2015 and 2019 world champion, at one point found himself in seventh, but was able to recover to collect the bronze medal with 22.12m, while New Zealand’s Tom Walsh threw an impressive 22.05m to also go beyond 22 meters in round four, but had to settle for fourth place today.
The championships, which commenced amidst weather delays, will continue until August 27. The the men’s shot put was an event picked out as a highlight by World Athletics president Sebastian Coe prior to the start of the championships.
PHOTO: Ryan Crouser (c) with Joe Kovacs and Leonardo Fabbri after the men’s shot put finals at the 2023 World Athletics Championships. Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images
Men’s Shot Put Results – Final
| Pos | Country | Athletes | Mark |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | USA | Ryan CROUSER | 23.51 CR |
| 2 | ITA | Leonardo FABBRI | 22.34 PB |
| 3 | USA | Joe KOVACS | 22.12 |
| 4 | NZL | Tom WALSH | 22.05 |
| 5 | USA | Payton OTTERDAHL | 21.86 |
| 6 | NZL | Jacko GILL | 21.76 |
| 7 | CRO | Filip MIHALJEVIĆ | 21.57 |
| 8 | BRA | Darlan ROMANI | 21.41 |
| 9 | SRB | Armin SINANČEVIĆ | 20.78 |
| 10 | EGY | Mostafa Amr HASSAN | 20.17 |
| 11 | ITA | Zane WEIR | 19.99 |
| JAM | Rajindra CAMPBELL | NM |
