American Ryan Crouser on Saturday became the first man to win the shot put at the Olympics three times in a row, adding another gold medal to his trophy cabinet with an impressive throw of 22.90 meters.
His compatriot Joe Kovacs won silver and Jamaica’s Rajindra Campbell took bronze.
Crouser, the world record holder, had been struggling with a nerve problem in his elbow this year, but he had no problems at the Stade de France. On his third attempt, he threw his best throw of the season, clapping his hands with satisfaction.
It was another victory that underscored American dominance in the event. The U.S. now has 20 gold medals in the men’s shot put at the Olympics. Poland is second best, with three.
Crouser, a two-time world champion, clapped his hands and cheered as he cleared 22.64 meters on his first throw, a performance that would have been good enough to take him to the top of the podium had he done no better.
He egged on the crowd before his second attempt, pumping his fist in the air after throwing 22.69 metres. Fans erupted in anger when he broke his record with his third throw.
Halfway through the competition, rain began to fall and several competitors slipped, including Crouser, who made mistakes on his next two attempts. He missed the sixth throw, securing the gold.
Crouser, who has said he can break his own world record of 23.56 meters, raised his arms and grinned broadly as the crowd cheered him.
Campbell was not known to everyone, but he managed to capture the attention of the crowd with a fantastic throw of 22.15 meters on his second attempt.
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Kovacs was fourth when he burst onto the podium in dramatic fashion, throwing a shot of 22.15m on his final attempt to equal Campbell’s best performance, taking silver over the Jamaican on the back of his second-best throw.