20 meter club

The 20 meter club (20 metrin kerho in Finnish) is an unregistered Finnish association for Finnish shot putters who have put the shot more than 20 meters (66 ft) in an official competition using a 7.26 kg (16.0 lb) shot for men and a 4 kg (8.8 lb) for women.

The 20 meter club was founded on April 28, 1983, at Eerikkilä Sports Academy with six men being selected as members. One of the goals of the club is to promote the development of shot putting in Finland.

The club meets twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall. In its fall meeting, the club awards the "Kultapoju" or Golden Boy to a promising shot putter. The Golden Boy is a brass shot that is slightly larger than the current standard shot, although it weighs less (6.2 kg (14 lb), orig. 6.6 kg (15 lb)). The first recipient of the Golden Boy award was Kari Töyrylä in 1985; Töyrylä became a member of the club in 1986 after his put of 20.05 m (65.8 ft) on July 2, 1986. The last recipient to date was Niko Hauhia, who also received a EUR 500 stipend for training. The club also awards training grants in order to promote and help athletes develop.