Shot put at the Olympics

Shot put
at the Olympic Games

The inaugural shot put in 1896

Overview
Sport| Athletics
Gender| Men and women
Years held| Men: 1896–2020
Women: 1948–2020
Olympic record
Men| 23.30 m Ryan Crouser (2021)
Women| 22.41 m Ilona Slupianek (1980)
Reigning champion
Men|  Ryan Crouser (USA)
Women|  Yemisi Ogunleye (GER)

The shot put at the Summer Olympics is one of four track and field throwing events held at the multi-sport event. The men's shot put has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1896 (one of two throws events at the first Olympics, alongside the discus). The women's event was added to the programme at the 1948 Olympics just over fifty years later.

The Olympic record for the women's event was set by the East German Ilona Slupianek with a put of 22.41 m (73 ft 6+1⁄4 in) in 1980, and the record for the men's event of 23.30 m (76 ft 5+1⁄4 in) was set by the American Ryan Crouser in 2021.

Two variations on the event have been contested at the Olympics: a two-handed competition at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, with athletes using both left and right arm putting techniques, and a stone throw at the 1906 Intercalated Games.

## Medalists

[edit]

### Men

[edit]

Games  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze

|
|
|

edit

1896 Athens
details | Robert Garrett
United States | Miltiadis Gouskos
Greece | Georgios Papasideris
Greece
1900 Paris
details | Richard Sheldon
United States | Josiah McCracken
United States | Robert Garrett
United States
1904 St. Louis
details | Ralph Rose
United States | Wesley Coe
United States | Lawrence Feuerbach
United States
1908 London
details | Ralph Rose
United States | Denis Horgan
Great Britain | John Garrels
United States
1912 Stockholm
details | Pat McDonald
United States | Ralph Rose
United States | Lawrence Whitney
United States
1920 Antwerp
details | Ville Pörhölä
Finland | Elmer Niklander
Finland | Harry Liversedge
United States
1924 Paris
details | Bud Houser
United States | Glenn Hartranft
United States | Ralph Hills
United States
1928 Amsterdam
details | John Kuck
United States | Herman Brix
United States | Emil Hirschfeld
Germany
1932 Los Angeles
details | Leo Sexton
United States | Harlow Rothert
United States | František Douda
Czechoslovakia
1936 Berlin
details | Hans Woellke
Germany | Sulo Bärlund
Finland | Gerhard Stöck
Germany
1948 London
details | Wilbur Thompson
United States | Jim Delaney
United States | Jim Fuchs
United States
1952 Helsinki
details | Parry O'Brien
United States | Darrow Hooper
United States | Jim Fuchs
United States
1956 Melbourne
details | Parry O'Brien
United States | Bill Nieder
United States | Jiří Skobla
Czechoslovakia
1960 Rome
details | Bill Nieder
United States | Parry O'Brien
United States | Dallas Long
United States
1964 Tokyo
details | Dallas Long
United States | Randy Matson
United States | Vilmos Varjú
Hungary
1968 Mexico City
details | Randy Matson
United States | George Woods
United States | Eduard Gushchin
Soviet Union
1972 Munich
details | Władysław Komar
Poland | George Woods
United States | Hartmut Briesenick
East Germany
1976 Montreal
details | Udo Beyer
East Germany | Yevgeniy Mironov
Soviet Union | Aleksandr Baryshnikov
Soviet Union
1980 Moscow
details | Vladimir Kiselyov
Soviet Union | Aleksandr Baryshnikov
Soviet Union | Udo Beyer
East Germany
1984 Los Angeles
details | Alessandro Andrei
Italy | Mike Carter
United States | Dave Laut
United States
1988 Seoul
details | Ulf Timmermann
East Germany | Randy Barnes
United States | Werner Günthör
Switzerland
1992 Barcelona
details | Mike Stulce
United States | Jim Doehring
United States | Vyacheslav Lykho
Unified Team
1996 Atlanta
details | Randy Barnes
United States | John Godina
United States | Oleksandr Bagach
Ukraine
2000 Sydney
details | Arsi Harju
Finland | Adam Nelson
United States | John Godina
United States
2004 Athens
details | Adam Nelson
United States | Joachim Olsen
Denmark | Manuel Martínez
Spain
2008 Beijing
details | Tomasz Majewski
Poland | Christian Cantwell
United States | Dylan Armstrong
Canada
2012 London
details | Tomasz Majewski
Poland | David Storl
Germany | Reese Hoffa
United States
2016 Rio de Janeiro
details | Ryan Crouser
United States | Joe Kovacs
United States | Tom Walsh
New Zealand
2020 Tokyo
details | Ryan Crouser
United States | Joe Kovacs
United States | Tom Walsh
New Zealand
2024 Paris
details | Ryan Crouser
United States | Joe Kovacs
United States | Rajindra Campbell
Jamaica

