Shot put at the Olympic Games | |
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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.