#### Multiple medalists

[edit]

Rank  | Athlete  | Nation  | Olympics  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze  | Total

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

1  | Ryan Crouser |  United States (USA) | 2016–2024  | 3  | 0  | 0  | 3
Ralph Rose |  United States (USA) | 1904–1912 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3
Parry O'Brien |  United States (USA) | 1952–1960 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3
4  | Tomasz Majewski |  Poland (POL) | 2008–2012 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2
Joe Kovacs |  United States (USA) | 2016–2024  | 0  | 3  | 0  | 3
6 | Bill Nieder |  United States (USA) | 1956–1960 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2
Randy Matson |  United States (USA) | 1964–1968 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2
Randy Barnes |  United States (USA) | 1988–1996 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2
Adam Nelson |  United States (USA) | 2000–2004 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2
10 | Robert Garrett |  United States (USA) | 1896–1900 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2
Dallas Long |  United States (USA) | 1960–1964 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2
Udo Beyer |  East Germany (GDR) | 1976–1980 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2
13  | George Woods |  United States (USA) | 1968–1972 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2
15 | Aleksandr Baryshnikov |  Soviet Union (URS) | 1976–1980 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2
John Godina |  United States (USA) | 1996–2000 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2
17  | Tom Walsh |  New Zealand (NZL) | 2016–2020  | 0  | 0  | 2  | 2
Jim Fuchs |  United States (USA) | 1948–1952 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2

#### Medalists by country

[edit]

Rank  | Nation  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze  | Total

|
|
|
|
|

1 |  United States (USA) | 19 | 20 | 12 | 51
2 |  Poland (POL) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3
3 |  Finland (FIN) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4
4 |  East Germany (GDR) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4
5 |  Soviet Union (URS) | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5
6 |  Germany (GER) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4
7 |  Italy (ITA) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1
8 |  Greece (GRE) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2
9= |  Denmark (DEN) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1
9= |  Great Britain (GBR) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1
11 |  Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2
12= |  Belarus (BLR) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1
12= |  Hungary (HUN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1
12= |  Jamaica (JAM) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1
12= |  New Zealand (NZL) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1
12= |  Spain (ESP) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1
12= |  Switzerland (SUI) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1
12= |  Ukraine (UKR) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1
12= |  Unified Team (EUN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1

### Women

[edit]

Games  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze

|
|
|

edit

1948 London
details | Micheline Ostermeyer
France | Amelia Piccinini
Italy | Ina Schäffer
Austria
1952 Helsinki
details | Galina Zybina
Soviet Union | Marianne Werner
Germany | Klavdiya Tochonova
Soviet Union
1956 Melbourne
details | Tamara Tyshkevich
Soviet Union | Galina Zybina
Soviet Union | Marianne Werner
United Team of Germany
1960 Rome
details | Tamara Press
Soviet Union | Johanna Lüttge
United Team of Germany | Earlene Brown
United States
1964 Tokyo
details | Tamara Press
Soviet Union | Renate Culmberger
United Team of Germany | Galina Zybina
Soviet Union
1968 Mexico City
details | Margitta Gummel
East Germany | Marita Lange
East Germany | Nadezhda Chizhova
Soviet Union
1972 Munich
details | Nadezhda Chizhova
Soviet Union | Margitta Gummel
East Germany | Ivanka Khristova
Bulgaria
1976 Montreal
details | Ivanka Khristova
Bulgaria | Nadezhda Chizhova
Soviet Union | Helena Fibingerová
Czechoslovakia
1980 Moscow
details | Ilona Slupianek
East Germany | Svetlana Krachevskaya
Soviet Union | Margitta Pufe
East Germany
1984 Los Angeles
details | Claudia Losch
West Germany | Mihaela Loghin
Romania | Gael Martin
Australia
1988 Seoul
details | Natalya Lisovskaya
Soviet Union | Kathrin Neimke
East Germany | Li Meisu
China
1992 Barcelona
details | Svetlana Krivelyova
Unified Team | Huang Zhihong
China | Kathrin Neimke
Germany
1996 Atlanta
details | Astrid Kumbernuss
Germany | Sui Xinmei
China | Irina Khudoroshkina
Russia
2000 Sydney
details | Yanina Karolchik
Belarus | Larisa Peleshenko
Russia | Astrid Kumbernuss
Germany
2004 Athens
details | Yumileidi Cumbá
Cuba | Nadine Kleinert
Germany | Not awarded[1]
2008 Beijing
details | Valerie Vili
New Zealand | Misleydis González
Cuba | Gong Lijiao
China
2012 London
details | Valerie Adams
New Zealand | Gong Lijiao
China | Li Ling
China
2016 Rio de Janeiro
details | Michelle Carter
United States | Valerie Adams
New Zealand | Anita Márton
Hungary
2020 Tokyo
details | Gong Lijiao
China | Raven Saunders
United States | Valerie Adams
New Zealand
2024 Paris
details | Yemisi Ogunleye
Germany | Maddi Wesche
New Zealand | Song Jiayuan
China

#### Multiple medalists

[edit]

Rank  | Athlete  | Nation  | Olympics  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze  | Total

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

1 | Valerie Adams |  New Zealand (NZL) | 2008–2020 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4
2 | Tamara Press |  Soviet Union (URS) | 1960–1964 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2
3= | Galina Zybina |  Soviet Union (URS) | 1952–1964 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3
3= | Nadezhda Chizhova |  Soviet Union (URS) | 1968–1976 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3
5 | Margitta Gummel |  East Germany (GDR) | 1968–1972 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2
6= | Ivanka Khristova |  Bulgaria (BUL) | 1972–1976 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2
6= | Astrid Kumbernuss |  Germany (GER) | 1996–2000 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2
8= | Marianne Werner |  Germany (GER) | 1952–1956 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2
8= | Kathrin Neimke |  East Germany (GDR)
Germany (GER) | 1988–1992 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2

#### Medalists by country

[edit]

Rank  | Nation  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze  | Total

|
|
|
|
|

1 |  Soviet Union (URS) | 6 | 3 | 3 | 12
2 |  East Germany (GDR) | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6
3 |  New Zealand (NZL) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4
4 |  Belarus (BLR) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3
5= |  Bulgaria (BUL) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2
5= |  United States (USA) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3
7= |  Cuba (CUB) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1
7= |  France (FRA) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1
7= |  Unified Team (EUN) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1
7= |  West Germany (FRG) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1
11 |  Germany (GER)[nb] | 0 | 4 | 3 | 7
12 |  China (CHN) | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4
13 |  Russia (RUS) | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3
14= |  Italy (ITA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1
14= |  Romania (ROM) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1
16= |  Australia (AUS) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1
16= |  Austria (AUT) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1
16= |  Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1

* nb The German total includes teams both competing as Germany and the United Team of Germany, but not East or West Germany.

## Intercalated Games

[edit]

The 1906 Intercalated Games were held in Athens and at the time were officially recognised as part of the Olympic Games series, with the intention being to hold a games in Greece in two-year intervals between the internationally held Olympics. However, this plan never came to fruition and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) later decided not to recognise these games as part of the official Olympic series. Some sports historians continue to treat the results of these games as part of the Olympic canon.[2]

At this event a men's shot put was held and Martin Sheridan of the United States won the competition. Hungary's Mihály Dávid was the runner-up while Swedish thrower Eric Lemming was the bronze medalist.[3]

Games  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze

|
|
|

1906 Athens
details |  Martin Sheridan (USA) |  Mihály Dávid (HUN) |  Eric Lemming (SWE)

A stone throw event, similar to the shot put, was also contested for the first and only time at an Olympic event. Athletes were allowed to throw rather than put the implement, which weighed 14 pounds (6.35 kg). Nikolaos Georgantas won the event for the host nation, while Sheridan (filling in for his absent team mate, Jim Mitchel) placed second. Another Greek, Mikhail Dorizas, came third.[4]

Games  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze

|
|
|

1906 Athens
details |  Nikolaos Georgantas (GRE) |  Martin Sheridan (USA) |  Mikhail Dorizas (GRE)

## Two-handed shot put

[edit]

At the 1912 Stockholm Olympics a two-handed variant of the standard shot put competition took place. Each athlete had three attempts at the shot using each hand and their score was calculated by adding their best performances for the left and right hands. It featured two rounds, with the top three after the first round receiving a further three attempts with each arm.[5]

Ralph Rose, a two-time Olympic champion in the standard shot put, topped the competition. Pat McDonald, who defeated Rose in the 1912 regular shot put final, took the silver medal.[6] Elmer Niklander of Finland came third and went on to place in the top four of all the Olympic shot put and discus events that year.[7]

Games  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze

|
|
|

1912 Athens
details |  Ralph Rose (USA) |  Pat McDonald (USA) |  Elmer Niklander (FIN)

## References

[edit]

Participation and athlete data

* Athletics Men's Shot Put Medalists. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-04-18.
* Athletics Women's Shot Put Medalists. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-04-18.

Olympic record progressions

* Mallon, Bill (2012). TRACK & FIELD ATHLETICS - OLYMPIC RECORD PROGRESSIONS. Track and Field News. Retrieved on 2014-03-12.

Specific

1. ^ Athens 2004 Athletics Medalists. Olympic.org. Retrieved on 2014-04-19.
2. ^ 1906 Athina Summer Games. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-01-26.
3. ^ Athletics at the 1906 Athina Summer Games: Men's Shot Put. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-04-18.
4. ^ Athletics at the 1906 Athina Summer Games: Men's Stone Throw. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-04-18.
5. ^ Athletics at the 1912 Stockholm Summer Games: Men's Shot Put, Both Hands Qualifying Round. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-04-18.
6. ^ Athletics at the 1912 Stockholm Summer Games: Men's Shot Put, Both Hands. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-04-18.
7. ^ Elmer Niklander. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-04-18.

## External links

[edit]

* IAAF shot put homepage
* Official Olympics website
* Olympic athletics records from Track & Field News

* v
* t
* e

Shot put at the Olympic Games

Summary

Men|

* 1896
* 1900
* 1904
* 1908
* 1912
* 1920
* 1924
* 1928
* 1932
* 1936
* 1948
* 1952
* 1956
* 1960
* 1964
* 1968
* 1972
* 1976
* 1980
* 1984
* 1988
* 1992
* 1996
* 2000
* 2004
* 2008
* 2012
* 2016
* 2020
* 2024

Women|

* 1896
* 1900
* 1904
* 1908
* 1912
* 1920
* 1924
* 1928
* 1932
* 1936
* 1948
* 1952
* 1956
* 1960
* 1964
* 1968
* 1972
* 1976
* 1980
* 1984
* 1988
* 1992
* 1996
* 2000
* 2004
* 2008
* 2012
* 2016
* 2020
* 2024

See also: 1912 Men's two handed shot put

* v
* t
* e

Athletics at the Summer Olympics

Editions|

* 1896
* 1900
* 1904
* 1906 (Intercalated)
* 1908
* 1912
* 1920
* 1924
* 1928
* 1932
* 1936
* 1948
* 1952
* 1956
* 1960
* 1964
* 1968
* 1972
* 1976
* 1980
* 1984
* 1988
* 1992
* 1996
* 2000
* 2004
* 2008
* 2012
* 2016
* 2020
* 2024

Events|

| Track|

* 100 m
* 200 m
* 400 m
* 800 m
* 1500 m
* 5000 m
* 10,000 m
* 4 × 100 m relay
* 4 × 400 m relay
* Sprint hurdles
* 400 m hurdles
* Steeplechase

|

Field|

* Shot put
* Discus throw
* Hammer throw
* Javelin throw
* Pole vault
* High jump
* Long jump
* Triple jump

Others|

* Combined events
* Marathon
* Race walking

Defunct|

* Cross country
* Team races
* 60 metres
* Weight throw
* Wheelchair racing
* Professional events
* Handicap events

* List of medalists
* men
* women
* Records
* Venues
* Medal sweeps

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template